We’ve updated Goodnotes and Goodnotes Classroom to ensure version compatibility - so no Student will be left behind again. This automatic function allows Teachers and Students on different versions of the app to have access to, and annotate, the same Notebook or Lesson without running into any problems.
In other words, users will no longer be required to have the same version of the app installed in order to collaborate.
Please note: This update is included in version 6.5.18 of Goodnotes 6 and 1.0.12 for Goodnotes Classroom, so you will need to update your users before Smart Versioning will work!
Life Before These Changes
Before we introduced version compatibility for Goodnotes, if one member of a shared Notebook used a feature or Tool that was not available to another user, this would cause issues when sharing like:
- Failure to join the Lesson or Notebook entirely
- Losing access to a Lesson or Notebook if a user on a newer version made changes
How This System Works
Goodnotes will now drop down to the set of features based on the oldest version of the app present in the current list of collaborators on a Lesson or Notebook.
This means that if a Student is on a newer version of the app than other Students, the Student will no longer be able to use features and tools that are not also available to everyone.
This also means that if a Teacher is working on a Lesson in a Class Folder that is shared with Students on an older version, they will not be able to integrate Tools that the Students cannot access on their versions.
Here is a breakdown of how the system works:
- If a Teacher creates a new Class: The default maximum compatible version for the Class is set to the version before the first version that includes this version compatibility update. This ensures any user will be able to open the Lesson.
- If a Teacher adds a Student to the Class Folder: If a Student is added to the Class and they are on a version older than the maximum compatible version, they will be added to a pending list and will be asked to update the app to the be on the maximum compatible version.
- If a Student is already in the Class and has not updated the app: This is the scenario where it really comes in handy. All other Students in the Class will be limited to stay within the same set of features compatible with the outdated Student's version until they update their app.
- If a Teacher creates a Lesson in a Class Folder: The Lesson will be created based on the maximum compatible version set for that Class.
- If a Teacher moves a Lesson from Documents into a Class Folder: The Lesson is flattened to ensure it will not be a newer version than the Class. TBD
Please note: In order to make different versions of Goodnotes compatible, users on older versions will be able to see newer features. However, they won’t be able to use these features until they update their app.
An Example of What Happens
- A Teacher creates a Lesson using Goodnotes version 26, which includes a feature called Supertimer.
- The Teacher’s students, Student A and Student B, have versions 27 and 28 installed. Student B’s version 28 also includes an extra feature called UltraPainter.
- When the Teacher shares the Lesson with both students, the app sets version 26 as the base version since it’s the oldest version in the group.
- This allows all three to use the Supertimer feature from version 26, but not the UltraPainter feature from version 28.
- Later, if the Teacher and Student A both upgrade to version 28, the "base version" updates to version 28.
- At this point, everyone can use both Supertimer and UltraPainter in the shared Lesson.
Teachers should be made aware the Lesson is working in an older compatibility mode from the warning Triangle in the Lesson's tab:
Communicating These Changes With Your Teachers
Your Teachers may want to know about this update, especially if they are on an older version and need their apps updated. To help you communicate this to them, you can use the following message:
Goodnotes 6 and Goodnotes Classroom have been updated to improve our version compatibility capabilities, meaning students or teachers using different versions of the app won’t run into any problems.
How It Will Benefit Your Day-to-Day:
- Effortless Collaboration Across Versions: Teachers and students can now work together on the same Lesson, Notebook, or Assignment even if they're using different app versions. The app now automatically adjusts shared Lessons for compatibility, so no one is left out or needs to update their app to join in.
- Less time updating: Updating is always important, however, if you or your Students fall a few versions behind, it will not hinder your ability to teach!
This update is included in version 6.5.18 of Goodnotes 6 and 1.0.12 for Goodnotes Classroom, if your app version is older than this, we will need to update your apps first! If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out.