Brightspace Platform 10.8.0
Release Notes
Contents
Document Change History
Features
Brightspace Learning Environment
Activity Feed – Posts support simple HTML markup - AWS Enabled | New
Activity Feed – Instant notifications for posts and comments - AWS enabled | New
Activity Feed – Minibar update alerts for new posts - AWS enabled | New
Activity Feed – Minibar update alerts for new comments - AWS enabled | New
Activity Feed – Change scheduled date of planned post from Lessons - AWS enabled | New
Assignments – Rubric dialog pop-ups | Updated
Brightspace Daylight Experience – Course image library now includes images with increased diversity and educational context | New
Brightspace Daylight Experience: Configuration variable name change | Updated
Brightspace Daylight Experience - New configuration variables hide messages alerts and the course selector on the navbar | New
Brightspace Daylight Experience - Visual indicators of role switch and user impersonation states on the navbar | New
Brightspace for Parents - View assignment details - AWSenabled | New
Brightspace Story Builder - User experience improvements | New
Config Variable Browser - Improvements to the browsing experience | Updated
Data Hub – Changes to permission names – AWS enabled | Updated
Data Hub – New Competency Activities Data Set – AWS enabled | New
Discussions - Grading discussions | Updated
Email - Verification of custom email addresses | New
Formative Assessment Tools - Usability improvements to feedback | New
Grades - Adding feedback in bulk | New
Groups and Sections – Create sub-groups from sections and group
IPSIS – Plug n Play audit screen
IPSIS – Plug N Play Org Units mapping screen re-design
Lessons - Scheduling (pacing) course material - AWSenabled | Updated
Manage Dates - Improvements to the Manage Dates tool | Updated
Manager Dashboard - Search Learning Groups - AWS enabled | New
SCORM - Updates and improvements to the new SCORM - AWS enabled | New
Widgets – Custom widget rendering in iFrame
Integrations
Video Assignments Premium by YouSeeU - New assignment types | New
Video Assignments by YouSeeU - Interface and workflow changes | New
Virtual Classrooms by YouSeeU - Interface and workflow changes | New
Fixed Issues
Assignment Grader
PRB0056689
Brightspace Data Sets
PRB0057316
PRB0057235
PRB0057189
PRB0057188
PRB0057004
Brightspace Learning Environment
PRB0055858
PRB0057204
Brightspace Platform
PRB0054808 (Daylight)
PRB0055402 (Daylight)
Competencies
PRB0057128
Content
PRB0055103
Course Conversion
PRB0057253
External Learning Tools
PRB0057066
PRB0057086
Grades
PRB0056239
PRB0056866
PRB0043916
Import/Export/Copy Components
PRB0052420
PRB0055609
Lessons
PRB0057175
PRB0057038
PRB0056960
Manage Files
PRB0048097
Navigation and Themes
PRB0057168 (Daylight)
PRB0056345 (Daylight)
PRB0057216 (Daylight)
PRB0052444 (Daylight)
PRB0054855 (Daylight)
Notifications
PRB0052283
Quizzes
PRB0057312
PRB0057444
User Management
PRB0057039
Widgets
PRB0055465
PRB0056536 (Daylight)
Known Issues
Brightspace Developer Platform
PRB0057464
Brightspace for Parents
PRB0057373
Content
PRB0057305
Document Viewer
PRB0057394
Grades
PRB0057267
Groups and Sections
PRB0057465
HTML Editor
PRB0057091
PRB0057142 (Daylight)
Import/Export/Copy Components
PRB0057315
Language Management
PRB0057471
Notifications
PRB0057376
Release Conditions
PRB0057073
Rubrics
PRB0057333 (Daylight)
About D2L
Document Change History
This version of the document replaces all previous versions. The following table describes the most recent changes to this document.
Revision Date / Summary of ChangesApril 23, 2018 /
- Updated the Brightspace Daylight Experience – New configuration variables hide messages alerts and the course selector on the navbar | New release note to include additional information on when images will be available for use.
April 13, 2018 /
- Updated the Brightspace Daylight Experience – Course image library now includes images with increased diversity and educational context | New release note to include additional information on when images will be available for use.
April 5, 2018 /
- Updated the Grades - Adding feedback in bulk | New release note to include the ability to use replacement strings when adding bulk feedback.
- Updated the Brightspace for parents - View assignment details feature to remove the ability to view grade information.
- Updated the Brightspace Story Builder - User experience improvements | New feature to remove text as a non-visual alternative option.
- Added the Assignments – Rubric dialog pop-ups | Updated feature.
March 19, 2018 /
- Added the Brightspace Story Builder - User experience improvements | New feature.
- Added the Formative Assessment Tools - Usability improvements to feedback | New feature.
March 16, 2018 /
- Added the Brightspace for Parents - View assignment details feature.
- Updated the Email - Verification of custom email addresses feature to clarify the new permission's impact on new and existing roles (not users).
March 15, 2018 / Initial release.
Features
Brightspace Learning Environment
Activity Feed – Posts support simple HTML markup - AWS Enabled | New
Instructors can now include simple HTML markup when authoring Activity Feed Message and Assignment posts. This allows the use of bold, italics, underline, and bullets to better format posts.
This feature implements PIE item D4046.
Figure: Message post using HTML markup
Impact of Change / Technical DetailsNo impact to administrators if Activity Feed is already in use. / Availability: This feature is available to all clients.
To enable: Ensure the d2l.Tools.ActivityFeed.ShowWidget configuration variable is turned on.
Microservices dependencies: Activity Feed functionality depends on the Landlord, Authentication, Activity Feed, and Reflex microservices.
Microservices locations: Landlord and Authentication are in the following Amazon Web Services™ (AWS) location: U.S. East (N. Virginia). Activity Feed and Reflex service are in the following Amazon Web Services™ (AWS) locations: U.S. East (N. Virginia), Canada Central (Montreal), EU (Ireland), Asia Pacific (Singapore), Asia Pacific (Sydney).
User Resources: For more information to share with users, visit the Interact and Engage with Learners - Instructor Guide (print-based resources) or Post messages and links to course materials (online resource) at release.
Slight impact to instructors due to the ability to include HTML markup within Activity Feed posts. / Availability: See above.
To enable: The HTML editor is available unless the instructor has explicitly turned off the rich text editor in their Account Settings.
Microservices dependencies: See above. Microservices locations: See above.
Activity Feed – Instant notifications for posts and comments - AWS enabled | New
Users can now subscribe to receive instant email and SMS notifications when new Activity Feed posts are created. Instructors can also subscribe to receive instant notification when comments are added to a post they created. Activity Feed posts and comments are not included in daily summary emails.
Impact of Change / Technical DetailsNo impact to administrators if Activity Feed is already in use. / Availability: This feature is available to all clients.
To enable: Ensure the d2l.Tools.ActivityFeed.ShowWidget configuration variable is turned on.
Microservices dependencies: Activity Feed functionality depends on the Landlord, Authentication, Activity Feed, and Reflex microservices.
Microservices locations: Landlord and Authentication are in the following Amazon Web Services™ (AWS) location: U.S. East (N. Virginia). Activity Feed and Reflex service are in the following Amazon Web Services™ (AWS) locations: U.S. East (N. Virginia), Canada Central (Montreal), EU (Ireland), Asia Pacific (Singapore), Asia Pacific (Sydney).
User Resources: For more information to share with users, visit the Interact and Engage with Learners - Instructor Guide (print-based resources) or Post messages and links to course materials help topics(online resource) at release.
Slight impact to instructors and learners due to the ability to receive instant notification for posts and comments made in Activity Feed. / Availability: See above.
To enable: To receive instant notifications, under Notifications, select Activity Feed – new comments from others on a post, and Activity Feed – new posts created by others.
Microservices dependencies: See above.
Microservices locations: See above.
Activity Feed – Minibar update alerts for new posts - AWS enabled | New
Users now receive a minibar update alert when a new post is created in a course they are enrolled in. Clicking on the minibar update allows users to easily view the new post and get up to speed on the latest information in their course. The author of the post does not receive an update alert.
Figure:Update alert for new Activity Feed post
Impact of Change / Technical DetailsSlight impact to learners and instructors due to minibar updates being generated for Activity Feed posts. / Availability: This feature is available to all clients.
To enable: Ensure the d2l.Tools.ActivityFeed.ShowWidget configuration variable is turned on.
Microservices dependencies: Activity Feed functionality depends on the Landlord, Authentication, Activity Feed, and Reflex microservices.
Microservices locations: Landlord and Authentication are in the following Amazon Web Services™ (AWS) location: U.S. East (N. Virginia). Activity Feed and Reflex service are in the following Amazon Web Services™ (AWS) locations: U.S. East (N. Virginia), Canada Central (Montreal), EU (Ireland), Asia Pacific (Singapore), Asia Pacific (Sydney).
User Resources: For more information to share with users, visit the Interact and Engage with Learners - Instructor Guide (print-based resources) or Post messages and links to course materials help topics(online resource) at release.
Activity Feed – Minibar update alerts for new comments - AWS enabled | New
Instructors now receive minibar update alerts when comments are left on a post that they authored. Clicking on the update directs the instructor to the post where the comment was made.
Figure: Update alert for comment made on Activity Feed post
Impact of Change / Technical DetailsNo impact to administrators if Activity Feed is already in use. / Availability: This feature is available to all clients.
To enable: Ensure the d2l.Tools.ActivityFeed.ShowWidget configuration variable is turned on.
Microservices dependencies: Activity Feed functionality depends on the Landlord, Authentication, Activity Feed, and Reflex microservices.
Microservices locations: Landlord and Authentication are in the following Amazon Web Services™ (AWS) location: U.S. East (N. Virginia). Activity Feed and Reflex service are in the following Amazon Web Services™ (AWS) locations: U.S. East (N. Virginia), Canada Central (Montreal), EU (Ireland), Asia Pacific (Singapore), Asia Pacific (Sydney).
User Resources: For more information to share with users, visit the Interact and Engage with Learners - Instructor Guide (print-based resources) or Post messages and links to course materials help topics(online resource) at release.
Slight impact to instructors due to the ability to stay up to date with comments left on Activity Feed posts. / Availability: See above.
To enable: Instructors receive minibar update alerts about new comments on posts they authored by default. These alerts can be disable by unchecking the Enable minibar notifications for comments under the Manage commenting widget menu.
Microservices dependencies: See above. Microservices locations: See above.
Activity Feed – Change scheduled date of planned post from Lessons - AWS enabled | New
Instructors can now modify the scheduled date of a planned Activity Feed post from Lessons. Previously scheduled Activity Feed posts could only be modified in the Activity Feed.
Impact of Change / Technical DetailsSlight impact to instructors due to the ability to change the scheduled date of planned Activity Feed posts from Lessons. / Availability: This feature is available to all clients.
To enable: Ensure the d2l.Tools.ActivityFeed.ShowWidget , d2l.Tools.Content.IsLessonsEnabled , d2l.Tools.Content.UseLessonsExperience , and d2l.System.Services.DocumentConversion.IsEnabled configuration variables are turned on.Microservices dependencies: Activity Feed functionality depends on the Landlord, Authentication, Activity Feed, and Reflex microservices.
The Lessons Experience depends on the Document Conversion Service, the Activity Feed Service, and the Learning Outcomes Registry Service (LOReS). These services depend on the Authentication Service.
Microservices locations: Landlord and Authentication are in the following Amazon Web Services™ (AWS) location: U.S. East (N. Virginia).
Activity Feed and Reflex service are in the following Amazon Web Services™ (AWS) locations: U.S. East (N. Virginia), Canada Central (Montreal), EU (Ireland), Asia Pacific (Singapore), Asia Pacific (Sydney).
The Document Conversion Service is available in the following Amazon Web Services™ (AWS) locations: U.S. East (N. Virginia), Canada Central (Montreal), Asia Pacific (Sydney).
LOReS is available in the following Amazon Web Services™ (AWS) locations: U.S. East (N. Virginia), Canada Central (Montreal).
User Resources: For more information to share with users, visit the Interact and Engage with Learners -Instructor Guide (print-based resources) or Post messages and links to course materials help topics(online resource) at release.
Assignments – Rubric dialog pop-ups | Updated
All rubric dialog boxes used when grading assignments now automatically open as pop-up windows. The d2l.Tools.Dropbox.RubricWindowStyle configuration variable, previously used to enable or disable rubrics as modal dialog or pop-up windows, is removed.
Impact of Change / Technical DetailsSlight impact to instructors due to assignment rubrics appearing exclusively as pop-up windows. / Availability: This feature is available to all clients.
To enable: This functionality is automatically enabled. No further action is required.
Microservices dependencies: N/A
Microservices locations: N/A
User Resources: For more information to share with users, visit the Brightspace Learning Environment – Administrator Guide (print-based resources) or Rubrics basics help pages (online resource).
Brightspace Daylight Experience – Course image library now includes images with increased diversity and educational context | New
Hundreds of new images will be available in the course image library. Instructors will be able to select from images that are more diverse in terms of age, gender, ethnicity, and culture. Images are also available that relate to educational subjects, such as communication or engineering.
Impact of Change / Technical DetailsSlight impact to instructors who can search for additional for course images using the Course Image Library from the My Courses widget, Course Banner Image or Course Offering Information. / Availability: This feature is available to all Brightspace Learning Environment clients using the Daylight Experience. Images will be added to the library throughout the month of April.
To enable: This functionality is automatically enabled for users if the d2l.System.Services.BrightspaceDaylightExperience configuration variable is turned on, the existing See Course Info permission is set at the Course Offering level, and the Change Course Image permission is set at the Course Offering level.
Microservices dependencies: N/A
Microservices location(s): N/A
User Resources: For information on Daylight Experience Navbars to share with users, refer to the Brightspace Learning Environment - Administrator Guide (print-based resource) or the Change the course image using the My Course Widget actions menu web topic for instructors (online resource) at release.
Brightspace Daylight Experience: Configuration variable name change | Updated
The existing configuration variable d2l.Tools.Homepages.Banner.EnabledByDefault was renamed to d2l.Tools.Homepages.Banner.DefaultForCourses. The description for the configuration variable has also been updated to clarify the purpose. This configuration variable controls the ability to add a course image banner below the navigation bar on widget-based course homepages. By default, the configuration variable is off.
Impact of Change / Technical DetailsSlight impact to administrators due to the name change of an existing configuration variable. / Availability: This feature is available to all clients.
To enable: This functionality is automatically enabled for all users. No further action is required. The name change of this configuration variable does not alter or affect the ON or OFF state.
Microservices dependencies: N/A
Microservices location(s): N/A
User Resources: For information on Daylight Experience to share with users, refer to the Brightspace Learning Environment - Administrator Guide (print-based resource) or the Brightspace Daylight Experience web topic for instructors (online resource) at release.
Brightspace Daylight Experience - New configuration variables hide messages alerts and the course selector on the navbar | New
Organizations that do not use the Email or Chat tools can now hide the message alerts icon on the navbar by enabling the new configuration variable d2l.Settings.Navbar.HideAlertsForMessages.
Administrators can also hide the course selector function on the navbar by enabling the new configuration variable d2l.Settings.Navbar.HideCourseSelector. You may want to hide the course selector if your organization uses third-party tools or websites as a gateway to course offerings.
Impact of Change / Technical DetailsSlight impact to administrators who must take steps to enable the new configuration variables. / Availability: This feature is available to all clients.
To enable: Ensure you have the Can Edit Config Variable Values permission for your role.
To hide the Email and Chat tool alert function on the navbar, ensure the new d2l.Settings.Navbar.HideAlertsForMessages configuration variable is turned on.
To hide the course selector function on the navbar, ensure the new d2l.Settings.Navbar.HideCourseSelector configuration variable is turned on.
Microservices dependencies: N/A
Microservices location(s): N/A
User Resources: For information on Daylight Experience Navbars to share with users, refer to the Brightspace Learning Environment - Administrator Guide (print-based resource) or the About the Daylight Experience navbar web topic for instructors (online resource) at release.
Brightspace Daylight Experience - Visual indicators of role switch and user impersonation states on the navbar | New
Users who switch roles or impersonate other users can see a visual indicator of the role and/or impersonation state on the navbar. Having a visual reminder ensures that users do not make changes or perform tasks erroneously while signed into another role or navigating as a different user.