Article posted on December 4, 2019
As many Teachers and School Administrators know, SMART started charging a subscription for their software some years ago. However, SMART has made a few changes enabling the basic version of its popular Notebook software available for free again. Below are details on SMART Notebook "basic" - the free software - and SMART Learning Suite - the paid for software:
SMART Notebook basic version provides free desktop, lesson creation, editing and delivery software to provide an excellent experience when teaching with SMART Board interactive displays. It includes:
Deliver lessons on interactive displays (optimized for SMART Board displays); includes regular updates to ensure compatibility with the latest Windows and MAC OS. SMART Notebook basic can be used with other interactive displays (Epson BrightLink, ViewSonic ViewBoards, etc.) however, a small watermark will appear in the lower right hand side of the screen.
SMART Learning Suite is a paid subscription that transforms static content into interactive learning experiences. Including both an online and desktop experience, it takes learning beyond the use of the interactive display and outside the classroom. It includes everything above AND:
Lesson creation and delivery on any device, including Chromebooks; Integration with G Suite with SSO.
The picture above does a better job explaining the differences but I apologize for its small size.
With SSO (single sign on) via Google accounts, Administrators should be able to distinguish between those Teachers that need a paid subscription vs. those who just need the basic version of the software. Email addresses of those Teachers requiring a subscription can be added to the SMART software portal and, when they can log into Notebook all the premium features are activated (and they have access to the online software). Those Teachers using Notebook Basic have to log in as well (using their Gmail account) but there would be no charge for them to use Basic.
Hope this makes sense. If not, let us know.
SMART Notebook software can be downloaded from here:
https://www.smarttech.com/en/products/education-software/smart-learning-suite/download