WISDM Frontend Course Creation.
A product that has helped effortlessly manage course creators and restricts them to the frontend. It’s been trusted by over 800 LearnDashers. It had great promise. But was it the best? No. It always fell short.
The Need for Change
When we created the WISDM Frontend Course Creation (FCC) plugin, the idea was to cater to a set of people wanting to solve the problem of multiple instructors while maintaining website security. It was going to be different from the WISDM Instructor Role (IR) plugin – but in terms of operation, not features.
IR served the same purpose but let instructors access the backend. And some LearnDash owners wanted to restrict this capability.
While FCC grew parallelly along with IR, it was always a step back. We could never get FCC to offer the same level of functionality as IR. And this meant we were giving our customers an inferior product. Which was unacceptable.
To add to this, we had to maintain two very similar products. And, as time passed, we realized it made sense to only keep and grow one product.
The Decision to Discontinue WISDM Frontend Course Creation
Upon careful consideration and months of deliberation, we decided to end development on Frontend Course Creation. This means we’ll still support you if you have an active license, but we won’t be adding more features to the plugin or offering updates. This does NOT mean that we leave you hanging.
You’re highly encouraged to upgrade to the WISDM Instructor Role plugin – that offers the same set of features along with additional, sophisticated functionality. And, even though Instructors have backend access, it offers the same level of security and comfort as FCC. You have nothing to worry about but benefits to enjoy.
You can use the same license you have for FCC to activate IR. No additional purchase required. Just talk to our support team, if you have any questions.
Migrating to WISDM Instructor Role
For FCC users, we’ve created an IR Migration plugin that’ll help you seamlessly move to IR. The migration is a simple 3-step process:
- You have to keep all three plugins – FCC, IR, and the migration plugin – installed and active. Once again, you can use the same FCC license for IR.
- Take a backup of your database, if not already done so, and use the migration plugin options to switch Course Authors to Instructors.
- Once you transfer the commission data successfully, FCC will be automatically deactivated and all unnecessary data will be deleted.
You’ll find the complete details here.
Reasons to Make the Switch
WISDM Instructor Role exceeds WISDM Frontend Course Creation capabilities in every way. Along with the features FCC currently offers, you/instructors can:
- View student progress reports
- Email students directly from the dashboard
- Export created courses as a CSV file for easier editing
- Get a bird’s-eye view of courses and student progress using a dashboard
- Create courses quickly with a course creation shortcut
- Get LearnDash 3.0 compatibility
In addition to the above features, you don’t have any dependency on BuddyPress. Instructors can sell courses using WooCommerce or Easy Digital Downloads and create their own course packages. Less effort for you.
Although Instructors have backend access, they are restricted to options specific to their needs, keeping your website secure. The latest update of the IR plugin also offers an Instructor dashboard that makes it easy for users to interact with the system. You don’t have to worry about WordPress backend complexity either.
The Road Ahead
Both WISDM Frontend Course Creation and WISDM Instructor Role exist to address the same need – an option to add and manage teachers, course authors, instructors, without compromising website security – but in different ways.
With WISDM Instructor Role giving us more flexibility to add new features, we’ve decided to focus on improving it, while helping FCC users migrate to it. As an FCC user, you have the option to continue with the plugin, but upgrading to IR is certainly the better decision. And we’re right here to help you out in case you need anything.
