For those of you who upgraded to Blackbaud NetCommunity (BBNC) 6.10
you might have happened to see this message on your Class Notes part:
So what gives? Why should you use the Personal Notes part? I am going to detail the features you'll gain, the features that change, and the features that haven't made it over yet.
What does the Personal Notes part have that Class Notes doesn't?
- The search functionality allows you to search on many fields other than class year, including school name, first name, and last name.
- Users can post multiple notes and use multiple note types you specify in The Raiser's Edge.
- You can change a note a user posted in The Raiser's Edge and it will be reflected on the website.
- You can show any notes in The Raiser's Edge even if the user didn't post them via the website.
- You can limit the group of individuals the part searches and displays using a constituent query.
What functionality changes when moving from the Class Notes part to the Personal Notes part?
- The approval process changes in the Personal Notes part. Instead of approving the class notes on the website you will instead approve all notes in the plugin. While approving the class notes you can also modify them if needed.
- The search functionality changes from a single class year drop down to a set of fields selected on the Personal Notes part.
- The parts display differently. (Examples: Personal Notes & Class Notes)
What functionality hasn't made it over yet?
- When a user accesses the Class Notes part, it displays the class year from their constituent record and will default the search results to their class. The Personal Notes part requires the user to enter search criteria to find the class year they wish to view. This limitation can be avoided, and we'll discuss that in our next article.
- The Class Notes part allows you to select a Profile Display page to link the student names to. Currently the Personal Notes part does not support this functionality.
Whew... that's a lot to take in, and there is a lot to consider. I recommend reviewing the Website Design Guide page 125 for more information on the Personal Notes part. In the next article, we will go over the best way to convert from the Class Notes part to the Personal Notes part.
If you have any questions please feel free to comment below or create a case and we'll be glad to help you out.
Posts in this Series:
Class Notes vs. Personal Notes Part 1
Class Notes vs. Personal Notes Part 2