Storyline 360: Working with Layers

Use slide layers to create interactions and branched scenarios in your Storyline Looking to boost learner engagement and interest in your Storyline 360 courses? Try using slide layers to create interactions and branched scenarios. Layers display additional content on a slide at certain points on the timeline or in response to learners' actions. Triggers allow you to define when layers should appear and disappear. Read on to learn more.

• Adding Layers
• Duplicating and Copying Layers
• Renaming Layers
• Changing Layer Properties
• Hiding Individual Base Layer Objects
• Making Layers Accessible
• Rearranging Layers
• Showing, Hiding, and Dimming Layers in the Editor
• Deleting Layers

Adding Layers

You can add as many layers to each slide as you like. To add a layer to a slide, do either of the following:

• Click the New Layer icon (looks like a blank piece of paper) in the Slide Layers panel.
• Go to the Insert tab on the ribbon and click Slide Layer.

You add content to layers just like slides, including animations and transitions. You also manage the timing and duration of layer objects in the same manner as slide objects—via the timeline.

Duplicating and Copying Layers

You can duplicate layers on the same slide or even copy them from one slide to another. To duplicate existing layers on the same slide, just select one or more layers in the Slide Layers panel and click the Duplicate Selected Layer icon (looks like two pieces of paper with a green arrow).

To copy layers from one slide to another:

1. Select one or more layers in the Slide Layers panel, then press Ctrl+C on your keyboard or right-click and choose Copy.
2. Go to the slide where you want the same layers to appear, then press Ctrl+V on your keyboard or right-click and choose Paste.

Renaming Layers

Give layers recognizable names so they're easy to identify when you're creating triggers. To rename a layer:

1. Double-click the layer's name in the Slide Layers panel to open it for editing.
2. Type the new name.
3. Press Enter on your keyboard.

Changing Layer Properties

You can customize the properties for each layer on a slide. Just select the layers you want to edit, then click the gear icon.

When the Slide Layer Properties window appears, make your choices (defined below) and click Close.

Visibility:

Behavior:

As of the May 2022 update, you can choose from two layer formats—layer or dialog.

Enhance the screen reader experience for dialog layers by defining accessibility attributes for an alternative title and description. (The Label and Description options are grayed-out for standard layers.)

Select one of the following options to manage learners' interaction with the base layer.

Revisits:

Choose one of the following options to control how objects behave when learners revisit the layer.

Hiding Individual Base Layer Objects

The layer properties described above provide an option to Hide objects on base layer, but it hides everything on the base layer. If you want to hide only some base layer objects, you can do that, too, since each layer has its own timeline. Here's how.

1. Expand Base Layer Objects in the timeline.
2. Click the eye icon for each object you want to hide.

Tip: Hidden base layer objects will reappear when the layer is closed.

Making Layers Accessible

All objects from slide layers and base layers appear in the Focus Order window, and you can customize the order of those objects.

For the best navigation experience, use dialog layers. Designed to be accessible from the start, dialog layers hide other slide layers by default. That keeps the focus on the dialog and its content.

If learners need to access the base layer in an interaction, use standard layers. Follow these tips to make standard layers more accessible:

• Open the Slide Layer Properties window and mark the Hide other slide layers box. This option hides all other layers (except the base layer) when the current layer is visible to the learner.
• In the Focus Order window, arrange the objects from each individual layer to appear after the object on the base layer that activates the layer.

Rearranging Layers

To change the order of your layers, just drag and drop them where you want them in the Slide Layers panel.

Layers display on top of the base layer (not behind it), and they'll open in the order in which they're triggered, regardless of their stacking order in the Slide Layers panel.

Tip: To show more than one layer at the same time in your published output, click the gear icon for each layer to open its properties, then uncheck the box to Hide other slide layers.

Showing, Hiding, and Dimming Layers in the Editor

When you have multiple layers on a slide, you may find it useful to show or hide some of them while you're editing the slide.

To display a layer even when it's not the active layer, click the eye icon to the right of its title in the Slide Layers panel to lock its visibility.

To hide a layer, click the eye icon again to unlock its visibility.

For example, if you don't want to see the base layer while you're building a supplemental layer, click the eye icon for the base layer to unlock its visibility—i.e., to hide it.

Tips for working with layer visibility:

• The base layer visibility is locked by default. All other layers are unlocked by default. In other words, the base layer is always visible unless you hide it, and other layers are always hidden unless you make them visible.
• By default, only the layer that's currently selected (active) is full-color. All other layers are dimmed. If you'd prefer to see them all in full color, uncheck the Dim box at the bottom of the panel.

Deleting Layers

To delete a layer, select it in the Slide Layers panel and click the trash can icon (or just press the Delete key on your keyboard).