Improved: Publishing process
Organizations use a web form with a publication process that allows them to control what they publish. The publication process has several steps. This quarter we are working on improving the entire process. This is necessary because of the growth of the register and we would like to meet the wishes of an increasingly large group of editors. The most important improvements so far are:

• The web form has been better designed for a more user-friendly experience.

• A draft version is now created every time an algorithm description is saved. This makes it possible to roll back previously saved versions of descriptions.

We will also extensively test these (and future) improvements until July. If the results are good, the web form will be updated next summer.

Added: New templates
In the web form, organizations can use templates of algorithm descriptions from suppliers. From now on, organizations can also use new templates to publish the description of the 'Octobox Anonymize' algorithm (from Octobox and DocDirekt) and 'Public space notifications' (from the Municipality of Amsterdam).

Fixed: Organization details web form
The web form can be used by organizations to write text for their organization page in the Algorithm Register. There it can be indicated how organizations deal with algorithms and the publication thereof in the Algorithm Register. An error briefly occurred where these organization details could not be saved. This error has been fixed and everything is working properly again.

For visitors:

Improved: Suggestions for organizations based on search term
As you type, suggestions of organizations that may be searched will appear below the search bar. By clicking on a suggestion, the search term is automatically completed.

Improved: Easier navigation to all algorithm descriptions
The total number of algorithms is clickable above the search bar. By clicking on this you will go directly to the overview of all published algorithm descriptions.

Improved: All selection filters can be cleared at once
All search criteria that you have used when searching for an algorithm description or organization can now be removed at once by clicking on 'Remove selection' above the filter block.

New: More clear what can be searched for on a page via the search bar
Via the menu options 'Algorithms' and 'Organizations' you can search for algorithm descriptions and organizations that have published in the Algorithm Register. The search bar on those pages has been given a title to make it clearer what can be found there.

Improved: Search with organization abbreviation displays the option to navigate directly to the organization page
It is now possible to navigate directly to an organization page using an abbreviation, for example BZK (Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations) or UWV (Employee Insurance Agency).

Improved: With an organization name as a search term you will now find all algorithm descriptions of that organization
If you type the name of an organization in the search bar, you expect to find at least all algorithm descriptions of that organization. That wasn't always the case. The search function has been technically adjusted to ensure completeness.

Improved: Smarter search when an organization name is used as a search term
If you typed the abbreviated or full name of an organization in the search bar, the search result would be all algorithm descriptions where the organization name appeared somewhere in the description. Even if those were algorithm descriptions from other organizations. That's not always what you're looking for. That is why you will now receive suggestions below the search bar that you can choose from. This allows you to search faster and more specifically. These suggestions will be further expanded and refined in the near future.

Changed: Publishing standard is now also shown
When displaying the search results, it is now also shown which version of the publishing standard was used. Because the available information may differ per version.

Improved: With downloads you see that the download is still in progress
Due to the growth of the Algorithm Register, downloading now takes a little longer. You will now receive feedback about this so that you know that you have to wait a while until the download is ready.

For editors:

New: Algorithm description Anonymization completed faster using the eData BV template
In the web form, organizations can now use the template from the supplier eData BV (also known as eSpecialists BV) to complete the Anonymization algorithm description more quickly.

Adjusted: Checking the link to your own website on the organization page
On this register, organizations can explain how they deal with algorithms in their own organization page. In the field: 'More information' you can include a link to a page on your own website. It is now no longer possible to add spaces in that link. It is now allowed to add a slash ('/') at the end of a link.

Fixed: Texts organized into paragraphs with blank lines between them were not saved
Due to a recent bug, information spread over multiple paragraphs was not saved. So information disappeared. This has now been resolved.

February 2024

For visitors:

Fixed: No more strange character in CSV download
When downloading algorithm descriptions in a CSV file, a strange character sometimes appeared. This error has now been resolved.

Fixed: English Excel download now includes English labels
When downloading English algorithm descriptions, Dutch labels were shown. These labels, seen in column A, have now been translated into English.

Fixed: Tabs in Excel file are displayed consecutively
When downloading algorithm descriptions with multiple publishing standards, the tabs are listed from newest to oldest version.

Changed: Version information has been renamed to release notes
In the colophon, version information has been renamed to release notes.

Fixed: No more HTML code in Excel downloads
When downloading algorithm descriptions in an Excel file, formatting code was unintentionally included. This is technical code intended for displaying text on the website. This error has now been resolved.

For editors:

New: Create algorithm description faster with the help of a template
You can now use templates in the web form to fill out your algorithm description faster. To start with, 9 templates have been made available by suppliers who mainly supply to municipalities.

Adjusted: Publication standard version 1.0 now mandatory for new algorithm descriptions
The final version of the Publication Standard was adopted in December 2023. It is now no longer possible to start new descriptions in an older version of the standard. You can still edit existing descriptions in an older standard.

January 2024

For visitors:

Improved: The download options have been expanded
All algorithm descriptions can be downloaded from the register. This can be done for all algorithm descriptions simultaneously in one very large file. This can also be done separately per algorithm description. It is now possible to download algorithm descriptions in both Dutch and English. And this can be done as an Excel file or as a CSV file. If you choose a CSV file, you can also open it in Excel, but to open algorithm descriptions in Excel it is more convenient to download them as an Excel file.

New: Search terms are highlighted in yellow in the search results
When searching, you may sometimes see your search term highlighted in yellow in the search results. This is true if the term appears in the short description. If the term is found elsewhere in an algorithm description, you will see that algorithm in the search results, but not with the search term highlighted in yellow.

Improved: Filter options now also work in the English view
Filter options in the 'Algorithms' page now also work in English.

Improved: Use search terms to filter
You can now combine search terms with other filter options for a more targeted search.

New: Menu option: 'Organizations'
A new option 'Organizations' has been added in the main menu at the top. Here you will now find a list of all organizations that have published, with a summary of their algorithm descriptions. Organizations now have a new option to provide their own general explanation. They can also provide an explanation as to why they do not publish on the Algorithm Register.

New: Information page: 'Report vulnerability'
The footer contains a link to a new page with instructions on how to report a vulnerability in the security of the website.

Fixed: Organizations are now sorted alphabetically in lists
Organizations are now listed in alphabetical order by default everywhere.

Adjusted: The 'Web Archive' link has been renamed to 'Archive'
In the footer there is a link to the website's daily updated web archive. The name of this link has been changed to 'Archive'. This is to match the naming on other government sites.

For editors:

New: Writing help is available for spelling and language errors
When completing the web form, a spelling check is now automatically performed as in a word processor and suggestions for improvements are given.

New: You can now add information about your organization
You now have the option to provide additional information about how the organization deals with algorithms and their publication on the Algorithm Register. There is also an option to add a link to an information page on the organization's own website. Ask your contact person to help you use it for the first time.

December 2023

For visitors:

The search results are displayed more compactly
The visitor now sees more search results at a glance.

Search suggestions are displayed
The visitor will see suggestions below the search bar based on the letters typed.

The web archive has been added to the footer
For more information click here.

The register is automatically translated into English
International visitors can now also use the Algorithm Register.

The download button
The button that used to download a CSV file now downloads an Excel file.

For editors:

Organization page
In the organization details page, the editor can describe additional information about how they handle algorithms and their publication.

Technical errors that occurred when downloading an algorithm description have been resolved
Where the editor could previously leave fields empty or incomplete and save them, he now receives an error message. This error message states which field still requires action.

October 2023

For editors:

The download options are extensive
The algorithm descriptions can be downloaded from the web form in single form and in bulk in Microsoft Word, in Microsoft Excel, or as a PDF.

The publication process has been accelerated
Publishing an algorithm description now takes place immediately after release from the editor.

The web form includes version control
Editors can now see who last edited the algorithm description(s) on the web form overview page.

The web form has moved
After a test period, the web form was moved to https://algorithms.overheid.nl/webvorm. This also applies to the delivery API, which has been moved to https://algorithms.overheid.nl/aanleverapi.