Turning Point Cloud has upgraded their clicker software from version 7 to version 8, and Academic Technology is updating all classrooms and computer labs over the summer. The new version will deliver faster load times for PowerPoint Polling and fixes a number of the bugs associated with the earlier version.  

There is little difference between the two interfaces - just a few minor feature changes and a new skin. Turning Point also has a new logo - you’ll be looking for a blue and black hexagon instead of a cloud icon to open the application. There are no hardware changes required with the upgrade, so existing receivers will continue to work.  

Turning Point 8 largely retains the same set of tools, so there will be little or no learning curve for most instructors. Students will still need to link to Turning Account via Canvas, buy a license and register a clicker device. Some faculty will not require physical clickers but instead allow their students to use their smartphone, tablet or laptop to participate in polling.

It is important to note, however, that TurningPoint 8 is NOT backwards compatible. For example, if an instructor has version 8 on their desktop and goes into a lecture hall with a podium computer that is running version 7.5, it will not work. Anything created in the new version will not run on older versions of the software, but anything created in an older version will still run successfully under version 8.

We recommend you don’t uninstall older versions of TurningPoint until after you’ve installed the new one. When opening the updated software for the first time, you’ll be prompted to copy your content files, participant lists, and session files over from the older version. If you’ve already downloaded version 8, the update process will proceed as normal via the software update footer.   

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Academic Technology at x4461, send an email to athelp@humboldt.edu, or stop by Library 315.