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Educational Technology Software Updates

This document provides information on recent software updates to educational technology (Ed Tech) software tools:

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 Canvas Updates

04/19/2025 Release

New Canvas Media Player

Canvas is updating its Media Player, which is used to play video/audio files added via the Upload/Record Media tool in the Rich Content Editor (shown below).

Arrow pointing to the Canvas Upload/Record Media button in the RCE

Note: This update does not affect the video player used for My Media (Kaltura) videos.

New Look and Feel

Side-by-side comparison of new and old Canvas media players
New Player Old Player
New Media Player Old Media Player

Adaptive Video Quality

In the new media player, instructors and students can now select Auto quality to automatically adjust the video's resolution based on available bandwidth, helping videos stream more smoothly on slower connections.

New player with Auto Quality selected

Custom Player Size

In the new player, when instructors upload or record a video through the Canvas Record/Upload Media tool, they can now specify a custom size for the embedded player, which controls how the video appears in Canvas.

specify custom video size

Still No Auto-Captions

Note that the Canvas Media Player still does not generate automatic captions. If you need captions automatically generated, upload your audio and video files to My Media.

Resources

More information about the new Canvas media player

03/15/2025 Release

Discussions - Default View Settings

Instructors can configure a default Discussion view for themselves and their students.

  1. Default Thread State – Determines whether threads in a Discussion are expanded or collapsed when the Discussion opens.
    • Expanded – The Discussion opens with expanded threads. Students can collapse threads unless Lock Thread State for Students is checked.
    • Collapsed – The Discussion opens with collapsed threads. Students can expand threads unless Lock Thread State for Students is checked.
  2. Lock Thread State for Students – When checked, students cannot change their Discussion view from the Default Thread State.
  3. Default Sort Order – Determines the order in which the threads in a discussion are displayed.
    • Oldest First – Threads display oldest first. Students can sort unless the lock is applied.
    • Newest First – Threads display newest first. Students can sort unless the lock is applied.
  4. Lock Sort Order for Students – When checked, students cannot change the sort order.

More info on Default View Settings

11/16/2024 Release

Discussions - Multiple Due Dates (Checkpoints) DELAYED

IMPORTANT: Due to discovered bugs, Checkpoints release is pushed to 2025. Read about the delayed release.

 Zoom Updates

01/2025 Release

Polls Can Be Shared

Meeting hosts can now access polls shared by others during a session.

  1. Log in to the Zoom portal.
  2. Select Surveys.
  3. Locate the survey to share.
  4. Click the dots and choose Share to.

 Kaltura Updates

04/01/2025 Updates

Video Player Embed Problems

The Bug: Embedded My Media videos sometimes use the v2 player.

The Workaround: Follow this tutorial.

 Updates Archive

Go to the Software Updates Archive to read past updates.

Software Updates Archive



Keywords:
updates, release notes, software release, changes, zoom, canvas, kaltura, my media 
Doc ID:
144305
Owned by:
Adam F. in CETL
Created:
2024-11-04
Updated:
2025-05-14
Sites:
UW-Milwaukee Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning