Email Feature

[ItsBilley]

Hello, Canvas.

Question: Does Canvas have any plans to upgrade the email feature soon? The email feature in the iteration of Canvas that I am using at my institution is quite antiquated. It's simply a text-only function that allows for attachments. Is this a feature that my institution needs to add to its Canvas package or has the Canvas email feature not evolved? Or is there something that I need to turn on? 

I have included an image of what the image feature looks like in the version of Canvas that I am currently using.

[Chris_Hofer · Accepted solution]

@ItsBilley ...

Thanks for the question.  To begin, Canvas does not have e-mail.  The term "e-mail" often gets used when referring to the Canvas "Inbox", but there are some key differences.  The "Inbox" is a messaging system inside of Canvas.  It's not the same as e-mail.  For example, you can only send message to fellow classmates and instructors who are enrolled in the same courses that you are enrolled in.  And, you can only receive messages via the Canvas "Inbox" from your fellow classmates and instructors who are enrolled in the same courses you are enrolled in.  You cannot send messages to friends and family members, for example, via the Canvas "Inbox".  This is because they aren't enrolled in your courses.  By the same token, your friends and family cannot send you e-mail messages which you could then read within the Canvas "Inbox".  In summary, the "Inbox" within Canvas is a communication tool for communicating with fellow classmates and instructors.

That being said, you can go to your "Account" >> "Notifications" screen within Canvas, and you can configure your notification settings so that you receive a copy of messages to your e-mail address.  And, you can also set up an additional e-mail address (for example, a personal e-mail address in addition to a school e-mail address) to get notified at that address as well.

• How do I manage notifications for a single course as a student?
• How do I manage notifications for a single course as an instructor?
• How do I manage my Canvas notification settings as a student?
• How do I manage my Canvas notification settings as an instructor?
• How do I add an additional email address as a contact method in Canvas as a student?
• How do I add an additional email address as a contact method in Canvas as an instructor?

Now, to get to your question... this is a pretty popular request.  There's already an existing idea that's been created in the Community.  You can find it at:

• Add rich-content editor to Conversations in board Canvas Ideas
• Improve the inbox functionality to provide for more meaningful communication

This first link is a link to the original idea submitted back in 2015.  The second link is a link to the overall Theme.  You'll see that the Theme has a status of "Identified".  You can read more about this status at: How do Ideas and Themes work in the Instructure Co... - Instructure Community - 2980 (canvaslms.com).  Then, if/when this becomes open for voting (which happens two times a year), you can then participate in those discussions.

I hope these links will be helpful to you!

[ItsBilley]

Hello, Chris.

Thank you for responding. I am disappointed and frustrated that the request made by instructors in 2015 for a Rich Content Editor in the Canvas messaging system has been ignored.

I guess there is no incentive for Instructure to accommodate this request.

Thank you for sharing the history of this matter with me.

[Chris_Hofer]

@ItsBilley ...

I don't know that I'd characterize this particular Idea as being completely ignored.  There are 230 comments spanning 23 pages in the thread since 2015.  With that many comments, I'm sure that folks from Instructure have read through the comments...even if it looks like they may not always respond.  I can tell you that Instructure does read our comments and values our feedback.  Instructure does operate on a budget just like other companies, and they don't have unlimited resources.  This document might help to explain things a bit more: What is the feature development process for Instru... - Instructure Community - 469504 (canvaslms.co....  Hope this will be of help, too.

[TiffiniTravis]

You have got to be kidding me. RTF messaging to students has been available in every other LMS I have ever used except this one. We need to send attachments, We need to format agendas. we need to use bullets. Just like this wonderful message box that has all the things I want in my messages for students and faculty committees. The irony of using a messaging features to complain about the lack of messaging features. SINCE 2015!!!!! "one of our most popular requests" Way to be responsive to the needs of instructors! 

• please enable this sort of functionality in your messaging system 
• please be responsive to your users its been almost 10 years since it was first requested
• notice how well this feature works to organize messages to students

Obviously you have the technology. Literally every product has this functionality. I am on my knees- please say you will add this without making people vote on it - its such a common feature that I cannot believe how archaic your system is and how you have completely ignored the pleas for the last ten years. 

Off to go paste my perfectly formatted agenda into an imperfect messaging system. 

warmly

T

[VHDL2STA]

Hi Chris,

Thank you for the information that Canvas does not have email. But I and a lot of other Canvas users already know this.

You wrote that Canvas can only send and receive from those associated with a specific course. OK. But then why can we not create folders for specific categories within a course. The inability to create folders is another capability that many Canvas users have requested, myself included.

Your solution is to work outside of Canvas with mirrored communications and set up folders etc in our company's Outlook email utility. But that is inefficient for many reasons one of which is that we then have to create a folder for each of our Canvas courses and then create folders within this folder. This is highly inefficient. It would be more efficient if we were able to, as you suggest, work within one central Canvas course email.

The "Inbox" messaging should also have Rich Content Editor capabilities. Currently, anytime I want to include a screenshot or an image of anything I have to embed the image into a Word document and then attach the Word document. This is highly inefficient. And the students are very surprised and frustrated that  they cannot embed images into what they initially perceive is an email environment.

As I wrote before working with Canvas email (or whatever you want to call it) is like struggling with email from the 1960s. In the 60's users were happy with the introductory concept of an email. But this is 2024. There is now an expectation of what a modern non-60's email should look and feel like.

Many years ago Blackboard already had an email utility with a Rich Content Editing capability. When my college adopted Canvas I erroneously believed that Canvas would also have the standard (yes standard by modern trends) email capabilities that other LMSs have.

Suppose a new pizza restaurant opens but they only have plain pizza on their menu. In the 1800s a plain pizza was acceptable. But modern pizza lovers are used to all types of flavored pizzas. You can finish this analogy.

Please note that I am very polite. I have read posts from other Canvas users about that Inbox that borders on profanity.

[Chris_Hofer]

Hello @VHDL2STA ...

I don't have all the answers for you...as I'm a fellow Canvas user like yourself who works for a college in Detroit, MI.

---

Thank you for the information that Canvas does not have email. But I and a lot of other Canvas users already know this.

---

While I do agree that many other Canvas users do know this, there are some users that are not as familiar with the functionalities of the Canvas Inbox.  So, I included the information in my reply in the event that someone were to stumble upon this particular conversation and wanted to know more about how it works.  Hope that makes sense.

You wrote that Canvas can only send and receive from those associated with a specific course. OK. But then why can we not create folders for specific categories within a course. The inability to create folders is another capability that many Canvas users have requested, myself included.

---

I can definitely see where creating folders within the Canvas Inbox might be helpful.  For example, if you had an "Written Communication" course, and you wanted to create a folder within the Inbox specifically for one of the assignments and any conversations between you and your students for that assignment, that would be helpful.  I see that you submitted an idea for this back in 2021 located at: [Inbox] Canvas Inbox Needs Folders - Instructure Community - 482822 (canvaslms.com).  And, it's been added to a larger Theme called Improved UI Controls and Usability - Additional fi... - Instructure Community - 552713 (canvaslms.co......which has a current status of "Identified".  [Read more about "Identified" at: How do Ideas and Themes work in the Instructure Co... - Instructure Community - 2980 (canvaslms.com).]

Your solution is to work outside of Canvas with mirrored communications and set up folders etc in our company's Outlook email utility. But that is inefficient for many reasons one of which is that we then have to create a folder for each of our Canvas courses and then create folders within this folder. This is highly inefficient. It would be more efficient if we were able to, as you suggest, work within one central Canvas course email.

---

I'm not sure where you are seeing that I suggested a solution to work outside of Canvas with mirrored communication using something like Outlook.  I looked over my responses from 1/30/24 and 2/1/24 in this thread, and I'm not seeing where I suggested anything like this.

The "Inbox" messaging should also have Rich Content Editor capabilities. Currently, anytime I want to include a screenshot or an image of anything I have to embed the image into a Word document and then attach the Word document. This is highly inefficient. And the students are very surprised and frustrated that  they cannot embed images into what they initially perceive is an email environment.

---

I'd encourage you (and others who are reading this) to follow the Idea and the Theme that I had linked to back on 1/30/24.  Again, if/when this would be open for voting, people can participate in those conversations.

Thanks for the feedback and the conversation.  Take care...be well.

[VHDL2STA]

Hi Chris,

I mistakenly assumed that you are a Canvas representative. Thanks for clarifying that you are a Canvas user like myself.

My concerns and complaints about the Canvas email (let us call this utility what it should be and what Canvas users expect it to be) are still applicable and hopefully will be corrected by Canvas.

Thanks for your input. 

[TiffiniTravis]

Don't hold your breath. Maybe another 10 years will give them enough time to develop such a feature? I mean it's not like I am staring at a rich text format box right now or anything. I am gobsmacked that when I finally was annoyed enough to google how to do RTF on CANVAS messages that I didn't find instructions or that this was a super old post but that they purposely choose not to do RTF. Cost? I bet a couple of computer science students could knock this out as an intern project... 

T

[TiffiniTravis]

Well said! I miss blackboard and the ability to link to anything I so desired and bullet lists all day long. You have so perfectly captured my feelings on this situation. Surely an LMS wouldn't ignore a common feature for ten years.... -______-