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2 ecommerce Joomla! templates have been updated along with DJ-Catalog2 3.7.3 plus WCAG and ADA compatibility

| Andrzej Herzberg | Joomla Templates

We are glad to inform that we have updated JM ZoneStore and JM Product Catalog e-commerce templates to support the latest version of DJ-Catalog2 3.7.3 Joomla shopping cart extension. In the updated packages you will find the latest versions of Joomla and extensions, new interesting features and a lot of improvements and bug fixes. Let's take a closer look at the most interesting of them.

 

New interesting features in DJ-Catalog2 3.7.3

Product types

During the new product creation in the DJ-Catalog2, you can also choose a product type: tangible, virtual or a subscription. The tangible is a classic product type where the shipment method must be selected, while virtual and subscription allows you selling downloadable products or subscriptions to specific Joomla user groups.

Catalog template update

 

Address book

This is a feature that allows customers to store multiple delivery addresses. It is especially useful for your return customers which may store their work, home or family addresses. This way a customer can easily choose a stored address without the need of entering a different address each time they order a product in your store.

Catalog template update

 

Re-order the same product from the orders history

Another feature worth to mention is the re-order button. It was added on the My Orders view which displays the history of orders. This way customers have a shortcut to re-order the same product.

Catalog template update

 

12 new features and 8 bug fixes for DJ-Catalog2

The new version of DJ-Catalog2 comes with lot more interesting features. It also fixes many bugs reported by our customers. The full list of changes you can see in the DJ-Catalog2 changelog. See the full list of changes in the DJ-Catalog2 3.7.3 changelog.

 

Added comments functionality to DJ-Reviews

The new version of DJ Reviews brings to the JM ZoneStore template the much-awaited feature - comments. Now, the administrator and users can comment reviews posted by other users.

Catalog template update

 

WCAG & ADA accessibility improvements in DJ-Catalog2 core

DJ-Catalog2 comes with accessibility improvements for screen readers and keyboard navigation:

  • fixed keyboard navigation for quantity input and buttons
  • fixed cart and checkout table markup that results in better keyboard navigation
  • improvements for screen readers related to the product cart variants and checkout validation

 

WCAG & ADA accessibility improvements in the JM ZoneStore template

We have fixed many errors and warnings reported by Wave accessibility checker for the homepage, DJ-Catalog2 Category and DJ-Catalog2 Item pages. Let's take a closer look at them.

Error: Linked image missing alternative text - fixed for the top banner

Why it is important?

Images that are the only thing within a link must have descriptive alternative text. If an image is within a link that contains no text and that image does not provide alternative text, a screen reader has no content to present to the user regarding the function of the link.

Error: Missing form label - fixed for the DJ-Catalog2 Search module, Language Switcher module and DJ-Catalog2 product quantity box.

Why it is important?

If a form control does not have a properly associated text label, the function or purpose of that form control may not be presented to screen reader users. Form labels also provide visible descriptions and larger clickable targets for form controls.

Error: Empty button - fixed for the DJ-Catalog2 Search module

Why it is important?

When navigating to a button, descriptive text must be presented to screen reader users to indicate the function of the button.

Warning: Redundant alternative text - fixed for the sample data

Why it is important?

Alternative text that is the same as nearby or adjacent text will be presented multiple times to screen readers or when images are unavailable.

Warning: Fieldset missing legend - fixed for the DJ-Catalog2 Search module and DJ-Catalog2 product cart variants

Why it is important?

A fieldset legend presents a description of the form elements within a fieldset and is especially useful to screen reader users. A legend should be provided when a higher level description is necessary for groups of check boxes, radio buttons, or other form controls.

Warning: Missing first level heading - fixed for the sample data

Why it is important?

Headings facilitate page navigation for users of many assistive technologies. They also provide semantic and visual meaning and structure to the document. A first level heading should be present on nearly all pages. It should contain the most important heading on the page (generally the document title).

Warning: Broken same-page link - fixed for the "back to top" button

Why it is important?

A link to jump to another position within the the page assists users in navigating the web page, but only if the link target exists.

Warning: Suspicious link text - fixed for the sample data

Why it is important?

Links, which are often read out of context, should clearly describe the destination or function of the link. Ambiguous text, text that does not make sense out of context, and extraneous text (such as "click here") can cause confusion and should be avoided.

Warning: Redundant link - fixed for the sample data

Why it is important?

When adjacent links go to the same location (such as a linked product image and an adjacent linked product name that go to the same product page) this results in additional navigation and repetition for keyboard and screen reader users.

Warning: JavaScript jump menu - fixed for the Language Switcher module

Why it is important?

A JavaScript jump menu is a select element that triggers a new web page with the onchange event handler. When navigating with the keyboard, each change in the select menu triggers a page change in some web browsers, thus making navigation very difficult.

Warning: Redundant title text - fixed for the footer link and featured image in DJ-Catalog2

Why it is important?

The title attribute value is used to provide advisory information. It typically appears when the users hovers the mouse over an element. The advisory information presented should not be identical to or very similar to the element text or alternative text.

Warning: Orphaned form label - fixed for the DJ-Catalog2 Filters module and DJ-Catalog2 product cart variants

Why it is important?

An incorrectly associated label does not provide functionality or information about the form control to the user. It usually indicates a coding or other form labeling issues.

Warning: Missing fieldset - fixed for the DJ-Catalog2 Filters module

Why it is important?

A fieldset provides a visual and structural grouping of related form elements. It is typically necessary for groups of check boxes or radio buttons where a higher level description (called a legend) is necessary to understand the function of the check boxes or radio buttons. The description will be identified by a screen reader only if provided in a fieldset legend.

Warning: Suspicious link text - fixed for the sample data

Why it is important?

Links, which are often read out of context, should clearly describe the destination or function of the link. Ambiguous text, text that does not make sense out of context, and extraneous text (such as "click here") can cause confusion and should be avoided.

Warning: Noscript element - fixed for the compare checkboxes on the DJ-Catalog2 Category pages

Why it is important?

Content within noscript is presented if JavaScript is disabled. Because nearly all users (including users of screen readers and other assistive technologies) have JavaScript enabled, noscript cannot be used to provide an accessible version of inaccessible scripted content.

 

A lof of other improvements and bug fixes

The above features are only part of the work we did on the occasion of the update. If you are interested in improvements and bug fixes related to your template, check the changelog.

See the full list of changes in the templates' changelogs

 

Want to know more?

 

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Let us know what you think about new features, would you like to have them on your website?