Overview of the NDE Interface and Configuration
Introduction
This document summarizes the NDE interface by its various components, provides an overview of its new configuration options and highlights its new capabilities and differences.
What's New with the NDE UI
This section describes the changes to the various areas in the NDE UI.
Main Menu Links
An indicator is now provided to let users know that the link is taking them out of the UI.
The number of links to display in the main menu is based on the length of the labels and the browser width.
Language Drop-Down Menu
Previously with Primo VE, the language setting was configured in personal settings. Users can now easily change the UI's display language from the Main Menu Bar if your environment supports multiple languages. Once changed, it is retained between sessions for signed-in users.
User Area Menu
The User Area Menu provides an enhanced experience for both signed-in users and guests, enabling users to access their library card, search history, saved records, and personal settings. For information regarding the User Area, see Enhanced User Area.
After sign-in, the icon for the User Area Menu displays the user’s initials (for example, JS for John Smith). Hovering over the initials reveals the full username as a tooltip.
By default, the following options are active and appear in the following order:
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The Sign in/Sign out option is enabled by default and appears at the top of the menu.
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Settings - Requires user sign-in.
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Overview - Opens the Overview section (which highlights the user's Loans, Requests, Fines and Fees, Saved Records, and Search History). Requires user sign-in.
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Saved Records
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Search History
Search Area
The Search Area contains the search box, filters, top-level facets, sort type selector, and a toggle between simple and advanced searches. NDE includes the following improvements:
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The search profiles have been relocated to appear prominently on the left of the search bar.
Prominent Location to Access Scopes -
If you are using two levels of scopes (such as for multi-campus/library configurations), a separate drop-down is provided for each level:
Support for Two-Level Scopes -
The search bar and facets line remain fixed at the top of the search results during scrolling, ensuring prominent access to search and filtering options.
Persistent Search Area above Results
Advanced Search
The Advanced Search is opened as slide panel on the side of the current page in the UI, providing increased visibility of search results after searching in Advanced Search.
Based on user studies and feedback, more improvements are planned for March or April.
Resource Types Filter Bar
The Resource Type Filter Bar appears in Simple and Advanced Search to allow users to filter their results by resource types. Previously, this option was permitted only from Simple Search.
This functionality is not supported on mobile devices.
Facets
The facets are closed by default and appear below the the Resource Types Filter Bar/Pre-filter selectors and are closed by default. Users can open the Facet pane by selecting All Filters. The top-level facets (such as Available online) appear on the same line as the All Filters button and are configurable.
The summary for a selected facet now includes the Boolean operation between selected values, providing a clear summary of the facet's scope:
Brief Record Display
The Brief Record Display refers to the information that is displayed for each record in the results list and at the top of the record's Full Display page. The following changes have been made to this information (which is configurable):
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Descriptive labels (such as Summary and Published on) were added to the display lines.
Descriptive Labels for Display Lines -
Record indicators (such as Open Access and Peer Reviewed) are now grouped prominently at the top next to the record's resource type.
Record Indicators on Top -
Record actions are grouped by the following categories and displayed on top: Share, Citations, Export, and Favorites.
Grouped Record Actions -
Availability – Quicklink with drop-down to other online options.
Online Availability Options
FRBR
The visualization of FRBR versions for generic record is now aligned with the fields configured in the brief results. Previously, the generic record was aligned only with the title and creator fields.
Resource Recommender - Banner
The Resource Recommender service enables you to recommend the following resources based on searchable tags you configure in Alma: database, website, person, library information, and library guide. NDE offers the option to display the banner vertically on the side of the page.
Full Record Display
The Full Display Page displays all information regarding a record: brief display lines, record details, request sections (View Online and Get It), and so forth. NDE includes the following changes:
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Search bar and main menu links available at the top of the page.
Search Area on Full Display Page -
Requests section - Added a dedicated Requests area to manage requests and other request services. Item-level requests will be provided in the Locations section.
Dedicated Requests Area -
Locations section - showing the availability of the items group by locations or library/locations. Unlike Primo VE, request services are no longer part of this section unless item-level requests are available.
Dedicated Locations Area -
Digital Versions section: We have added a dedicated section for Digital services. With Primo VE this was included under the View Online section.
Dedicated Digital Versions Section -
Users can now expand/collapse sections by selecting the Plus and Minus icons.
Collapsible Sections -
Exploration services - Virtual Browse has its own dedicated section, and bX Recommendations/Syndetics display in the right panel.
Virtual Browse Section
Enhanced Request Forms
Request forms enable the user to place a hold on an item, request a purchase, or request a digital version. With NDE, the various forms open as pop-up windows, closing on submission or after selecting the X button.
Non-editable fields such as Title and Author appear at the bottom, while editable fields are placed at the top for easy user interaction:
Improved user feedback, adding a navigation link to My Library Card > Requests upon submission:
Enhanced Collection Discovery
The Collection Discovery interface enables users to browse collections defined in Alma. For more information about Alma collections, see Managing Collections. This functionality is still under development and will include the following in NDE:
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Searches within collections will include all hierarchy levels (collections and their sub-collections).
Collection Page -
Filters will be displayed within collections but not on the Collection Lobby page. (The Filters button will be visible, but its functionality will be available after the General release.)
Collection Lobby - Gallery View -
Two display options: Gallery View and List View.
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A unified sorting method, consistent with brief results sorting.
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Collections and sub-collections will be displayed before items.
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Up to 50 items per page, with a Load More button for pagination.
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Improved navigation within collections, with previous/next record browsing for items.
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After clicking an item and returning to the previous level, the focus will remain on the item previously accessed.
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Default images will be used when no custom images are configured.
Enhanced User Area
The User Area in the NDE UI includes My Library Card activities (Loans, Requests, Fines & Fees, and Blocks & Messages), saved records, searches and settings, providing a centralized, user-friendly space for personal management. Configuration is available to define the options to display in the new User Area. As with other pages in the NDE UI, the search bar and the header always appear at the top of the page.
Landing Page
The landing page is the entry point for library discovery in the NDE UI. The path for the landing page is /nde/home. For example:
The best practices for customizing the landing page will be provided soon.
New Configuration for the NDE UI
The NDE UI is mainly an interface upgrade and represents a shift in the interface design. All discovery-related data managed in Alma (such as local fields, local resource types, external data sources, labels, and other configurations) remain unchanged and utilize your existing set-up. This approach limits the learning curve and provides a strong starting point for migrating to the new UI.
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Many labels have been reused. New labels for the NDE UI are easily identified since they start with the nde prefix.
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You can use the existing Primo VE documentation. Configurations specific to NDE will be marked as such.
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As we shift from AngularJS to Angular 18, the new NDE customization Framework will support the same customization options and introduce new ones. In addition, we plan to add configuration options for common customization activities to simplify the customization process. More information will be provided when available.
View Configuration Page
This section highlights new features available with the NDE UI and provides recommendations for setting up your NDE view on the View Configuration page (Configuration > Discovery > Display Configuration > Configure Views). For more information, see Configuring Discovery Views for Primo VE.
General Tab
The General tab configures general features for your view. NDE views have the NDE check box selected.
The NDE UI uses the same general attributes as Primo VE. Some functionality (such as the Highlighting the reference entry on top feature) may not be ready and become available after the general release in May 2025.
The Enable Did You Mean field has been added to enable/disable Did You Mean functionality in the NDE UI:
Links Tab
The Links Menu tab on the View Configuration page defines the links on the Main menu, which appear at the top of the UI. You can reuse your existing configuration, deactivating any functionality still under development. The Library Search link will take users to the Landing Page:
Search Profile Slots Tab
Search profile slots, comprised of one or more search profiles (see Configuring Search Profiles), enable users to narrow their searches to material under specific categories (such as the full catalog, journals, or items from a specific campus only). You can reuse your existing configurations.
Advanced Search Configuration Tab
The Advanced Search Configuration tab configures Advanced Search. The Enable For Basic Search option, which enables pre-filters for Basic Search, is no longer relevant to the NDE UI. You can continue to use your existing configuration for all other options on this tab.
The following labels have been added to the Search Tile Labels code table to support all new titles on the Advanced Search page:
| Code | Description |
|---|---|
| nde.advanced.deleteRow.tooltip | Remove line |
| nde.landing.header | Your Discovery Begins Here |
| nde.search.clear.tooltip | Clear |
| nde.search.tooltip | Search |
| nde.advanced.showResultsFrom | Show results from |
| nde.advanced.languagesSelected | (+{{number_of_selected_values}} others) |
| nde.advanced.typesSelected | (+{{number_of_selected_values}} others) |
| nde.advanced.Filters | Filters |
| nde.advanced.edit | Edit |
| nde.advanced.searchSummary | Searched for: |
| nde.advanced.date | Date |
| nde.advanced.searchInScope | Search In |
| nde.advanced.query | Query |
Brief Results Tab
The Brief Results tab configures the information displayed on the Brief Results page, which opens after performing a search in the NDE UI. The Quick Filters section has been added to define the quick filters that appear at the top of the results, enabling users to select commonly used availability filters: Full-Text online, Available in the library, Peer-reviewed journals, and Open access.
Brief Record Display Tab
The Brief Record Display tab configures the information displayed for each record on the Brief Results page. The following changes have been made to support the NDE UI.
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Configuration options were added to display the Summary and Snippet fields.
Brief Record Display Tab - NDE Display Fields -
Added display labels to the Results Tile Labels code table to provide a descriptive prefix (such as By, Published on, and Part of) for lines in the record's brief display:
Results Tile Labels Code Table Code Description nde.briefdisplay.first By nde.briefdisplay.second Published on nde.briefdisplay.third Part of nde.briefdisplay.summaryReadMore Read More nde.briefdisplay.summaryReadLess Read Less nde.briefdisplay.summary Summary -
We have added configuration options to group record actions in the following categories: Share Actions, Export Actions, Citation, and Save to Favorites.
Brief Record Display Tab - NDE Record Actions
The Email action will be available after the General Release. We are changing the email method to a client email method for enhanced security and personalization.
Full Record Services Tab
The Full Display page opens when a user selects an area within a record's brief display that does not contain hypertext links. Selecting on the title or the availability link in the record's brief display may also take the user to the Full Display page. The following changes have been made to support the NDE UI:
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A configuration option was added to indicate whether a section is expanded by default.
Full Record Services Tab - Expand by Default Option
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Added the requests code to configure the new Requests section on the Full Display page. It is recommended that this section be placed at the top to make it easier for users to submit requests from the library. You can configure this section to expand all requests by default, and if disabled, up to three requests are displayed with an option to view more.
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Locations section (getit_link1)—It is recommended that this section be renamed Locations since it only shows the items’ availability. This capability is currently under development. In addition, this section will support the following:
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We will support two levels of display: group by library or each location separately. This is configured with the new getit_group_by_library parameter on the Discovery Customer Settings page (Configuration > Discovery > Other > Customer Settings)
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We will now support only three display fields per item instead of four. This configuration is provided on the Items Display Configuration page (Configuration > Discovery > GetIt configuration > Items display configuration).
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Manage Customization Package Tab
The Customization Package Manager enables you to upload and manage customization packages, which allows you to brand and further customize the NDE UI. If no packages are loaded, the system uses the out-of-the-box configurations. For more information, see Customization Best Practices. The following changes have been made to support the NDE UI:
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Customization Package—Brand your NDE UI.
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Color Theme—Select a color theme from a closed list of colors.
User Area Menu Configuration
You can configure the order and the options to display under the User Area Menu. The Sign-In option is always displayed at the top. The new User Dashboard Configuration page (Configuration > Discovery > Library Card Configurations > User Dashboard Configuration) configures which options to include in the User Area and whether to include them on the Overview page.
Resource Recommender Configuration
You can now configure whether to display the banner vertically on the side of the page or horizontally at the top. When selected, the new Use Vertical Banner check box displays the banner on the side of the page.
