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Offline Access via Mobile
Hi! I'd like to address the following scenario regarding mobile offline downloads.
Current Panopto <-> D2L integration.
For video sessions, Mobile downloads are enabled for viewers (via app). Web-based downloads are not.
A student downloads video sessions via app. What happens if:
- student drops course, therefore loses access to D2L course and Panopto folder. Will offline access still be available?
- at end of term admins remove viewer (student) access. What happens to the downloaded content on the student's app?
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Best Answer
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Kathryn
Administrator
@Jairo Delgado Yes, if you choose "Allow for all sessions" for the Allow Offline Viewing in Mobile Apps, then users will be able to download a session and watch in the mobile app - regardless of the folder or video download setting which controls downloading from a desktop browser.
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Answers
Interesting...
Great question - if student viewer access is removed, the videos will no longer be available for offline viewing for the students. I just tested it to double check.
From the article on this topic:
"If a video is unavailable, it will not be available for offline viewing. If a user has not logged into the app for 14 days, they will no longer be able to view content offline. This is to make sure the latest availability setting on the server is reflected at least once in 14 days."
How to Manage Offline Viewing for the iOS and Android App
@Kathryn , When "downloading", where does the video store? What format? Are downloaded videos searchable on the devices?
@Elba Rios It stores with the data for the app but isn't accessible to the end user except through the app. The video files can't be found by searching the device - you would need to search in the Panopto app to find and watch the video.
@Kathryn , thanks for the clarification. :)
thanks @Kathryn and @Elba Rios for additional question and answer! one last question - i wanted to confirm that i should be able to only enable mobile downloads, while at the same time disabling web UI downloads (podcasts/MP4)?
If Allow for all sessions is enabled, even if an instructor doesn't want to allow offline access, students would still be able to cache the videos on their mobile devices.
That seems odd that creators would no longer have rights to control their content. How is that acceptable?
@Charles Barbour The default this system setting is to allow mobile downloads only if downloads are enabled in the settings for the session, so typically this is creator controlled. Having downloads enabled will allow viewers on a desktop browser to download and retain a copy of the video in MP4 format. Some organizations want to disable this, but still allow users to download videos on mobile to watch offline in case they need to be somewhere without internet. When someone downloads in the mobile app, the video is only accessible in the app - it isn't searchable in the device's file system, so the downloaded copy can't be shared like it can when downloading from a desktop browser.
Sure, but some people are going to be extremely protective. It would seem sensible to also provide them with a way to disable mobile device caching for their content if they should choose to do so.
At this time, the best way to allow for that is just to leave the site setting on "based on folder or session download settings," but I see what you mean about maybe adding an additional mobile downloads opt-out setting on the folder or video level. Thanks for your feedback!
Fyi, at our institution we decided to disable the "RSS" feed "downloading" by viewers at the site settings level. We didn't want to risk the possibility of viewers accessing / hacking video files in devices. However, we have allowed enabling "folders" at the creator level so that allowing downloading is intentional by faculty.