Research questions raised in Canvas discussions
Turn a new discussion message into a targeted research run, with the Actor's returned output ready to inspect.
Trigger
New Canvas Discussion Message
Polls Canvas discussion topics for new messages.
Action
Run Actor Sync
Tool to run a specific actor synchronously with input and return its output record. use when immediate actor results are needed; runs may timeout after 300 seconds.
Why this helps
Interesting student questions can get buried when answering them requires a separate research session and tool switch.
- Run a configured Actor in response to a new discussion message.
- Return the Actor's output record immediately when the run completes.
- Make it easier to review research while the discussion is still active.
Setup
Build it in a few focused steps.
- 1Connect Canvas and Apify once in the Notis portal.
- 2Create an automation in Automations, New Automation, and name it for the discussion research outcome.
- 3Tell Notis to run a selected Apify Actor for new messages and describe what information to investigate.
- 4Choose the New Canvas Discussion Message trigger and choose where run reports should go.
- 5Test with one real discussion message and review the returned output record.
Questions about this workflow
Will the research be posted back to Canvas?
No. This workflow runs the Actor and returns its output record for review. The listed action does not post results to Canvas.
What if the Actor takes too long?
Synchronous runs may time out after 300 seconds. Choose an Actor and input suitable for a quick run, then test it on a real example.
When this happens · Trigger
Do this · Action
Supported Triggers and Actions
Notis builds workflows that link Canvas to Apify. A trigger fires from one place; an action lands in another.
Canvas triggers
Apify actions
Recurring trigger
Notis starts this workflow on a schedule, such as daily, weekly, or during business hours.
Create Actor
Tool to create a new actor with specified configuration. use when you need to initialize a fresh actor programmatically before publishing or running it.
Webhook trigger
Notis starts this workflow when an external tool or custom backend sends an HTTP request.
Create Dataset
Tool to create a new dataset. use when you need to initialize or retrieve a dataset by name.
Canvas Assignment Graded
Polls Canvas for newly graded submissions for a specific assignment.
Create Actor Task
Tool to create a new actor task with specified settings. use when you need to configure or schedule recurring actor runs programmatically.
New Canvas Assignment Submission
Polls Canvas for new submissions to a specific assignment.
Create Task Webhook
Tool to create a webhook for an actor task. use when you need external notifications about task run events (e.g., completion or failure) in downstream systems.
New Canvas Discussion Message
Polls Canvas discussion topics for new messages.
Delete Actor
Tool to delete an actor permanently. use when you need to remove an actor by its id or username~actorname. confirm before calling.
New Canvas Discussion Topic
Polls a Canvas course for new discussion topics.
Delete Webhook
Tool to delete a webhook by its id. use when removing a webhook after confirming the webhook id.
New Course Created for User
Polls Canvas for newly created courses for a specific user.
Get Actor Details
Tool to get details of a specific actor. use when you need actor metadata by id or username/actorname.
New Canvas File Upload
Polls a Canvas course for new file uploads.
Get all webhooks
Tool to get a list of all webhooks created by the user. use when you need to enumerate webhooks before filtering or maintenance.
Connect any two apps with Notis in the middle.
Canvas and Apify, or any other combination from 1,000+ integrations.
When this happens · Trigger
Do this · Action
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