Desire2Learn initiated a prioritizing process for Georgia Southern University’s network Sept. 27 that now ensures students loading Folio are a higher priority than loading any other site.

Many students had complaints about the slow performance of Folio until the change was made, Vice President of Academic Affairs Chad Harmon said at last night’s Student Government Association meeting.

“As of Thursday, there have been zero complaints about Folio.  (The Center for Academic Technology Support) had them rolling in one after the other up until Thursday but since then no one else has called to complain so fingers crossed that that has solved the bulk of the problem,” Harmon said.

Harmon met with Center for Academic Technology Support’s Assistant Director Robby Ambler and Information Systems Coordinator Ashlea Anderson and was able to shed light on the problems with folio.

“The big problem is the performance issue, that Folio is running a little bit slower than it should be,” Harmon said.

Desire2Learn, the company that runs Folio, is based out of Canada, which explains why it has taken longer to get things done because of distance, Harmon said.

Many students said that they have had problems submitting work and finding the assignment on the Folio page.  Much of it has to do with specific professors and the way in which they upload the assignment.

“There are several different ways in which it can be done depending on how the professor wants to do it,” Harmon said.

Harmon also addressed the issues students have had with the lockdown browser when used through Folio.

The lockdown browser is used for online quizzes and tests to prevent students from using the Internet as an aid to answer questions.  A student can’t minimize or exit out of the screen until the assessment is complete, thus testing the student’s knowledge only, Harmon said.

“If your internet connection cuts off then you’re in trouble because you completely cut out of the quiz you were taking,” Harmon said.

Harmon said, “So they’re pushing it down as more of a lab testing tool like if you’re going to take a test with a professor in a lab on campus.  Then it would be really useful but as far as using it for other quizzes, that’s up to the professor.”