Design Protocols
About Architect
Architect is the protocol designer for Network Canvas — the tool you use to build the interview protocols that run in Interviewer and Fresco. It comes in two versions with similar names: Architect — the current app, which runs in your browser with nothing to install — and Architect Classic, the older downloadable application (Windows, macOS, Linux). Throughout this documentation, "Architect" on its own means the browser app, and "Architect Classic" always refers to the download. They share the same interface and protocol-building workflow, but they are not interchangeable — each builds a different version of the protocol file format ("schema"), and that version determines which app you can run your interviews in. The table below compares them; which you should use depends mainly on where you will run your interviews.
Not sure which to use?
Choose Architect for new studies — it's the default and needs no setup. Its schema 8 protocols run in Fresco and in the new Interviewer (beta) app.
Choose Architect Classic only if you need to keep using Interviewer Classic, the older desktop and tablet app. It builds schema 7 protocols and cannot open protocols built in Architect.
| Architect | Architect Classic | |
|---|---|---|
| Install | Nothing — runs in the browser | Download and install (Windows, macOS, Linux) |
| Protocol schema | Schema 8 (latest) | Schema 7 and earlier |
| Run interviews in | Fresco and Interviewer | Interviewer Classic (Interviewer and Fresco can automatically upgrade a protocol created in Architect Classic) |
| Backup & moving | Download a .netcanvas file to keep or share a copy | Your .netcanvas file is already on disk — copy it anywhere |
| Updates | Always the latest, automatically | Download each new release yourself |
| Best for | New studies (run in Fresco or Interviewer) | Studies that must keep using the older Interviewer Classic app |
| Status | Actively developed | Maintenance mode — bug fixes only |
Good to know:
A PWA (Progressive Web App) is a website you can optionally install to your device. Architect runs in any modern web browser with nothing to install; installing it as a PWA adds quick access from your device and offline use.
Architect can open a schema 7 protocol made in Architect Classic and upgrade it to schema 8, but this is one-way — a schema 8 protocol cannot be converted back or opened in Architect Classic. For a full explanation of schema versions and compatibility, see App compatibility by schema version and Protocol Schema Information.