A new tab has become available for Kent State students to try the beta version of the new FlashLine. This tab can be accessed either on the login page or inside the FlashLine portal.

With the main goal of tailoring FlashLine to accommodate each student, this test page allows students to try out the new FlashLine portal to see how well it flows and to help catch mistakes.

“We are taking a dashboard approach with frequently accessed information about you getting prominent placement up top, along with the ability to maintain your own dashboard as you see fit,” said Sameer Jaleel, director of Platform and Integration Solutions.

The portal has been completely redesigned and will contain an entirely new user interface. It is being designed by a team at Kent State, which is almost entirely made up of Kent State graduates.

The team has worked to revamp the portal to be sure students are not bombarded with information. Instead, they will be able to view only information that applies directly to them.

“With the new portal, we are making every effort to avoid showing a piece of content to a user who is either ineligible to use it, or it may simply not apply to them,” Jaleel said.

The group hopes to help tailor how students are contacted and receive their information according to what suits them.

“We expect users to be able to fine-tune how they want to be notified and about what they want to be notified (of),” Jaleel said. “Notifications are very familiar to social media users, so we are simply bringing the same concept into FlashLine.

Jaleel said that he and the rest of the group hopes students will be able to contribute to the success of the portal.

“We sincerely hope our users will be as excited about the new portal as we are and will help us make this a success,” Jaleel said. “That is one of the main reasons behind the beta approach: so that we can make corrective actions before we go full in. Additionally, the feedback button can be used to let us know what you like and what you don’t.”

Following the beta test, the new FlashLine portal will launch in June.

Alex Soehnlen is the consumer/university technology reporter for The Kent Stater. Contact her at [email protected].