Release Notes

Here you can find a history of updates and improvements to the public features of BluegrassNet.

v3.6.0

• Toggle Chords Option: Added a toggle button to hide or show chords on lyric pages. This option is available on both the standard song view and the distraction-free Performance Mode.

v3.5.0

• ChordPro Lyrics Parser: Introduced support for ChordPro formatting on song pages. Chords are now rendered inline and can be transposed dynamically.

v3.4.4

• Security & Spam Protection: Added a honeypot spam trap to the contact form to reduce unsolicited emails.

v3.4.2

• Accessibility Enhancements: Major improvements to site accessibility, including proper skip links, improved color contrast, semantic HTML roles, and descriptive button/aria labels.

v3.4.1

• Performance Optimizations: Leveraged Laravel 13 caching capabilities to speed up song loading and index page loading.

v3.4.0

• Framework Upgrade: Upgraded the core framework to Laravel 13 for improved stability, security, and performance.

v3.3.11

• Search Improvements: Redirected legacy search query links to the new, modernized search results page.

v3.3.10

• No-JS Fallbacks: Added fallback support for key interactive pages for users browsing with JavaScript disabled.
• Search Safety: Hardened security validation on search queries and song submissions.

v3.3.9

• Footer Metadata: Automated the footer layout to display the correct site version and release date.
• Navigation Flow: Improved redirections after user logins so that you are returned back to your previously viewed page.

v3.3.8

• Key Editing: Added direct preferred key editing features from the Favorites and Setlist management pages.

v3.3.7

• Setlist Placeholders: Allowed placeholder/custom tracks (e.g. for instrumentals) to be added to setlists.

v3.3.6

• Setlist Sharing: Introduced setlist sharing using unique links/UUIDs, complete with an import tool and a share modal.
• Printable Setlists: Added a clean, printable setlist view with preferred key displays.
• Preferred Keys for Favorites: Enabled choosing a preferred key for any favorited song.
• Search Relevance: Prioritized direct song title matches to make search results more relevant.

v3.3.3

• Global Search: Expanded the main search bar to search across songs, artists, albums, and bands simultaneously.
• Speed Improvements: Improved load times (Core Web Vitals) by self-hosting fonts and optimizing JavaScript loading.

v3.3.2

• Alphabetical Navigation: Moved the alphabetical song navigation index to the top of the main song list page for easier browsing.
• Social Previews: Enhanced preview images when sharing albums, bands, or artists on social media.

v3.3.1

• Enhanced Directory Layouts: Transitioned to a clean two-column layout for directories and alphabetical song pages.
• Performer Credits: Displayed performing band members directly on the album details page.

v3.3.0

• Song Authors & Publishers: Added detailed composer, publisher, and traditional attributions to song lyric pages.

v3.2.2

• Stay Awake Mode: Added a "Stay Awake" (Wake Lock) feature on the song and playlist viewer to prevent device screens from dimming or locking during jam sessions.

v3.2.1

• Self-Service Account Page: Added a dedicated user profile page that includes self-service account deletion options.

v3.2.0

• Social Login: Added Google Social Sign-In for easier registration and login.

v3.1.0

• Autoscroll & Speed Controls: Added autoscroll functionality and scroll speed adjusters on the performance view for both individual songs and setlist playlists.

v3.0.5

• Song Aliases: Added support for alternative song titles/aliases in searches and lookups.
• Performance View Controls: Added font size adjusters directly in the performance view.
• Links Behavior: Configured external interest links to open in a new tab by default.

v3.0.2

• Interface Polish: Prevented song detail pages from opening in a new tab from setlists or favorites. Enabled tablet drag-and-drop features.

v3.0.0

• Major Site Redesign: Implemented a comprehensive design refresh, featuring a cleaner UI and a persistent global search bar across all pages.

v2.4.0

• Seamless Favorites Syncing: Added automatic guest-to-authenticated transitions, syncing local browser favorites and setlists to your account upon login.
• Enhanced Setlist Management: Introduced drag-and-drop reordering for setlists and interactive deletion confirmation.

v2.2.3

• Performance View: Introduced the initial version of the performance view, providing a distraction-free lyrics display with toggle controls.

v2.2.2

• SEO Schema Metadata: Implemented hybrid JSON-LD and Microdata schemas for lyrics, artists, bands, and albums to improve search engine rankings.

v2.2.0

• User Authentication: Launched user registration, account login, and password reset functionalities.
• Favorites System: Introduced the ability to star songs to save them to a local favorites list, with sign-up prompts for guest users.
• Custom Error Pages: Added clean, user-friendly 404 and 500 error pages.

v2.1.2

• Custom Tracks: Enabled adding custom tracks without a linked song (ideal for instrumentals) to albums.

v2.1.1

• Directory Sorting: Refined the sorting logic of albums using their original release dates.

v2.1.0

• Bands, Artists & Albums: Launched initial public views for artists, bands, and albums including Spotify music links.

v2.0.0

• Favorites Tracking: Launched client-side analytics events tracking for starring and unstarring songs.