To make a reading list appear in ORLO, someone needs to create it, add resources to it and publish it. When an ORLO list is first created, it will be in draft form. Before a list can be published, it will require a course record in the library management system; the ORLO co-ordinator must create this. Lists must then be published to make them visible to students. On publication, an automatic review request will also be sent to the relevant library (where applicable), but this will not prevent students from accessing the list. Library staff review ORLO lists to inform their purchasing decisions so that students have access to the materials required for the course. The individual(s) responsible for creating and publishing ORLO lists (e.g. academics, administrators or library staff) varies between departments, faculties and colleges, but the process remains the same. Please contact your Subject Consultant to find what services your local library can offer you.
Click through the tabs in the box below for guidance on setting up an ORLO list. Please note: it is essential that all lists adhere to the ORLO Naming convention outlined in the tab below.
Tip: We recommend that you use either Google Chrome or Firefox to create ORLO lists; students can access lists from any browser, but we have found these browsers are the most suitable for creating lists.
To start creating and editing ORLO lists, you will need Instructor permissions. Please email your subject librarian or orlo@bodleian.ox.ac.uk to request permissions; you will need to confirm that you have read the training documentation on these pages to receive these. Alternatively, please sign up to one of our ORLO list creation training sessions, where you will be sent permissions on completion.
Anyone with a University Single Sign-On can view ORLO lists, but Instructor permissions are needed to edit lists. Additionally, you will need to be assigned as either a List Owner or a Collaborator on an individual list to be able to edit that list. These can be assigned by the ORLO Team, or another List Owner can invite you to be a Collaborator on a list.
To create your reading list in ORLO, click on the Create List button under the search bar on the Lists homepage.
From here, select either the Create new list button to start a list from scratch, or Import list if you have a file you wish to import. Please note that this button will only be visible to those who have been given instructor permissions.
You will then be prompted to set the details for your new list, including an appropriate name (please see the Naming convention tab above) and List description. The year for which the list is run is set separately (e.g. academic or calendar year). You can ignore the 'Link to Course' button at this stage, but a link to a course record in the Library Management System (Alma) is necessary before the list can be published. Please contact orlo@bodleian.ox.ac.uk to have a course record set up for you.
You can then use one of the pre-set templates (which can be altered later to suit your purposes) or select the default sections to begin. All structures can be altered once the list is set up.
Lists can either be public or private. Public lists are visible to anyone (N.B. only those with an Oxford SSO can then access the electronic resources from the Oxford Collections via the View Online buttons) whilst Private lists can only be accessed by those with an Oxford SSO. It is not possible to restrict an ORLO list to a specific student cohort.
A list's Publication status can be seen on the 'My Lists' section of Leganto:
To find out whether the list is published to Students at the Institution or to Anyone, open a list, click on 'List Info' and then click on 'Published':
When you create and publish a list in ORLO, the default selection is the option 'All students at the institution.
It is recommended that lists be set to All students at the institution as this allows more accurate usage statistics to be captured, however, you might prefer to create a public list. To change the privacy setting, click the three dots menu and then select Unpublish list from the drop-down menu. You can then publish the list again and select the option 'Anyone'.
All ORLO lists must adhere to either the departmental or tutorial naming convention, which are outlined in the PDF guides below. A new addition to this convention following the move to Leganto is the requirement to add the year of study to the suffix. For an Academic Year course, use AYxx-xx; for a Calendar Year course use CYxx.
For example, a departmental list for the Oxford Internet Institute would appear like this: OII_MSc SDS_Foundations of Social Data Science_MT_AY23-24
The list of all existing departmental and college codes is on the Key Contacts page of this LibGuide. If your department or college is new to ORLO and so there is currently no suitable code for you yet, please email orlo@bodleian.ox.ac.uk.
Student numbers are used to determine how many copies of an item to purchase and to request digitisations. If you are unsure of the correct student numbers, please provide the highest estimate for the group.
To add the student numbers to your list from Leganto, click the Three Dots menu at the top of the list and select Manage Link to Course.
From the course screen, again click the Three Dots menu and then 'Edit'
In the editing screen, please type in the number of students on the course and click Save.
Please download the full guide on how to add student numbers below.
Each ORLO list requires a separate 'course record' in the Library Management System (Alma) to allow publication of a list. This will also allow you to place digitisation requests for scanned chapters/articles to be created and uploaded to your list (see the Digitisation page for further details). Course records have been created for lists migrated from the previous system. You can set up a new list without a course record, but you must request a course record before the list can be published. The following information must be supplied:
Please fill out our Request a Course Record form to set up a course record.
Once the course has been set up, you will need to link it to your list.
Click on 'Link to Course' at the top of your list:
In the pop-up window, begin typing the name of your list; the course records will be set up following the standard ORLO naming convention. Select the correct course to link:
Select the correct course, fill in start and end dates if applicable, and the number of participants on the course, then click 'Save'.
Please see the PDF guide below on how to assign a list owner:
When deciding who to assign as the list owner, you may wish to consider the following:
On your new ORLO list, click the Add above the Section list and choose New Section to add sections to your list (e.g. Week 1, Core texts).
From the pop-up box you must add a Title for the Section; fill in the optional fields as necessary. Start and End dates give dates when the Section will be active. Use the tick box for the Display section during these dates only to make the Section and Item(s) only viewable to students covered by the Start and End dates.
The Centre for Teaching and Learning (CTL) have developed a guide on how to create an effective reading list, which may be useful for planning the structure of your ORLO list. Features in ORLO such as setting the reading importance (e.g. essential or recommended reading) and using clear, descriptive section headings should be considered.
Sections can always be moved once they are created; please download the PDF guide below for instructions. Once you have created a skeleton structure for your list, you can start adding various resources onto your list. Please see the Adding Citations page for further details.
Templates are offered as an option when setting up your list - some standard ones have been created by the ORLO team. It is important to note that these templates are not prescriptive - they can be used as a starting point to add/reorder new sections as needed.
If you have a template you need that is not currently represented, please email orlo@bodleian.ox.ac.uk