[Theme Editor] Dark Theme/Dark Mode for Canvas

[matthew_keatin1]

Hello all! I am a student, and I am here to suggest an idea that I thought would make Canvas more personalized. I think a dark theme would be great for Canvas since some students like to stay up at night (not me), and the bright white light from Canvas can hurt their eyes. The main reason why I want it is because it would look better on my computer. Youtube and Google have these options, why not Canvas? Thank you for reading!

  Comments from Instructure

While we are not able to announce that this idea has been completed, it is important to celebrate that Dark Mode has been added to Canvas Student, Canvas Teacher, and Canvas Parent. (2022-07-05)

• Canvas Teacher Release Notes (IOS 1.16)
• Canvas Student Release Notes (IOS 6.16)
• Canvas Parent Release Notes (IOS 3.6)

[daryl_adair]

The "force dark mode" suggestion is indeed feasible on any web browser in which you have the Dark Reader extension. However, there are serious limitations with that approach. I am a professor who runs online teaching with Canvas. If I design what I am doing on Canvas with Dark Reader intact, it looks completely different on the computer, to the tablet, to the phone. The latter two do not have the capacity to include dark mode for Canvas. So the whole experience is uneven and limited in effect only to the computer version of Canvas. Unless there is a system-wide change by Canvas to dark mode - which includes computer, tablet, and phone - the Dark Reader approach is only a stop gap measure.  

[glg06c]

@daryl_adair I agree 100%. I meant it more as a slightly more permanent solution than adding browser extensions. I see your point with the uneven results.

I ended up disabling the Force Dark Mode feature on Edge. It worked well with Canvas for the most part but its effect on other websites made me decide against keeping it on. For instance, it felt very strange that all my search results would be pink at first (the color typically indicating that I've already clicked on a result) then blue after I clicked on them. I could learn to cope with that difference but later when I opened a .pdf, I noticed that the empty space outside the edges of the document would flicker as I scrolled; the faster I scrolled the faster it would flicker. Fortunately, I do not have a history of epilepsy but if I were unknowingly prone to seizures, I might have had one. 

The Force Dark Mode feature apparently works by inverting the colors so if you accidentally include images as part of objects whose colors are inverted, it can be very unpleasant. 

I hope Canvas makes this feature available soon. I can't imagine it's a very complex undertaking. 

[Vadims_vodka]

Yes please 

[Koda75]

This really shouldn’t even be a discussion or request at this point. Almost every app has dark mode support expect for canvas. It’s been requested over and over again and the developers couldn’t care less. Especially with online schooling being a top priority in this pandemic, this should have been fixed already. 

[Huntersw]

I have a sinus infection which makes looking at light and screens, and light screens, worse than it is for almost everybody else. I need dark theme. Very good idea

[gjkgkjg]

Make the overlay of canvas black, optional for the people that like white

[nwill79]

I think it would be cool if there was a setting to change the white formatting in your classes, to a darker color, so that it doesn't hurt your eyes as much when looking at it for a long time.

[cheese1]

A dark mode setting or you can set it to when its night time it will automatically change it into dark mode

[vardhan]

Please allow dark mode feature on Canvas! It just makes us blind!

[hey_there_420]

There should be a dark mode for canvas.