Why is "Edit Module" interface different?

Question

I was just experimenting with "Course Builder" and am perplexed by inconsistencies in the interface.  With all the changes re the PIE, I'm not sure where to express these concerns.  Do I add them as a feature request in the PIE?  Do I include them here?  Do I voice them to our SAM?

Anyway, this is my issue.  Why doesn't the edit module experience in "Course Builder" match the edit module experience in the standard interface?  Below, I have included the two interfaces indicating how they are similar but not quite the same.  For instance, while "Dates" is available in both, "Release Criteria" is not.  And in Course Builder, where I was expecting to see "Description" I see something called "Notes"…which seems of limited usefulness (relevant D2L Documentation).

For consistency's sake, my expectation is that users have access to the same "Edit Module" feature sets in both.

Standard Module Editing

Module Editing in Course Builder

Tags: UX, User Interface, consistency

Gabriel.T.493 · Answer

Hi Mike.

Regarding the changes to PIE, for feedback on existing features, please reach out to your Customer Success representative, who can share your input with our development team.

As to your second question, the "Notes" field is simply an HTML editor. The idea was, when building your course outline with modules and placeholders, you would be able add notes to each module and placeholder summarizing your course goals and learning objectives. This hasn't been translated into the regular content area, however.

And finally, I couldn't get the date picker to open downwards. For me, it opens upwards. If you can reproduce this behavior consistently, I would recommend opening a support case with the steps to reproduce this/screencast of the issue, as this looks like a defect.

Regards

Gabriel

Mike.B.559 · Answer

My post was more intended as feedback.  I hadn't used Course Builder before and, when I found it, I was looking forward to having a place where I didn't have to scroll up and down to enter content into the description fields of various modules while being able to move them around easily.  This would actually be helpful.

It was also intended as feedback on consistency, the idea that editing a module should have the same options available in both places.  Notes, as an option, just kind of seems to come out of nowhere.  Is it found anywhere else in the platform?

Last, there seems to be an intermittent problem with the date picker for start date.  It opens downward in my browser (Chrome Version 139.0.7258.139) where I cannot see it to select (see below).  Adjusting the scrollbar or dragging the corner of the field doesn't seem to solve it.  Zooming does not change it either.  Setting for time is fine.  The picker opens upward.

Lindsay.S.432 · Answer

Hi @Mike.B.559!

Course Builder was designed mainly for planning and structuring, so it emphasizes things like dates, hierarchy, and notes, rather than the full set of module properties. That’s why fields like Release Conditions or Description aren’t surfaced there. Because it is the view that I see while working on the course structure, I think of the Notes area as "Notes to self". It provides a space to enter text that is hidden from learners, which could be useful when organizing. Hope that helps!