[ARCHIVED] Canvas Teacher comments disappear with no error message if you don't click the up-arrow before Done

[dpesetsky]

Words cannot express how angry I am, having graded for the first time using Canvas Teacher on my iPad.  On the computer version, adding comments to a pin is straightforward.  You write the comment, type return, it's saved, you move on.

Grading on my iPad, I wrote my comment and clicked on the big "Done" at the top of the commenting pane — and then moved on.  Comment after comment, on assignment after assignment.

Every commnt is gone.  Apparently, for no obvious reason, you need to first click on the non-standard up-arrow-in-a-circle icon to the right of the typing field first, and only then click Done, or else your text silently disappears without a trace.  No error message, no notification, no warning, just gone.

Why?  Why the unnecessary two steps to save your comment?  But given that both steps are necessary, why is there no warning message when you click "Done" with text in the texrt field, without having first clicked the up-arrow?

Speechless. 

[rseilham · Accepted solution]

Hi again, @dpesetsky. 

I can totally see your point to hitting the Done button as a way to submit a comment. The Done button is a standard element in iOS to exit a section of an app, so the button is working to the design of iOS which is important for accessibility, so I don't think the Done button should submit a comment. I think the issue (as you stated) is if you have an active message and hit Done, there should be a warning if you want to exit. I would suggest you Report an Issue under the Help section of the Canvas Teacher app and since technically it's a feature addition, suggest a feature idea as well. 

[spaethm]

There is no doubt that CANVAS deletes comments, randomly and without regard for correct submission. One has NO choice but to waste unbelievable amounts of time writing all comments in a backup document and sometimes having to re-submit comments. This includes any marginalia in the documents themselves that are 'encouraged' but also disappear randomly. I had a full online conversation just last night with a student who noticed my comments in SpeedGrader as I wrote. I added her grade, hit submit for all material and this morning our entire conversation and all comments were gone. I HAD the time-stamped proof of the submissions in a word document however.  

I also see that there is a java script embedded in a comments that is incorrectly programmeds. Perhaps  Canvas techies (and I use that word cautiously and without sincerity) should check the 'delete comment' command that seems to lie within the comments and are only visible to users if we copy and paste the entry into another document. UGH!! This entire LMS is useless and worse than Bilda, PingPong, Tracs, D2L, Blackboard/Moodle, CourseSites....shall I go on!?