Slashdot Mirror
Ask Slashdot: Making a Tablet Run Only One Application?
An anonymous reader asks "I'm working for a medical centre who want to make a tablet with various videos and webpages about smoking cessation available in their waiting room. The tablet can't access the Internet because of security policies. I'm planning to use a local server with copies of the (Creative Commons) videos and pages accessed through local webpages using the tablet's browser. How can I make only the browser be available to the tablet users? Ideas? Suggestions?"
Just roll your own AOSP build that only has /system/app/Browser.apk along with essential system UI apks and include none of the networking drivers that the device needs.
You need digital signage, not a tablet. Only one person at a time can use a tablet. A couple of flat screens off a cheap PC hidden up in the ceiling or a closet, and use Xibo.
If you are using iPad, there is an app called MediaKiosk. This is used with metal kiosk housings that prevent the 'home' button from being pushed and will allow the charge cable to always be connected. Not really helpful for portable.
Since they could run other apps on the tablet even if you trap all HTTP requests, first step is to root the tablet and uninstall everything else, then make the browser autostart. Password protect anything you don't uninstall.
-nb
whois gawk date unzip strip find touch finger mount join nice man top fsck grep eject more yes exit umount sleep dump
Without knowing what Tablet OS you are targeting it is difficult to give you advice. You can just search on google for the terms "kiosk mode" + whatever OS and that should give you what you are looking for.
This seems like a terrible idea! People in a hospital are going to be smearing their fingers all over this device, and passing it around. It seems to be a very convenient disease vector. I would not touch it with a 20 foot pole.
Android Tutorial: http://www.basic4ppc.com/forum/basic4android-getting-started-tutorials/10839-android-kiosk-mode-tutorial.html
iPad: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/kiosk-pro/id409918026?mt=8
I do not have a solution to your problem. I am curious about the situation though. Is there a reason your organization wants this to be easy-to-steal-and-expensive tablets? Especially when there's the security policy. And you'll have to keep them charged too. Why not just a cheap laptop. Or a pamphlet and TV? I realize it's difficult to get people to stop smoking, but fancy technology isn't always the solution.
I am curious about this too. I also work in IT and with several hospitals as customers. The IT staff in the hospitals I work with, small, medium, and large, all talk about things walking away from rooms, lobbies, etc. Surely there is a better solution, possibly more cost effective too... Besides, you will need to be able to recharge it anyway, so why not look for something that can be put on a table with a long core for recharge? If you can do that, then you could possibly look at touch screen media displays that access a media server hosting your videos. Viewer users use would then just be a touch screen display for the content (probably a lot cheaper, depending on media server and cabling install cost). This also keeps it off of the wifi... which from what I see in hospitals around here, the customer access devices on internal WiFi, the better...
Bruce Schneier linked to this post on iPads just a few days ago....
iOS has parental restrictions. Enable restrictions, enable Safari, leave everything else disabled. No step 3.
generally speaking, the ones burning the money are not the ones complaining about the pay
iPad in Kiosk mode:
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/mediakiosk/id352741530?mt=8
Android in Kiosk mode:
http://www.42gears.com/blog/2011/10/kiosk-mode-on-android/
I'm out of my mind right now, but feel free to leave a message.....
Why not use one of the cheap ass video players that sell for 80 bucks and can hold video and PDF documents and pretty much nothing else?
My kids have these Coby knockoffs that they love and have no trouble using. They play video (in way more formats than most tablets) and PDF and picturse, and that's about it, no pesky browser or wireless networking to bother with. Best of all it isn't a 500 dollar item people will want to walk off with, and even if they do walk off with it, you are out 80 bucks instead of 500.
Of course if what you are trying to do is show that you can throw thousands of dollars into the waiting room, that won't really accomplish what you are trying to do.
The hospital management is being treated well by the tablet manufacturer....
Hmm. Since that narrows the universe of possibilities down to a single vendor, you should probably tell us what OS the vendor uses on the tablet, otherwise people will waste their time giving you advice you can't use.
If you don't want to identify the vendor, and you can't tell us the OS without doing that, just say so. We'll pretend we don't know who you're talking about (although we will).
Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.
Or just install a password protected launcher, much easier than trying to figure out what you can and can't uninstall.
There are 4 boxes to use in the defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, ammo. Use in that order. Starting now.