Published Release Notes

Extended currency control

The currency control can now display a different currency than the locale currency. This means a user in one country can view amounts that are designated in a foreign currency, using that currency's international conventions.  For example, a credit card transaction in Germany might need to be posted in US dollars. 

Responsive layout groups and grids

The Responsive UI was introduced in Version 7.1, and has now been enhanced in two areas, to create an entirely responsive UI.

PRPC 7.1.4 introduces the Layout Group control, which can render its contents as “tabs,” “accordions,” or as a “menu.”  The rendering choice is driven through the presentation layout (the skin), which presents the information responsively:  a “tab” at a certain breakpoint can turn into an “accordion” or a dropdown-style menu, depending upon what format would be most appropriate for the device/screen size being used.

The grid functionality has also been enhanced, so that grids may be displayed on a tablet or a phone without the need for horizontal scrolling, offering the optimum experience on a mobile device.  A PRPC Grid Layout now supports responsive breakpoints in the skin definition in which columns can drop off or be consolidated according to screen size.

Designers will be able to mark columns in the grid by importance, and at the first breakpoint, the columns marked as “less important” will be dropped off first.  At the second breakpoint, the grid turns into a “fat list,” with the most important column displaying as a heading for each item in the “fat list.”  Styling options can be associated with these breakpoints.

Improved accessibility support

PRPC support for accessibility has been enhanced to allow applications to better meet the standards of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), 2.0 AA. 

Input Method Editor (IME) support

PRPC has added support for the Microsoft Windows Input Method Editor (IME), to allow developers to enter complex characters in four different East Asian languages using the standard keyboard.  The IME is a way to create input using a keyboard, by using additional windows for character editing or selection, in order to facilitate entry of alternate writing systems.

User Interface

This release had a focus around improving support for accessibility for all the PRPC UI Components as well as extending capabilities for responsive design with grids and tabs. A series of cosmetic changes and fixes are included.

• Improvements have been made for action items being opened in a dynamic container.
• Row repeat functionality in sections has been improved to better handle source properties.
• Screen layouts have been optimized for the iPhone platform
• The display on dynamic containers has been enhanced to provide the same behavior for both single-mode and multi-mode.
• The Launch Harness feature has been improved to launch into a pop-up window.
• The operator menu will now display from the Case Manager portal.
• The Primary Page functionality has been enhanced for control-defined Repeating Tab Headers.
• Using local actions defined as modal windows has been enhanced to work in an iPAD using a Safari browser.
• When using a modal dialog to open a flow action in a repeat grid, to add an item to the list, users may now cancel out of this dialog if no changes are needed.

Revamped view authoring in Cosmos React

Applications that use Cosmos React now feature updated case and portal authoring tools, including more templates, improved view editing, and more intuitive management of UI components.

This change empowers citizen developers to build applications through configuration as opposed to customization, and reduces development time while also providing a prescriptive environment for creating optimal customer experience.

For more information, see Configuring forms and views.

Improved UI accessibility

Pega Platform™ now supports W3C Web Accessibility Initiative guidelines more fully, which creates a better user experience for people who rely on assistive technologies, such as screen readers.

The user interface now features the following enhancements:

• Improved keyboard navigation and updated ARIA attributes for layouts, including dynamic, repeating, and table layouts.
• Updated navigation for AJAX and dynamic containers.
• More precise keyboard navigation and focus control for pop-up components, such as SmartTips.
• Fixed accessibility gaps in out-of-the-box actionable controls and form components, such as buttons and text fields.
• More accessible error messages with improved color schemes and focus control. To meet the WCAG ARIA guidelines, the Show next Error bar has been retired and substituted with more accessible error symbols.
• Accessibility code included in the Pega Platform ruleset by default, without the need for additional configuration.

For more information, see Supported keyboard navigation.

Improved scroll functionality in vertical tabs

When you scroll content in an application that uses the Cosmos theme, the UI now remembers the scroll position even if you switch between vertical tabs, for example, in the case details section. Previously, the application reset the page to the topmost position every time you switched tabs. This update improves the user experience by reducing context switching.

Loading cues in Pega Platform

Pega Platform™ applications that rely on the Cosmos React framework now feature a visual placeholder for the page that is being loaded. The system displays an indicator when loading portals, cases, simple pages, and list pages. This update provides users with a visual cue that their request is being processed, which improves the user experience.

Support for picklists with parameterized data pages in App Studio in Cosmos React UI

You can now use data pages with parameters to populate a property of the picklist type with filtered results in App Studio. For example, in a survey case type, you can use a parameterized data page to configure cascading drop-down controls in which the values in a secondary drop-down list are based on the value that the user selects in the primary drop-down list. With dynamically-sourced picklists, you get greater flexibility in configuring picklists, and users see more accurate values.

For more information, see link Dropdown control Properties — General tab.