NEWS
varnish 1.1.1 (2026-05-19)
HOTFIX RELEASE
- Fix sidebar background colour
- Improve the lesson header to tidy it up, and improve the look and feel of the progress bar
- Remove accDescr property in figure caption, and retain in the mermaid desc property
PR 217 (reported @bielsnohr #189)
varnish 1.1.0 (2026-04-15)
ACCESSIBILITY
- Fix mermaid title and description use in figure captions - NB this will
require the addition of accTitle elements in all associated lessons that
use mermaid diagrams
- Fix overall CSS color palette to pass WCAG contrast checks in many
elements across light and dark mode
- Fix li text colour in callouts in light mode
- Fix orphaned li elements in the theme selector menu
- Fix display of lesson title on mobile
- Fix various invalid ARIA properties
- Add javascript workaround to set tabindex properly on language
codeblock elements - these cannot be set in sandpaper as downlit
simply removes any extra codeblock classes or attributes (relevant
comment here: https://github.com/r-lib/downlit/pull/160#issuecomment-4200380782)
MAINTENANCE
- Update MathJax from v2 to v4 to fix accessibility issues and be more up to date
- Update README to state node24 should be installed
MISC
- Thanks to @josenino95 as a new contributor for raising the WCAG issues - welcome!
varnish 1.0.9 (2025-12-03)
HOTFIX RELEASE
- Add ORCID icon in the correct source folder, not inst - PR 186
varnish 1.0.8 (2025-12-02)
NEW FEATURES
- Add ORCID icons for new Cite This Lesson pages - PR 179
- Add parrot SVGs in place of Glosario superscript terms - PR 177
- Add config.yaml and template support for dropdown menus to provide links to multi-lingual lessons -
PR175 (implemented @unode)
- Add support for Mermaid diagrams -
PR 125 (implemented @astroDimitrios)
BUG FIXES
- Fix accordion underlining - PR 180
varnish 1.0.7 (2025-08-07)
NEW FEATURES
MISC
varnish 1.0.6 (2025-05-06)
NEW FEATURES
MISC
varnish 1.0.5 (2024-11-11)
NEW FEATURES
- Two new Sass variables (
default_font and mono_font) have been created to
simplify the process of changing the default font and monospace font.
In particular, this can be helpful for forks defining their own theme
(@Bisaloo #151)
- Carpentry-specific favicons are now used automatically based on the value of
the
carpentry: value in the config.yaml file (@Bisaloo, #152, based on a
report from @zkamvar in #33).
- Addition of the
caution callout (@MttArmstrong #149)
- Improve CSS rendering of checklists by removing the bullet point and increasing
spacing between checkbox and label (reported @jq-11 #156, fixed @froggleston)
- Improve support for Ukrainian alphabet by moving from specific Mulish latin to
Mulish regular font (reported @olexandr-konovalov #120, implemented
@olexandr-konovalov, @froggleston #133)
MISC
varnish 1.0.4 (2024-08-23)
NEW FEATURES
- Two new Sass variables (
default_font and mono_font) have been created to
simplify the process of changing the default font and monospace font.
In particular, this can be helpful for forks defining their own theme
(@Bisaloo #151)
- Carpentry-specific favicons are now used automatically based on the value of
the
carpentry: value in the config.yaml file (@Bisaloo, #152, based on a
report from @zkamvar in #33).
BUG FIXES
varnish 1.0.3 (2023-06-18)
NEW FEATURES
- Add config.yaml configuration option
analytics to support
inclusion of the Carpentries Matomo web analytics tracking script,
a user-supplied tracking script a la Google, or no option to turn
off tracking (reported: @fiveop https://github.com/carpentries/varnish/issues/37,
implemented @froggleston)
- Add a dark mode so users can switch between text and background colours
(implemented: @astroDimitrios https://github.com/carpentries/varnish/pull/124)
varnish 1.0.2 (2023-04-10)
NEW FEATURES
- The lesson page footer now supports either a CITATION or CITATION.cff file
(reported: @tobyhodges, implemented: @tobyhodges, #122;
@froggleston, https://github.com/carpentries/sandpaper/pull/572)
- Add support for tabbed content in lessons
(reported: @astroDimitrios,
implemented: @astroDimitrios, @froggleston,
https://github.com/carpentries/varnish/pull/121,
https://github.com/carpentries/sandpaper/pull/571,
https://github.com/carpentries/pegboard/pull/148
).
- Replace the problematic search box with a much simpler and functional solution
of taking the user to the All in One page where they can search using the
browser's native search (Ctrl-F)
(reported: @anenadic https://github.com/carpentries/workbench/issues/8,
implemented: @erinbecker #131
).
varnish 1.0.1 (2023-12-14)
BUG FIX
- Font sizes for headings of overview box, callouts, and accordions now use
relative units instead of pixels. This will cause a slight change in the
appearance of these headings, but they will be more consistent as the size of
the window changes.
varnish 1.0.0 (2023-12-13)
MAJOR VERSION NOTE
We are bumping the major version number with this release because this version
of {varnish} now requires a new set of translate variables to be passed (which
are provided by sandpaper >= 0.16.0). If these variables do not exist, the
template will contain no navigation text.
This breaking change is a concious decision. The alternative for this was to
conditinally include translations and fall back to their hard-coded English text
when they did not exist. This may seem like a more reasonable choice, but it can
lead to upstream bugs that are difficult to detect (if translations are not
working, it's not clear what is the cause if the text is in English: is it
coming from {varnish} or is it coming from {sandpaper}?) and it makes
maintenance of these navigational elements more difficult because we would have
to update them in two places.
NEW FEATURES
- Translation of lesson elements is now incorporated. Translation strings within
the HTML templates can be found be searching for the word
translate. All
variables are assumed to exist and are defined in The Workbench as PascalCase
variables. In order for this version of {varnish} to work, it requires
{sandpaper} version 0.16.0 or greater. This is a breaking change
(reported: @zkamvar, #104; implemented: @zkamvar and @joelnitta, #105)
- Buttons to show/hide the sidebar and solutions now have extra data attributes
that are used for the language used by the button when they are toggled. This
is an improvement over hard-coding the phrases inside of the JavaScript.
BUG FIX
- Overview box heading font sizes now scaled based on viewport size. This fixes
issues where the heading would wrap in an ugly fashion.
(reported: @jd-foster, #83,
@drmownickles, https://github.com/carpentries/workbench/issues/57,
@rbavery, https://github.com/carpentries/workbench/issues/64,
@robadob, #111; fixed:
@froggleston, #109,
@robadob, #112).
- Spacing and alignment of text improved in Software Carpentry logo.
(reported: @tobyhodges, #107; fixed @tobyhodges, #110).
- Lesson title collision with search box resolved.
(reported: @ocasia, #84; fixed @robadob, #113).
MISC
Added @joelnitta as a contributor.
Added @robadob as a contributor.
varnish 0.4.0 (2023-11-29)
- life cycle icons are now displayed as badges for better visibility
- lessons that are stable with peer-reviewed doi releases will now have a doi
badge displayed with a link to the publication.
varnish 0.3.3
- Code blocks in narrative no longer have a white background on top of the grey
background of the code block (fixed: @zkamvar, #103).
- The colour of the inline code has been changed from the bootstrap default to
black (fixed: @zkamvar, #103).
varnish 0.3.2
- Provide an improved contrast to inline code within callout blocks by
setting the background-color to #FFFFFF (reported: @sarahmbrown,
https://github.com/carpentries/workbench/issues/76 (#99); fixed
@froggleston, #100)
- Back and forward navigation titles have been fixed to keep raw content and
not escape characters (reported: @tobyhodges,
https://github.com/carpentries/workbench/issues/71 (#98); fixed
@froggleston, #101)
varnish 0.3.1
- Lesson titles no longer escape ampersands (reported and fixed: @Robadob, #95)
varnish 0.3.0
- Lesson overview pages are now supported (reported: @zkamvar,
https://github.com/carpentries/workbench/issues/65; implemented: @zkamvar,
#87). These overview pages do not have a sidebar and have extra navigation
back to home and the setup page in the menu bar.
- new 'overview' template is implemented to always contain links back to the
home page.
- The
spoiler dropdown item has been implemented to allow authors to create
stand-alone accordions that will hide optinal content from users without using
a solution class (implemented: @tobyhodges, #92)
MISC
- The build process for css/js bundles is now self-contained in the node
dev dependencies. Running
npm install will install everything needed to
re-compile the js and css.
- The README has been updated with instructions to build locally
- An
.editorconfig file has been added to ensure the JS content is indented
properly
varnish 0.2.18
varnish 0.2.17
- The margin below the schedule table in instructor view is now 25px instead of
225px (reported: @bencomp, #81; fixed: @bencomp, #82).
varnish 0.2.16
- font weight for anything in definition terms is now inherited.
varnish 0.2.15
- The Carpentries Lab logo has been updated (reported: @tobyhodges, #59; fixed:
@tobyhodges, #76)
- The size for large logos are now capped at 64px so contributors do not need
to force their logos to a particular size when exporting SVG (fixed: @zkamvar,
#76)
varnish 0.2.14
- Workbench Beta Phase
Edit on GitHub links no longer redirect people to the
beta phase intermediate page during the second stage of the beta phase.
varnish 0.2.13
varnish 0.2.12
- Table formatting has been fixed to no longer include 100px padding in the
first row (reported: @marklcrowe, #72; fixed: @zkamvar, 4385602)
- All tables will now be striped for accessibility
varnish 0.2.11
- Formatted print media to avoid breaking in important contexts (code blocks,
callout blocks, instructor notes) and shows solutions and instructor notes.
(reported: Anonymous, #70; fixed: @zkamvar, #71)
varnish 0.2.10
varnish 0.2.9
- temporarily turn off matomo analytics
varnish 0.2.8
- Workbench Beta phase "Edit on GitHub" links are now formatted correctly.
(reported: @zkamvar, #65; fixed @zkamvar, #66)
varnish 0.2.7
- Lessons in different phases of the workbench beta phase will now have the URLs
redirect to a site that explains the purpose of the phase.
varnish 0.2.6
varnish 0.2.5
- Workbench Beta messaging has been modified to be more visible and to link back
to the original lesson if possible.
- The icon for lessons in "alpha" has been updated so it has a yellow background
with a grey glyph so that the icon shows up better.
varnish 0.2.4
- Callout block titles have been improved: The underline height for titles have
been fixed to not look wonky when titles have multiple lines (reported:
@anenadic, #53; fixed @zkamvar, #55). Moreover, the text transformation will
no longer affect
code and kbd elements.
- Heading element sizes have been recoded to use relative units. There was not
enough specification in the original CSS to properly distinguish between H3
and H4 elements; moreover, on tablet and mobile devices, the H1 heading looked
smallter than the H2 heading due to a copy/paste error. This has been fixed by
using relative calcualtions (@zkamvar, #55)
- Sidebar navigation now says "Episodes" instead of "Expand" when collapsed so
that it is less confusing for folks. (suggested by @drmowinckels,
https://github.com/carpentries/workbench/issues/16 (#47); fixed by @zkamvar,
#56)
- The collapsed sidebar label no longer reverts to saying "collapse" on a new
page.
- The hamburger menu for mobile devices now has a border so it's more clear
that it is a menu (suggested by @drmowinckels,
https://github.com/carpentries/workbench/issues/16 (#47); fixed by @zkamvar,
#57)
varnish 0.2.3
- Add support for displaying anchor links (requested @fiveop,
https://github.com/carpentries/sandpaper/issues/285 and @anenadic,
https://github.com/carpentries/workbench/issues/28; added: #54 by @zkamvar)
varnish 0.2.2
- Formatting of list elements in the solutions and instructor notes now follows
the same formatting as the rest of the content (reported: #51 by @tobyhodges,
fixed: #52 by @zkamvar)
varnish 0.2.1
- The sidebar navigation in mobile and tablet views now includes all the
information that was included in the navigation bar for the desktop mode.
(reported: https://github.com/carpentries/workbench/issues/16#issuecomment-1165307355 by @Athanasiamo and #49, fixed: #50 by @zkamvar)
varnish 0.2.0
- The sidebar state (expanded or collapsed) will now persist during navigation
to another page in the same window/tab. Opening the site in a new window/tab
will reset the sidebar state to expanded. (reported: #43 by @anenadic, fixed
#46, @zkamvar). This fix uses the
sessionStorage API.
varnish 0.1.16
- CHAPTERS has been temporarily renamed to EPISODES to reduce cognative load
between the webpage and the source folders
varnish 0.1.15
- The search field has been disabled to avoid confusion. We have not yet enabled
search as this requires further testing. Disabling the search field means that
it is now more clear that search is not yet available.
(#44 by @zkamvar)
varnish 0.1.14
- indicators for lesson development stage (pre-alpha, alpha, beta) have been
added as
<abbr> elements with a link to the appropriate section in the CDH
and title elements that describe the purpose of the stage. Visually hidden
text follows the <abbr> element for users who can not perceive the lesson
visually (#39 by @zkamvar, reviewed by @tobyhodges).
- FIX: .lesson-title and .lesson-title-md are now inline-block elements
varnish 0.1.13
- An alert for the workbench beta phase is implemented if the lesson has
workbench-beta: true in the config.yaml.
varnish 0.1.12
- dropdown navigation no longer is hidden by the sidebar on XXL screens;
z-index of
nav.bottom-nav set to 3.
(reported: #35 by @brownsarahm, fixed: #36 by @zkamvar)
varnish 0.1.11
- blockquotes are now more clearly delineated from the rest of the content
(reported: #27 by @fiveop, fixed: #31 by @zkamvar)
varnish 0.1.10
- lab and incubator logos are now available.
varnish 0.1.9
- Fix missing pegboard version tag
varnish 0.1.8
- custom workbench engines are now properly linked in the footer via the
sandpaper_cfg pegboard_cfg, and varnish_cfg variables.
- code of conduct link now points to the
CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md file so authors
can update or modify their own code of conduct (NOTE: all Carpentries lessons
MUST have a code of conduct that links to the Carpentries Code of Conduct as
well as the reporting guidelines.
varnish 0.1.7
- compile the changes from 0.1.6
varnish 0.1.6
- Tables now scroll on overflow
varnish 0.1.5
- The index page now has specific sections for schedule and setup that link to
the
#schedule and #setup anchors. This partially addresses
https://github.com/carpentries/sandpaper/issues/260
varnish 0.1.4
- Removed " logo" suffix from the logo elements, as it is redundant
https://webaim.org/techniques/alttext/#logos
varnish 0.1.3
- Add small version of the carpentries logo
varnish 0.1.2
varnish 0.1.1
- Add LICENSE file clarifying MIT licensing
varnish 0.1.0
- Breaking change; moving from the carpentries/styles theme to the new theme
developed in 2021. Variables and layouts have changed significantly, so this
package gains a significant update.
varnish 0.0.0.9008
- instructor block placeholder added
varnish 0.0.0.9007
- update css to use em and not px
- align logo with navbar
- add testing phase notification to navbar
varnish 0.0.0.9006
- First tracked version of varnish
- updated links to engines in the footer