Icecat Release Notes 209-210: Transforming Performance, Security, and User Experience

In release notes 209-210, we are excited to share a series of impactful developments across multiple areas of the Icecat platform. From the launch of the new Catalog Object Cloud Service and enhanced performance with the migration to Server-Side Rendering (SSR) to the introduction of the improved Editor Journal Version 2, this sprint represents a significant leap forward in delivering a faster, and user-friendly experience. For additional details, please refer to the previous Icecat Release Notes.

Introducing the Catalog Object Cloud Service

In this release, we introduced a significant update to our product XML: the <CatalogObjectCloud> tag. This new addition is now available for all products of sponsor brands without restrictions, providing a streamlined way for partners and customers to access valuable product information.

The <CatalogObjectCloud> tag includes a key feature: the QRCodeURL attribute, which contains the QR code link for each product page. Here’s how it looks:

<CatalogObjectCloud>
<ProductPage QRCodeURL="https://qr.icecat.biz/coc/{product_uuid}" URL="https://coc.icecat.biz/{product_uuid}"/>
</CatalogObjectCloud>

• QRCodeURL Attribute: Provides a scannable link to the product page.
• URL Attribute: Offers a direct link to the product’s permanent page.

When you scan the QR code, your browser’s language preferences automatically detect the appropriate locale. This QR code can be easily integrated into marketing materials or printed on product packaging, enabling customers to access detailed product information with a quick scan.

The product pages are hosted on our new Catalog Object Cloud service. This platform is designed to provide comprehensive product information, ensuring accessibility even in cases where the product might be deleted or subject to restrictions. The product page links are truly permanent, ensuring longevity and reliability for our partners and end customers.

Until we develop a fully-fledged Digital Product Passport, the Catalog Object Cloud service includes:

• Product Images;
• Basic Information: product code, brand, family, and series (if applicable);
• GTINs;
• Bullet Points;
• Feature Logos;
• Specifications;
• Manuals.

This update provides sponsor brands and their channel partners with a reliable tool to enhance customer engagement:

1. Simplified Access: Customers can scan QR codes directly from product packaging or marketing materials.
2. Localized Experience: The QR code automatically adapts to the user’s language preferences.
3. Permanent Links: Assurance that the product page will remain accessible over time.

For now, we encourage our partners to start leveraging this exciting new feature for their marketing and packaging needs.

Icecat.biz Migration to Server-Side Rendering (SSR): Progress Update

In our latest release, we’ve taken another significant step in the migration of Icecat.biz to Server-Side Rendering (SSR). Two additional pages have successfully transitioned to SSR:  

• Product Pages
• Authorization Request Response Pages  

These changes enhance performance, improve maintainability, and align with our strategy of unifying all pages under the SSR stack.  

Major Impact: Product Pages  

The migration of product pages to SSR marks a milestone due to their pivotal role in delivering product information. This change has had a noticeable impact on performance and user experience. Post-migration, we conducted testing on a random product page using Lighthouse, and the results were impressive:  

• Performance: 96  
• Accessibility: 87  
• Best Practices: 100  
• SEO: 92  

These scores highlight improved speed, enhanced accessibility, and adherence to modern web development best practices. The boost in SEO ensures better visibility and ranking in search engines, benefiting both users and partners by increasing discoverability.  

Improved Authorization Request Response Pages  

The migration of authorization request response pages (the pages brand partners interact with when accepting or denying channel partner requests) also showed significant performance gains:  

• Performance: 99  
• Accessibility: 90  
• Best Practices: 100  

Unlike product pages, these response pages are not indexed or included in the sitemap. They exist exclusively to handle brand partner actions and are temporary by nature. However, migrating them to SSR ensures that all our pages are consolidated under one stack, streamlining development and maintenance.  

Robots.txt Optimization

Another key enhancement of this sprint was an update to our robots.txt file, adding a setting that prevents search crawlers from scanning our search API.

Results and Impact:

• Improved System Performance: Blocking search crawlers reduced unnecessary server load.
• Elimination of Poor Pages: All pages with load times exceeding 4 seconds were removed, significantly boosting overall site performance.
• Enhanced User Experience: Users benefit from faster navigation and a more reliable platform.

This optimization is expected to have a lasting positive impact on user satisfaction and system stability.

The ultimate goal is to deliver a faster, more cohesive, and user-friendly Icecat.biz experience for all users.  We’re excited about the progress so far and look forward to sharing more updates as we continue to refine and enhance the platform

Introducing Editor Journal Version 2: Faster, Smarter, and More Reliable

We are thrilled to announce the release of Editor Journal Version 2, a revamped tool designed to enhance the productivity and efficiency of our Editors team. This update represents a significant leap forward, bringing improved performance, reliability, and user-centric features.

Key Highlights of Editor Journal Version 2

The new Editor Journal interface is now available to Icecat users via the Icecat Cloud under the Statistics menu. In this release:

• The first page of the new interface is partially completed, allowing users to review editor performance.
• Users can see a list of editors alongside the number of products they have:
  • Described: Calculated using the existing logic from the previous version.
  • Modified: Counted using a newly introduced methodology for improved accuracy.

The interface introduces several advanced filters, enabling users to customize and refine their views:

• Date Period Filter: Set a range with “From” and “To” fields for time-specific insights.
• Editor: Select from a list of all editors who worked on product descriptions.
• User Type: Group users based on their roles or specific categories of contributors.
• Managed By: Filter results by the manager overseeing a group of editors.
• Category: Narrow results to specific product categories.
• Part Code: Search for users who made changes to a specific product.

To improve usability, the interface includes:

• Rows per Page: Adjustable settings to customize the number of rows displayed.
• Pagination with Page Jumper: Quickly navigate to any page in the results.

Introducing New Product History

The Product History feature complements the Editor Journal, leveraging a common database to deliver a seamless experience.

In this sprint, we finalized the migration of product history data, enabling users to:

• Access complete product histories for all time periods.
• Gain deeper insights into product updates and changes.

A new enhancement is the ability to select multiple locales in the “Locale” filter. This flexibility allows users to tailor their queries for more precise results.

The release of Editor Journal Version 2 is a step in our commitment to continuously enhance tools for our editors and users. Future updates will further expand the interface’s functionality, delivering even greater insights and flexibility.

These updates mark a significant step in our journey toward creating a more seamless, and innovative platform. We remain committed to addressing user needs, enhancing system performance, and staying ahead of industry standards.

Olena Vasylynenko