Editing a previous text-entry in a scrolling panel in SL360

Apr 22, 2017

Michael Long
By Michael Long

I have combed the community to see how others are doing this and am not finding anything simple. I basically want the learner to be able to retrieve a previously entered text-entry in scrolling panel (like a note they typed up in the beginning of the course) and edit it later on. The problem is that the only way to do this is very clunky and requires the user to click on the text which highlights all of it. Then they need to use their keyboard and press either the End key or any arrow keys to be able to begin editing the text-entry. If the user doesn't know what to do at this point to address this, they'll end up highlighting the text and type over it (which erases it all). Is there a reason the cursor doesn't just allow you to begin typing from the end of the text-entry when selected? Is it just me or does this screen behavior seem odd and unintuitive? I was hoping that SL360 would have addressed this by now.

9 Replies
Crystal Horn
almost 7 years ago04/24/17 at 5:34 pm (UTC)

Hi Michael.  Thanks for starting this discussion!

Each browser handles returning to the text entry field slightly differently.  

For example, HTML5 in Safari and Edge will place the cursor at the end of the text rather than highlight the text.  Other browsers highlight the text upon returning.

I understand how having the text highlighted can leave room for user error, so I'm going to document these differences between browsers and monitor the impact we're seeing from this issue.

You'll get email notifications when we post any updates to this discussion as long as you stay subscribed!

Michael Long
almost 7 years ago05/05/17 at 6:31 pm (UTC)

Here is what I have found regarding text highlighting in a text-entry field. Please correct my findings if you find something different in your experience.

  • A .story file (regardless of version) will sometimes show text highlighting (regardless of the browser) when editing or returning to a text-entry field that does not use a scrolling panel. However, I say sometimes because you sometimes see text highlighting when returning to a text-entry field and will simply need to click a couple times within the field to see the cursor to begin typing. The use of the End key or arrow keys are not needed to begin typing in this case (but they are still a viable option). Interestingly, if the slide contains a very stripped down design or slide master with no triggers running in the background, then there will be no highlighting exhibited. I have tested this out several times and saw different results depending on the complexity of the slide. I haven't identified what exactly is triggering the highlighting but it seems related to other elements applied to the slide.
  • A .story file (regardless of version) will show text highlighting in all major browsers when editing or returning to a text-entry field within a scrolling panel. The use of the End or arrow keys is needed to exit the highlighting and begin typing.

So, in my experience, I have not found any differences in how browsers treat the text-entry fields. What is the purpose of the highlighting when returning to the text-entry field? Is this a bug? If so, is this being looked into?

Crystal Horn
almost 7 years ago05/08/17 at 4:14 pm (UTC)

Hey Michael.  Thanks for describing your findings.

I used a simple 2 slide setup with a text entry slide, and then a "content" slide.  When I entered text, moved to the content slide, and then revisited my text entry slide, here's what I found:

  • HTML5:  Safari (on a Mac) and Microsoft Edge did not place the cursor (focus) inside the text entry field.  When clicking on the text entry field, the cursor was placed at the end of the text.
    Chrome and Internet Explorer highlighted the text when the focus was placed on the text entry field.
    Firefox had an issue loading the slide, and we are investigating.
  • Flash: Text is highlighted in all major browsers.

Thanks for the additional information regarding scrolling panels.  I will include that in our documentation for the QA team.

We are going to monitor this issue and then determine if we can make changes on our end that will help browsers handle revisiting a text entry field better!

Pano K.
almost 7 years ago05/09/17 at 6:03 pm (UTC)

Crystal,

I am also experiencing this issue with text-entry fields being highlighted when you attempt to edit them. It creates confusion for the end user since they can easily erase the previously entered text when they start to type. However, this does not seem to be just a browser issue as this occurs during the preview feature within Storyline as well (which is not in a browser). I have attached a .story file that replicates some of the scenarios but am certain there are other scenarios as well. I opened a ticket with tech support and they have confirmed that the highlighting issue is indeed a bug. I'm hopeful there will be a fix soon.

Thank you for helping to monitor the issue. 

Alyssa Gomez
almost 7 years ago05/10/17 at 8:21 pm (UTC)

Hi Pano,

Thanks for letting us know you opened a case (01071297), and it looks like Angelo has brought up this issue with the team to determine next steps. We'll be sure to reach out once we have more information to share. 

I really appreciate you bringing this to our attention, and I apologize that it's been causing confusion!

Sarah Berry
over 5 years ago11/28/18 at 10:50 pm (UTC)

Hello,

Does this problem have a workaround? I just built a whole project that needs to go to my client but didn't realize that, after putting my data-entry boxes in scrolling panels, the end user can't edit their work except by backspacing from the last character. I've tested in multiple browsers and in each case highlighting a word or placing the cursor in the middle of the text has no effect - the cursor simply jumps to the last character. This is really bad, since the user is supposed to return to earlier slides and edit them as they progress....

Lauren Connelly
3 years ago03/23/21 at 1:50 pm (UTC)

Hello all!

I wanted to share that we aren't seeing this behavior where you cannot edit a Text Entry within Scrolling Panel with a mouse click to move the cursor in Storyline 360 (Build 3.49.24347.0).

If you are still running into this snag, make sure you're using the latest version of Storyline 360. Don't hesitate to reach out to us in this discussion or in a support case if you have additional questions.

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