Catalogue settings
  • 01 Feb 2022
  • 8 minutes to read

Catalogue settings


Article Summary

When you configure the catalogue you will see the followings options. Remember to click Save before moving between tabs. 

Contents tab

Specify which learning types (Courses, Programs, Certifications, Playlists and Resources) should be included within the catalogue by ticking the corresponding checkbox.

If you enable a new content type, it may take a short while before all associated items will be visible within the catalogue.

General tab

The general settings area includes options for the overall display of the course catalogue.

SettingDescriptionNotes

View options

Use this setting to specify how you wish users to be able view the catalogue. Select from:

  • Tile and list (default)
  • Tile only
  • List only

Items per 'load more'

This option determines how many learning items should be displayed before the Load more option should appear at the bottom of the catalogue:

  • 20 (default)
  • 40
  • 60

-

Browse menu

This setting defines which field is displayed at the top left of the catalogue when browsing catalogue items. Options include:

  • Category (default)
  • None - Remove the browse option
  • Custom
    • Activity type - Show only items containing a specific activity type (e.g. SCORM, Seminar)
    • Course type - Elearning, Blended or Online
    • Format - Course format (e.g. weekly, topic based)
    • Learning type - Courses, programs or certifications
    • Tags (Default collection)
    • Time to read
    • Topics

Add filters to restrict catalogue content by multiple criteria.

Featured Learning

Enable this option to highlight specific items within the catalogue.

Catalogue items can added as Featured Learning by a range of criteria. This criteria, or Source, is then further refined by a specific Value.

Sources include:

  • Category
  • Course Type - Elearning, Blended or Online (Totara Learn)
  • Format - Course format (Totara Learn)
  • Tags
  • Topics (Totara Engage)

Items matching the Featured Learning criteria will be shown with a 'Featured' label. The colour of the 'Featured' label can be adjusted via your theme CSS.

Featured is the default Sort by order when Featured Learning is enabled.

Details content

When this setting is enabled then a pop-up containing an item's details will be displayed when you click on the item in the catalogue. From this pop-up you can view the item itself, or close the pop-up.

When this setting is disabled clicking an item in the catalogue will take you straight to the item.

For upgraded sites this setting will be enabled by default, but new sites will have this setting disabled.

Templates tab

The Templates area defines the layout and content shown within the tiles displaying the learning items, and the layout and content shown when viewing the details of an item (if Details content has been enabled on the General tab).

The template design of the catalogue allows for a consistent display across all items.

SettingDescriptionNotes

Item content placeholders

Title

The name of the item.

Choose whether to display the Full name or Short name for each enabled learning type within the Item settings.

Image

Enable this field to show the associated image within the catalogue.

Site-wide default images will be displayed unless a custom image has been added within the settings area of a specific item.
 
There is no default image size as images will be automatically resized if required. 

Hero data type

This specifies the information that you want to draw learners' attention to through visual emphasis. Choose from:

  • None - Do not display any hero data
  • Text - Will allow you to add text-based content such as Tags to each catalogue item
  • Icon - will allow you to add image-based content such as Course Icon or Course type icon to each catalogue item

The selection made under Hero data type will determine the options available within the Item settings.

Description

The selected description field will display in the centre of the item tile.

If enabled, you will need to assign an appropriate information source for the description for each learning item type within the item settings.

Additional text placeholders

Additional text-based information can be displayed within each item tile. Select from zero to five items.

The number of text placeholder items added here will determine the options available within the Item settings.

Icon placeholders

Enable this option to display icon-based information for each learning type.

If icon placeholders are enabled, the option to select Icon sources for each learning type will be available within the Item settings.

Progress bar

Choose whether completion progress bars should display for those learning items shown within the catalogue.

Only users enrolled in a learning item will see a corresponding progress bar.

Detail content placeholder

Title

If checked, the title of the learning item will be displayed within the detail window

Choose whether to display the Full name or Short name for each enabled learning type within the Details settings.

Rich text format

Enable this option to add rich text formatted content to the detail window for each learning item.

Select where this content should be sourced from within the Details settings area.

Description

The selected description field will display under any rich text content shown within the detail window of each learning item.

If enabled, you will need to assign an appropriate information source for the Description for each learning item type within the Details settings.

Additional text placeholders

Additional text based information can be displayed within the details area. Select from 0 to 5 items.

The number of text placeholder items added here will determine the options available within the Details settings.

Icon placeholders

Enable this option to display icon based information within the details area for each learning type.

If Icon placeholders are enabled, the option to select Icon sources for each learning type will be available within the Details settings.

Item tab

The Item configuration area specifies the source of the information being displayed for each learning item in both Tile and List views, as set within the Templates tab.

SettingDescriptionNotes

Title

Choose whether to display the Full name or Short name for each enabled learning type.

For Resources and Playlists there is only a single option (Name) by default. Additional Item title sources can be added by a developer.

Hero data

Hero data is displayed in the top-left-hand corner of a learning item tile.

Where displayed, select the Text- or Icon-based source of the hero data for each enabled learning type.

The options displayed are specified within the Templates settings.

Description

If enabled within Templates settings, you will be to select the source for the Description for each learning type.

A description will display under Item Title. Note that there are no options for Totara Engage Resources.

Additional text field(s)

Text-based information regarding each enabled learning type can be added to item tiles using these fields.

The number of fields displayed here is determined by the number of text placeholder selected within the Templates tab.

After selecting the required text information sources, check the Include label option to add the title of the text field alongside the information.

Icon sources

If enabled within Templates settings, you will be able to choose which icons to display within learning item tiles.

  • Course icon
  • Program icon
  • Certification icon

Use the up and down arrows (,) to change the order in which these icons display or the delete icon () to remove the icon from the display.

As icon sources (such as Activity type) can have more than one icon (or no icons), a learning item tile will only display as many icons as the space allows.

Details

The Details configuration area specifies the source of the information being displayed within the details of each learning item. Learning item details are viewed when a user select a particular catalogue item.

The options displayed within the Details area are set within the Templates tab.

Note that the details panel is not available for Totara Engage items such as Engage resources or playlists.

Rich Text is a format which supports limited text formatting and layout design.

To add or edit icons, images and content, use the course settings area and the program and certification Details tab.

SettingDescriptionNotes

Title

If enabled within Templates settings, choose whether to display the Full name or Short name for each enabled learning type.

Additional Item title sources can be added by a developer.

Rich text content

If enabled within Templates settings, you will be to select the source for any rich text formatted information stored within the settings of a learning type.

This content will be displayed as formatted within the details section of a learning item.

Rich text content includes course, program and certification summary fields and any Text Area custom fields.

Description

If enabled within Templates settings, you will be able to select the source for the Description for each learning type.

Description sources include any information stored within the general settings of a course, program or certification.

Additional text field(s)

Text-based information regarding each enabled learning type can be added to item details using these fields.

The number of fields displayed here is determined by the number of text placeholder selected within the Templates tab.

After selecting the required text information sources, check the Include label option to add the title of the text field alongside the information.

Icon sources

If enabled within Templates settings, you will be to which icons to display within learning item tiles.

  • Course type
  • Activity type
  • Course icon
  • Program icon
  • Certification icon

Use the up and down arrows (,) to change the order in which these icons display or the delete icon () to remove the icon from the display.

Filters tab

Filters allow a user to restrict which the learning items are displayed within the catalogue.

Filters can include:

  • Activity type
  • Category
  • Course type (Totara Learn)
  • Format (Totara Learn)
  • Learning type
  • Tags
  • Topics (Totara Engage)
  • Time to read (Totara Engage)

Note that if only some of your users have access to Totara Engage content (e.g. resources or playlists) then the Engage-related filters will be visible to all users. Users without access to Totara Engage content can see and use these filters, although no content will be displayed.

Use the Filter Heading field to create a custom title for your filter.

Use the up and down arrows () to change the order in which the filters display down the left-hand side of the screen. Use the cross icon () to remove the filter from the catalogue.

Course and program/certification custom fields that are of the same type and have an identical full name and short name will be merged as a single filter within the catalogue, allowing all learning types with a matching value to be displayed.

C033 - Course Catalogue(2)The Totara Academy has a whole course dedicated to using the Catalogue in Totara. Here you can learn more on how to use the catalogue, see best practice, and give it a go yourself.

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