mirror of https://github.com/tLDP/LDP
660 lines
24 KiB
Plaintext
660 lines
24 KiB
Plaintext
<!doctype linuxdoc system>
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<article>
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<title>Kiosk HOWTO <author>Gene Wilburn, ITS Dept, Royal Ontario
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Museum <tt><genew@rom.on.ca></tt>
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<date>v1.0, October 1999
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<abstract>
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This document provides a guide for setting up a WWW-based kiosk using
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Linux, X11R6, FVWM2, Netscape Navigator 4.X, and a customized
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trackball. It outlines the methods that were used to create a public
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kiosk for the <it>Hands On Biodiversity Gallery</it> at the Royal
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Ontario Museum, Toronto.
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</abstract>
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<toc>
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<sect>Introduction
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<p>
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Information display kiosks are useful in libraries, galleries and
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museums, educational institutions, municipal offices, visitor
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information booths, conferences, shopping malls, airports---in short
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any location where simple, easy access to information is
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desirable. Kiosks are normally set up with touchscreens or pointing
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devices such as trackballs, to allow people to select and view
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information that is attractively displayed and up to date.
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There are many ways to create kiosks, from expensive solutions based
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on proprietary software to HTML-based open-source
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solutions. Browser-based technologies are particularly attractive
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because they are inherently multimedia, offering text, graphics, sound
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and streaming media, and the content is highly portable.
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Linux provides a flexible and interesting platform for kiosk
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development. Linux is inexpensive to set up and it offers a wide range
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of options, from diskless display stations to self-contained,
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database-driven web servers. Due to the versatility of the underlying
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operating system, a well-designed Linux kiosk can be placed in a
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remote location and administered via a telephone or network link.
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This HOWTO explores one method of setting up Linux as a standalone
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information kiosk, using Netscape Navigator 4.X and FVWM2 on a Red Hat
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Linux 6.X system. It is based on a kiosk I set up for use in the
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<it>Hands-on Biodiversity Gallery</it> in the Royal Ontario Museum
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(<url url="http://www.rom.on.ca">), Toronto, Canada. The kiosk
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outlined in this HOWTO incorporates a trackball rather than a more
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expensive touchscreen. There are undoubtedly many other ways to create
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a Linux-based kiosk, but this one has worked reliably for us and it
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may provide a useful starting point for your own kiosk project.
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<sect1>Copyright, license and terms of usage
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<p>
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Copyright Gene Wilburn 1999. All rights reserved.
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<it>The author disclaims all warranties with regard to this
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document, including all implied warranties of merchantability and
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fitness for a certain purpose; in no event shall the author be liable
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for any special, indirect or consequential damages or any damages
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whatsoever resulting from loss of use, data or profits, whether in
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an action of contract, negligence or other tortuous action, arising
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out of or in connection with the use of this document.</it>
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This legalese means <it>use at your own risk</it>.
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<sect1>Acknowledgements
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<p>
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Our Linux kiosk derives heavily from the work done by the City of
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Charlotte, North Carolina, for their municipal website,
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<it>Charlotte's Web</it> (see <url
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url="http://www.charweb.org/webinfo/kiosk/">). The Charlotte's Web
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kiosk project, which employs a touchscreen monitor, was set up in 1996
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using an early version of Slackware Linux, Netscape Navigator 2.X, and
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FVWM. The webmasters at Charlotte have created a very useable kiosk
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implementation and have shared their complete setup via their
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website. This HOWTO, to a certain degree, represents an update of
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their work, altering the details to work with Red Hat 6.X, Netscape
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Navigator 4.X, FVWM2, and a custom-made trackball.
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I worked with Debra Luneau (debral@rom.on.ca), the Royal Ontario
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Museum webmaster, to create the graphics overlays for Netscape. The
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examples we distribute at our ftp site are her work---and are the ones
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we use on the kiosk in the Biodiversity Gallery.
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The Ontario Biodiversity section of the ROM website was designed by
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Hopscotch Interactive (www.hopscotch.ca). The original application was
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converted from a flat-file database system to a MySQL-database driven
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system by Gord Howells (gordonh@rom.on.ca), the ROM's database
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designer and programmer. The non-kiosk version of this mini-site may
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be viewed at <url url="http://www.rom.on.ca/ontario/">.
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<sect>Overview
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<p>
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Setting up Linux for use as a web-based kiosk is similar to setting up
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Linux as a graphical workstaion, with a few extra considerations. If
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the machine is to be a standalone unit, it must boot straight into
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kiosk mode. Furthermore, the browser environment must be modified in
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to disable standard dialog screens and to eliminate parts of the
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browser that allow inappropriate interaction, such as the Location Bar
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in Netscape.
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Essentially a kiosk website is self-contained. Users navigate through
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the site via clicks with a pointing device. The pointing device can be
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a touchscreen, a trackball, or a mouse. Mice are difficult to secure
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in a public area.
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A Linux kiosk can be connected back to a home site via a direct
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network or PPP link, requesting pages from the home site, or it can be
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a self-contained website, running Apache and any corresponding CGI
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modules.
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<sect>Building a Kiosk Environment
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<p>
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<sect1>FVWM2
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<p>
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FVWM2 (FVWM, version 2 -- www.fvwm.org) is a flexible, reliable, and
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lightweight X Window manager that provides excellent configurability
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for creating a kiosk environment. For kiosk use you must change some
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of its default settings. You need to modify the system.fvwm2rc file to
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remove things like virtual desktops, title bars, exit controls, etc,
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leaving a relatively minimalist FVWM environment. Because the kiosk is
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a standalone unit, modifying the system-wide settings does not present
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a problem.
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You can also take advantage of FVWM's settable object properties to
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use X Window bitmaps (xpm files) to mask the parts of Netscape
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Navigator you don't want users to access.
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The FVWM2 file you need to modify is
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/etc/X11/fvwm2/system.fvwm2rc. (If you use a different distribution
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than Red Hat, this file may be located elsewhere.) You may have to
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poke around in this file to find the sections listed below.
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<sect2>/etc/X11/fvwm2/system.fvwm2rc
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<p>
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In <tt>/etc/X11/fvwm2/system.fvwm2rc</tt> change
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<tscreen><verb>
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DeskTopSize 2X2
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</verb></tscreen>
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to
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<tscreen><verb>
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DeskTopSize 1X1
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</verb></tscreen>
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This eliminates the virtual desktops.
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Next, in the Default Styles section, change
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<tscreen><verb>
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Style "*" BorderWidth 7, HandleWidth 7
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</verb></tscreen>
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to
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<tscreen><verb>
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Style "*" BorderWidth 0, HandleWidth 0, notitle, nohandles
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</verb></tscreen>
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This will disable most of the normal windowing controls.
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Add the following two lines to the Default Styles section:
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<tscreen><verb>
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Style "xdaliclock" StaysOnTop
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Style "sxpm" StaysOnTop
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</verb></tscreen>
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The Default Styles part of the file should look something like this
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when you finish:
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<tscreen><verb>
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# default Styles:
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#Style "*" BorderWidth 7, HandleWidth 7
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Style "*" BorderWidth 0, HandleWidth 0, notitle, nohandles
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Style "*" Icon unknown1.xpm, Color lightgrey/dimgrey
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Style "*" MWMFunctions, MWMDecor, HintOverride
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Style "*" DecorateTransient, NoPPosition
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Style "*" IconBox 0 -10 -280 -1
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Style "*" FocusFollowsMouse
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Style "*" RandomPlacement, SmartPlacement
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Style "xdaliclock" StaysOnTop
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Style "sxpm" StaysOnTop
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</verb></tscreen>
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You can use the xdaliclock and sxpm programs to cover up parts of
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Netscape Navigator. The ``StaysOnTop'' attribute is the active
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ingredient.
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Next, find the following four lines and comment them out as shown:
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<tscreen><verb>
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#AddToFunc InitFunction "I" Module FvwmButtons
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#+ "I" exec xsetroot -mod 2 2 -fg \#554055 -bg \#705070
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#AddToFunc RestartFunction "I" Module FvwmButtons
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#+ "I" exec xsetroot -mod 2 2 -fg \#554055 -bg \#705070
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</verb></tscreen>
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Commenting out these lines will eliminate the nice task launcher from
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FVWM2, which is okay because you're after as simple an environment as
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you can create.
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<sect1>Netscape Navigator
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<p>
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Netscape Navigator is a better choice for setting up a kiosk than
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Netscape Communicator. Being simpler, there are fewer objects to hide.
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Under Microsoft Windows, Netscape Navigator has a kiosk mode that
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eliminates most of the Navigator controls but there is, at the time of
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this writing, no built-in kiosk mode for the Unix version of
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Navigator.
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The Unix version can, however, be invoked with a <tt>-geometry</tt>
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argument that allows us to always start Netscape full screen. This
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forms part of our strategy for a Netscape-based kiosk.
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You need to decide on our kiosk screen resolution. Using a 19- or
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20-inch monitor, we found 640x480 too large, 1024x768 too small, and
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800x600 just about right for public viewing (you may decide
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differently). Once you decide on the resolution, you are ready to
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begin adjusting Navigator. For the rest of this HOWTO we assume
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800x600 resolution. You'll need to adjust accordingly if you select a
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different resolution.
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<it>Note:</it> Navigator is going to be invoked by root during bootup,
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so make all of the Netscape adjustments under the root account in the
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<tt>/root/.netscape</tt> directory.
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Invoke Netscape and click into the <tt>Edit, Preferences</tt>
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dialog. Under <tt>Appearance</tt> check ``Show Toolbar as Text Only.''
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Under <tt>Appearance, Fonts</tt> adjust both fixed- and variable-width
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fonts to at least 14pt or the screen display will be too small for
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comfortable reading.
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Under <tt>Preferences, Navigator</tt> insert the URL of your kiosk
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home page. If you're running a local version of Apache or another web
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server, make this <tt>http://localhost/</tt> for top level access, or
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deeper into the html doctree if desired.
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Save these options, then click <tt>View</tt> on the Navigator menu
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bar. Deselect <tt>Personal Toolbar</tt> and <tt>Location
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Bar</tt>.
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Notice how much more kiosk-like the interface has become? When you
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exit Navigator, these settings will be saved.
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<sect1>Overlay Masks for Navigator
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<p>
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If you look closely at your adjusted Navigator screen, you'll see four
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areas that need to be covered and protected from mouse or trackball
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clicks:
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<enum>
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<item>The Toolbar at the top
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<item>The twister at the left-hand side of the navigation toolbar
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<item>The rest of the navbar to the right of Home
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<item>The security key in the lower left-hand corner of
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Navigator.
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</enum>
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Here's a rough schematic of the areas you need to mask:
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<tscreen><verb>
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+---------------------------------------+
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| # 1 Toolbar |
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+--+------------+-----------------------+
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|#2| | #3 Navbar |
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+--+ +-----------------------+
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+--------+ |
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|#4 Key | |
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+---------------------------------------+
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</verb></tscreen>
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To mask over the top areas (#1-3), we'll need three graphic images. To
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mask the security key (#4) we'll use xdaliclock.
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<sect2>Creating the Graphical Masks
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<p>
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The easiest way to create graphical masks to cover areas #1-3 is to
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grab a screenshot of Navigator in full 800x600 mode and then crop out
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areas that correspond to #1-3. I used GIMP for this.
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You can then re-design the basic graphics, changing the colors if you
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wish, or putting your own logo on them. Save them as:
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<enum>
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<item>topbar.xpm
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<item>navleft.xpm
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<item>navright.xpm
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</enum>
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The xpm format is the native X Window bitmap format. You will use the
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X Window program <it>sxpm</it> to place them on the screen.
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Creating the masks with just the right number of pixels and just the
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right placement on the monitor requires some experimentation. For your
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convenience, I have placed the xpm files we created plus our
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configuration files in at the following web site: <url
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url="http://www.rom.on.ca/kiosk/HOWTO/">. You may find it simpler to
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download our masks and use them as a starting point for your own
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graphics.
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<sect1>/root/kiosk.xinitrc
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<p>
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Just as you would normally create a .xinitrc file for your personal
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use, you must create an X Window session initialization file for our
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kiosk application. The following script implements a number of
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features:
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<itemize>
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<item>Screensaver initialization (optional)
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<item>Placement of graphic bitmap over Navigator menu bar (topnav.xpm)
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<item>Placement of graphic bitmap over navigation bar twiser (navleft.xpm)
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<item>Placement of graphic bitmap over rest of navbar (navright.xpm)
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<item>Xdaliclock placement over Navigator security key (adjusted for
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800x600 screen resolution)
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<item>Netscape startup and loop checks to make sure Navigator is running,
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and to re-run it if it isn't.
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</itemize>
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This is the main file that runs the kiosk.
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<code>
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#!/bin/sh
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# kiosk.xinitrc -- Initialization script for kiosk X Window session
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# Start screensaver
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/usr/X11R6/bin/xscreensaver-command -exit
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/usr/X11R6/bin/xscreensaver &
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# Overlay over Navigator (mask #1)
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sxpm /root/navtop.xpm &
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# Overlay small graphic over Toolbar twister - left-hand side (mask #2)
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sxpm -g +0+23 /root/navleft.xpm &
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# Overlay larger graphic to cover everything to the right of
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# Home on the Toolbar (mask #3)
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sxpm -g +275+23 /root/navright.xpm &
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# Place xdaliclock over top of Netscape security key, lower lhc (mask #4)
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/usr/X11R6/bin/xdaliclock -g 38x20+0+578 -font fixed -noseconds \
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-bg gray -fg black &
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sleep 2
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# Start fvwm2 window manager
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fvwm2 &
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# restart netscape if it ever exits
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while true ; do
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if [ -f /.netscape/lock] ; then
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rm /.netscape/lock
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fi
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/usr/bin/netscape -geometry 800x600
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done
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# This should never be reached
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</code>
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<sect1>/root/xkiosk
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<p>
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You can now start testing your kiosk setup. Since you will need to do
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this repeatedly, manually, as well as from an initialization script,
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create the following as a shell script named /root/xkiosk:
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<code>
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/usr/X11R6/bin/xinit /root/kiosk.xinitrc -- /usr/X11R6/bin/X \
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-xf86config /root/kiosk.XF86Config bc
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</code>
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Because you will be testing often, and reusing this later when you
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automate the startup, create this command as a shell script called
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<tt>/root/xkiosk</tt>. Be sure to <tt>chmod ug+x</tt> it.
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<sect>Initializing the Kiosk
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<p>
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Under normal (i.e. kiosk) conditions, Linux should boot straight into
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Kiosk mode. In the event of a power failure, accidental reboot, or
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scheduled reboot, you need to configure the system to do this.
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For our kiosk we elected to use init level 4, which is normally
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unused, for kiosk mode. We made the following adjustment to
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/etc/inittab:
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<sect1>/etc/inittab modifications
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<p>
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<code>
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# Default runlevel. The runlevels used by RHS are:
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# 0 - halt (Do NOT set initdefault to this)
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# 1 - Single user mode
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# 2 - Multiuser, without NFS (The same as 3, if you do not have networking)
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# 3 - Full multiuser mode
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# 4 - Kiosk mode
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# 5 - X11
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# 6 - reboot (Do NOT set initdefault to this)
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#
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id:4:initdefault:
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</code>
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<sect1>/etc/rc.d/rc.4/S99xkiosk runlevel script
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<p>
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To initialize the kiosk after everything else has been initialized,
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including, in our case, Apache and MySQL, create the file
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/etc/rc.d/rc.4/S99xkiosk:
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<code>
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#!/bin/bash
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#
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# S99xkiosk Initialization of kiosk for runlevel 4
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#
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# Author: Gene Wilburn <genew@rom.on.ca>
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#
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# Display message on console
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echo "Starting up the X Window Kiosk ... "
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if [ -f /.netscape/lock] ; then
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rm /.netscape/lock
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fi
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# Logging of X activity
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echo %%%%%%%%%%%%%Reboot%%%%%%%%%% >> /var/log/xlog
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/root/xkiosk
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# This point should only be reached by pressing Ctrl-Backspace
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/sbin/shutdown -r now
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# All done.
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</code>
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Once this file has been created and inittab has been adjusted to boot
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into init level 4, Linux will boot directly into kiosk mode. On our
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kiosk we disable telnet and ftp and install ssh so we can maintain and
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administer the kiosk remotely across the network with ssh and scp.
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<sect1>Booting normally from the console
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<p>
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There are times, especially during testing, when you'd like to work
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from the console in a normal init level 3 mode. To do this, press
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<bf>Ctrl-Backspace</bf> to reboot the system. When LILO: appears type:
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<tscreen><verb>
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LILO: linux init 3
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</verb></tscreen>
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and log in as usual.
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<sect>Other Considerations
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<p>
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<sect1>Screensavers
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<p>
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Depending on where you deploy your kiosk, you may not want all the
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default xscreensaver images to appear. For our <it>Hands-On
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Biodiversity Gallery</it> we wanted to display only the animated
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fractal images that suggested life science themes.
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After testing out several screensaver images, we decided that we to
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select randomly between two choices: <it>coral</it> and
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<it>forest</it>.
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To limit xscreensaver to displaying these two, we created the file
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.xscreensaver in the filesystem root (/) with the following options:
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<sect2>/.xscreensaver
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<p>
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<code>
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programs: \
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coral -root \n\
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forest -root \n
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</code>
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<sect1>Sound Files
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<p>
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Our kiosk machine contains a Sound Blaster AWE64 card with attached
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|
speakers. We chose this card specifically because it works well with
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|
Linux sound drivers.
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|
|
|
The MySQL database that drives our Biodiversity Gallery kiosk points
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|
to a collection of sound files that a visitor may listen to, including
|
|
a ``bird song quiz.'' The downside of using Linux Netscape for a kiosk
|
|
is that some of the multimedia aspects are primitive, compared to
|
|
Windows and Macintosh.
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|
|
|
To enable sound, we implemented a Unix Netscape plugin called Xswallow
|
|
written by Caolan McNamara (<url
|
|
url="http://skynet.csn.ul.ie/~caolan/docs/XSwallow.html">). All the
|
|
sound plugins we tested create a separate web page as the sound is
|
|
being played (unless the sound file is embedded). Of the programs we
|
|
tested, Xswallow worked the best and had the cleanest display page.
|
|
|
|
Although the extra page is inconvenient, we decided that having the
|
|
stability of Linux was more important than the extra click required to
|
|
return to the previous screen.
|
|
|
|
An additional problem is that when a sound is selected, the Xswallow
|
|
page displays ``Click to Abort Swallow of type audio/basic''. Clicking
|
|
merely returns a blank page. I made a slight change to the author's
|
|
source code for UnixShell.c, changing
|
|
|
|
<tscreen><verb>
|
|
char *text2 = "Click to Abort Swallow";
|
|
</verb></tscreen>
|
|
|
|
to read
|
|
|
|
<tscreen><verb>
|
|
char *text2 = "Click BACK Button to return from playing file";
|
|
</verb></tscreen>
|
|
|
|
The phrase ``of type audio/basic'' appears to come directly from
|
|
Netscape rather than Xswallow.
|
|
|
|
After recompiling, I added the plugin to Netscape.
|
|
|
|
A last note about sound files: the original set of files we received
|
|
were a mix of .au and .wav files. Our experience was that the .au
|
|
files worked the most reliably in Linux and we converted all sound
|
|
files to .au format.
|
|
|
|
<sect1>Trackballs
|
|
<p>
|
|
Not having the funding for a touchscreen display, we opted for a
|
|
trackball (and no keyboard) for our kiosk navigation. Our colleague,
|
|
Andy Rauer at the Ontario Science Centre in Toronto, tipped us off to
|
|
using ``industry-strength'' trackball components from Happ Conrols
|
|
Inc., Elk Grove Village, Illinois <url
|
|
url="http://www.happcontrols.com/"> (check under their Interactives
|
|
section).
|
|
|
|
One of the things we needed to do was disable any right-mouse button
|
|
click equivalents from being used in Netscape Navigator because
|
|
right-click events invoke user dialogs.
|
|
|
|
By building our own trackball, we were able to wire it any way we
|
|
wanted. We wired in two push-button controls, both with a left-mouse
|
|
button equivalent. The buttons are arranged on either side of the
|
|
trackball, allowing ease of use from right-handed and left-handed
|
|
visitors. Our gallery designers then took the trackball parts and
|
|
built them into the gallery's kiosk enclosure.
|
|
|
|
For our kiosk we purchased the following components for building a
|
|
heavy-duty trackball designed to withstand visitor use (and abuse):
|
|
|
|
<itemize>
|
|
<item>A 2 1/4-inch Atari Trackball Assembly (we selected red)
|
|
<item>Trackball Interface Kit for IBM (Microsoft serial mouse
|
|
compatible)
|
|
<item>Illuminated Push Buttons (red)
|
|
</itemize>
|
|
|
|
From a local electronics vendor, we purchased a Hammond Manufacturing
|
|
plastic handy case (Cat no. 1591ABK) for housing the electronics board
|
|
for the trackball.
|
|
|
|
Anticipating additional kiosks, and potential part failure, we ordered
|
|
four sets of each of the above for spare parts and testing.
|
|
|
|
<sect1>Designing or modifying HTML pages for kiosks
|
|
<p>
|
|
In the best of all possible worlds, you will have the opporunity to
|
|
design your kiosk pages from scratch. Bearing in mind that using a
|
|
kiosk is a different experience from sitting at a desk browsing the
|
|
web from a personal workstation, the following guidelines are useful
|
|
design principles:
|
|
|
|
<itemize>
|
|
<item>Keep text passages very short and use large fonts.
|
|
<item>Avoid screens that require scrolling.
|
|
<item>Use colorful, large, eye-catching images on every page
|
|
<item>Create embedded navigation if possible, e.g., return to previous
|
|
page, go to next page, go to kiosk menu, etc., should all be designed
|
|
right into the pages themselves.
|
|
<item>Avoid anything that requires a keyboard. Design for clicking.
|
|
<item>If you use sound files, keep the duration short. Embed them into
|
|
the page if possible.
|
|
<item>Make everything punchy and snappy. Design for short attention
|
|
spans and pass-through traffic. Save your theses and exegeses for
|
|
elsewhere.
|
|
</itemize>
|
|
|
|
Unforunately you will sometimes inherit pages that were designed for
|
|
web browsing rather than kiosk browsing. In these cases it may be too
|
|
time-consuming or too difficult to redesign them as kiosk pages. When
|
|
implementing standard web pages for a kiosk display:
|
|
|
|
<itemize>
|
|
<item>Remove all external A HREF's, including MAILTO's.
|
|
<item>Remove all unnecessary verbiage, logos, etc. from the pages.
|
|
<item>Check font sizes and increase if necessary.
|
|
<item>Remove any animated GIF's that don't pertain directly
|
|
to the pages being viewed.
|
|
<item>Actually, remove any animated GIF's, period.
|
|
<item>Do anything else you can to simplify the page design.
|
|
<item>Check into using server-side includes to add some fundamental
|
|
navigation or a consistent graphic to tie the pages together.
|
|
</itemize>
|
|
|
|
|
|
<sect>Future Directions
|
|
<p>
|
|
Our previous attempts at creating browser-based kiosks with
|
|
Windows-based PC's were unsatisfactory. The units were unstable,
|
|
freezing up frequently. The Linux approach has given us a reliable,
|
|
robust kiosk in a public gallery that has stood up well to visitor
|
|
usage. Our success with this project has led us to consider other
|
|
kiosk possibilities.
|
|
|
|
<sect1>Remote Kiosks
|
|
<p>
|
|
One of our future goals is to implement remote kiosks in the greater
|
|
Toronto area where people can browse some of our site information and,
|
|
hopefully, be attracted enough by it to visit the ROM in person. These
|
|
might be deployed at places such as conventions, trade shows, shopping
|
|
malls or special exhibits. We are also thinking in terms of deploying
|
|
kiosks in more distant locations, perhaps in public libraries.
|
|
|
|
For this project we would likely implement modem-based Linux boxes
|
|
that could ``call home'' to update files on a routine basis and could
|
|
be dialled into for maintenance and updates.
|
|
|
|
<sect1>Touchscreens
|
|
<p>
|
|
When the technology gets cheaper, we would like to experiment with
|
|
flat-panel touchscreen displays for kiosks. The combination of
|
|
flat-panel display and very small PC units would enable us to deploy
|
|
kiosks with a very small footprint.
|
|
|
|
<sect1>Keyboards
|
|
<p>
|
|
Ultimately we may need to deploy kiosks that utilize keyboards. This
|
|
will present a new set of challenges in terms of blocking unwanted
|
|
keystrokes. If anyone would like to contribute information on this, or
|
|
to any other aspect of the Kiosk-HOWTO, please email me at
|
|
genew@rom.on.ca or my alternative email address njo@interlog.com.
|
|
|
|
<sect1>Collaboration
|
|
<p>
|
|
I would be very interested in collaborating with other kiosk builders
|
|
to extend the Kiosk-HOWTO for other situations. Kiosks are a bit like
|
|
Perl: ``There is more than one way to do it.''
|
|
|
|
</article>
|