PLS-1F: Navigating Tables and Detail Views

Overview

After using tables to find records (covered in PLS-1E), you'll often need to view complete details for individual items. This article shows you how to navigate from tables to detail pages, explore detailed information, and navigate back efficiently.

What you'll learn: How to navigate from tables to detail pages, recognize clickable links, use breadcrumbs, and navigate with section tabs.

Time to complete: 10-15 minutes

 

How Tables and Detail Views Work

Navigating in Housing.Cloud follows a simple three-step process that works everywhere:

1. Table View: You start by viewing a table of multiple records
2. Click a Name: You click on an item's name (displayed in blue and underlined)
3. Detail Page: You see comprehensive information about that specific item

Learn once, use everywhere: Once you know how to look up a student, you automatically know how to look up a room, an application, a task, or anything else. The same "click to see more" approach works throughout the entire system.

 

Recognizing Clickable Links

Throughout the system, clickable names are styled in blue with an underline. If you see blue, underlined text in a table, you can click it to view the detail page.

Examples of what you can click:

• Student names in the Profiles table
• Applicant names in the Applications table
• Resident names in the Residents table
• Building names in the Inventory tables
• Room numbers in occupancy views
• Task titles in the Tasks section

Visual cue for clickability: Blue and underlined = clickable. Gray or black text without underlines = display-only information. This consistent visual language works throughout the entire admin portal.

 

Examples in Action

Viewing a Student Profile

Navigate to Profiles → See a table of all students → Click a student's name → View their complete profile with contact info, tags, residency history, applications, and custom fields

Viewing a Resident Assignment

Navigate to Residents → See a table of current and past residents → Click a resident's name → View their room assignment, roommate info, meal plan, transactions, and documents

Viewing a Building

Navigate to Inventory > Buildings → See a table of all buildings → Click a building name → View suites, rooms, occupancy statistics, and key inventory

 

What Every Detail Page Includes

Every item in Housing.Cloud has its own detail page with complete information:

• Student profiles have detail pages
• Residents have detail pages
• Applications have detail pages
• Buildings have detail pages
• Rooms have detail pages
• Even individual furniture items have detail pages

 

Using Breadcrumbs to Navigate Back

At the top of every page, you'll see a trail of links showing where you are. These breadcrumbs help you navigate back without losing your place.

What breadcrumbs look like:

• Profiles > John Smith
• Residents > Jane Doe
• Inventory/Buildings > East Hall > Suite 201 > Room 201A
• Applications > Fall 2024 Housing > Sarah Johnson

How to use breadcrumbs:

• Click the first part (e.g., "Profiles") to return to the full table view
• Click any middle item to jump to that parent detail page
• Use breadcrumbs instead of your browser's back button to keep filters active

Use breadcrumbs, not the back button: Click breadcrumb links instead of using your browser's back button. This keeps your filters and searches active. The back button can take you to unexpected pages or clear your filters.

 

Using Section Tabs on Detail Pages

Detail pages show tabs near the top that let you jump between different areas of information without scrolling. The tabs stay visible as you scroll.

Example tabs on a resident detail page:

• Assignment: Current room, building, bed assignment
• Room Status: Room details, furniture, keys
• Suite Status: Suite information and suitemates
• Housemate Status: Roommate information and contact details
• Transactions: Billing history, charges, and payments
• Interactions: Communication history and notes
• Documents: Signed contracts and uploaded files
• Tags Management: Assigned tags and categories

Click any tab to jump directly to that section. The active tab is highlighted.

Different pages show different tabs: A resident detail page shows different tabs than a building detail page. The system shows only relevant tabs based on the content type and your permissions.

 

Navigating Hierarchies

Some sections—especially Inventory—have multiple levels. You can drill down (building → suite → room → bed) and the breadcrumb trail grows at each level.

Example drilling down:

Navigate to Inventory > Buildings → Click "East Hall" → Click "Suite 201" → Click "Room 201A" → Click "Bed A"

Breadcrumb trail:

• Inventory/Buildings > East Hall
• Inventory/Buildings > East Hall > Suite 201
• Inventory/Buildings > East Hall > Suite 201 > Room 201A
• Inventory/Buildings > East Hall > Suite 201 > Room 201A > Bed A

Skip levels when navigating back: Click any part of the breadcrumb to jump there instantly. If you're viewing Bed A, you can click "East Hall" to jump directly to the building—skipping the suite and room levels entirely.

 

Common Navigation Scenarios

Find a student and view their housing history

Navigate to Profiles → Search by name → Click student's name → Click the Residencies tab

See who lives in a specific room

Navigate to Inventory > Rooms → Search for room number → Click room name → View Residents section

Review a housing application

Navigate to Applications → Filter by cycle → Click applicant's name → Use tabs to view Application Answers and Roommate Preferences

Check a resident's billing

Navigate to Residents → Search for resident → Click their name → Click the Transactions tab

 

Combine with Quick Search for Speed

Once you're comfortable navigating tables and detail views, combine it with Quick Search for even faster navigation:

Press Cmd/Ctrl+K → Type a student name → Click the result → You go directly to their detail page

No clicking through menus, no waiting for tables to load. Learn more in PLS-1C: Quick Search.

 

Troubleshooting

"I clicked a name but nothing happened"

Solution: Verify the text is blue and underlined. Gray or black text isn't clickable. If you get an error after clicking, contact your super admin to verify you have permissions to view that page.

"I'm lost and can't find my way back"

Solution: Look at the breadcrumbs at the top and click the first item to return to the table view. Or click "Dashboard" in the sidebar to reset.

"The breadcrumb trail is cut off"

Solution: Hover over truncated breadcrumb items to see the full text. Or widen your browser window by expanding its size on your screen or using the browser's zoom option to a slightly lower percentage.

 

What's Next

Continue your Product Learning Session 1 journey:

• PLS-1G: Understanding Inventory Hierarchy—Learn how the system organizes buildings, rooms, beds, and furniture
• Complete PLS-1: Product Learning Session 1: System Navigation & Core Concepts
• PLS-1 Self-Guided Practice: Practice navigating tables and detail views with hands-on exercises