Update on the Modernized SpeedGrader Release

[ArohiDesai]

At Canvas, we are committed to delivering tools that meet the highest standards of quality and usability while addressing the needs of our community. With that in mind, we want to provide an update on the release timeline for the modernized SpeedGrader.

We’ve received valuable feedback from our users during testing, and we are carefully working through it to ensure the new SpeedGrader is a robust and complete replacement for the current experience. Our primary goal is to achieve full feature parity with the existing SpeedGrader, including the inclusion of key functionalities such as support for RCE-Lite, Anonymous Grading and even most recently released functionality such as Submission Stickers. 

We know how important SpeedGrader is to your workflows, and we want to ensure the transition to the modernized version is seamless and rewarding.

We’re working hard to release the modernized SpeedGrader as soon as possible, with a target of Q1 2025. While we are striving to meet this timeline, we are committed to delivering the release no later than early Q2 2025.

We are actively addressing feedback and will continue to share updates as we make progress. Thank you for your patience and support as we work toward a better, more modern SpeedGrader. 

[NickChevalierUT]

Hi Arohi,

Thanks for this update! Does this mean the Modernized SpeedGrader is being delayed from its production release this Saturday, 1/18?

[j_avneri]

Hi Arohi,

Just echoing on Nick's point, could this be clarified please? as it's still listed in the release notes for 18 Jan 2025

Thanks!

[ArohiDesai]

@NickChevalierUT @j_avneri That is correct. It will not be released in production on January 18th. It was in the  Release notes originally but was delayed as of December 5th in favor of ensuring key features like RCE-Lite and Anonymous grading which are critical to the Speedgrader experience are also supported. 

• Improved SpeedGrader Experience [Delayed as of 2024-12-05]

[NickChevalierUT]

Hi @ArohiDesai,

Thank you for confirming this information, but this is slightly frustrating. I see in the Release Notes that this feature, among others, say they are "[Delayed as of X]," however the release notes still show a Production Environment Availability of 2025-01-18:

I interpreted this information to mean that the feature was previously delayed, but is now coming to production on 1/18. Clearly, this is not the case. We've already informed all of our faculty that these features are coming, when we now realize they are not.

What can be done to ensure these delays are more clearly communicated in the future? I would think modifying the "Production Environment Availability" date in the release note details themselves to "Delayed" would be a simple enough remedy.

Thank you.

[ArohiDesai]

Thank you for the feedback @NickChevalierUT . I see how that can be confusing. We will work on updating the release notes and also make sure it is clearly communicated with a new date if available or share that a new release date is yet to be determined. 

[Ash_Ow]

Hi @ArohiDesai,

I was under the impression that the suffix "Delayed [Date X]" meant that the decision to delay the feature was made on [Date X]. This is in opposition to "Delayed [Date X]" meaning "It has been delayed until "Date X". 

Based on that, this would mean that the decision to delay Modernized SpeedGrader was first made December 5th, 2024 and as it has been again delayed on January 16th, 2024 should it not now read "Delayed 2025-01-16"?

Are you able to clarify? Thanks!