ACS Network Upgrade - November 2, 2017

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On November 2, 2017, the ACS Network will be upgrading its platform to a newer version of the underlying software.   Being on the current version of the software will provide us with the best support experience with our vendor as well as access to the most current functionality.

DISRUPTIONS

November 1, 6PM EDT through November 2, 10 PM EDT

• Some changes to users' profiles will not appear in the Network immediately. This means if you try to opt-out, opt-in or change your email address or locale, it will not appear in the ACS Network until after the upgrade is complete on November 2. The data will be received, but will be queued until we are done with the upgrade activities.

November 2, 4PM - 10PM EDT

• The ACS Network will be unavailable while the databases are copied from the current site to the new one. Typically our vendor puts the entire site in maintenance mode while this happens.  After that, we have to install and configure the site.  Once we are confident it is working, we will turn everything on, and the member profile data should also update.

CHANGES (Highlights)

As in the past, the trade off for upgrading the software is that some of the interfaces and functionality may change. You may notice these changes:

• CV app: You will now need to go to the profile page to see the CV app (the list of a user's education, experience, and publications).
• Edit your ACS Profile: The link to edit your ACS Profile (i.e. to change your password, email, or address, or to opt out) will also be located on your ACS Network profile page.
• Bulk management of content: Those who manage groups and forums will now have access to a bulk content tool that will allow you to tag, categorize, move, and delete multiple files at a time.  Users will also be able to upload multiple files at a time.
• The home page is styled to show the most recent activity.  This is something that will evolve as we learn to better use the tiles which comprise this page.

In addition, we have a few other changes that might require some action:

• Groups: We noticed that the default header image will be removed and so if the title text for your group is white, it will not be seen. You need to either change the text color or add a background image. You can change the background image prior to the upgrade and it should prevent this problem.
• Photo Albums. This functionality will drastically change. Please read the post which specifically describes the changes.

As we discover more changes, we will edit this list. In addition, we will have a document describing changes after the upgrade as well.

As always, we appreciate your support and understanding as we strive to improve the ACS Network.