Why digital signage?

Save time and money vs. printed signage

Dynamic vs. static content

Timely (even immediate) updates to content

Centralized control to manage multiple locations

Modern look (graphics and animations)

Printed Signage

Digital Menu Signage

Information and Wayfinding

Emergency Alerts

Why we tried Drupal...

High cost and increasing frustration with current non-Drupal options

AxisTV License - $1200-1800 one-time fee per display

Service Agreement - 11% per year

(Poorly designed interface; Unintuitive navigation)

visix.com

Building Package License - $10000 enterprise fee per unit

Service Agreement - 17% per year

(Easier to use interface; Higher cost per unit)

fourwindsinteractive.com

Local Hosting License - $950 one-time fee

Media Player Fee - $725 per year per display

Service Agreement - 20% of total software cost per year

*Cloud Hosting Option - $40 monthly fee per player

(High cost per unit; High hardware costs)

scala.com

Why we tried Drupal...

Massive redesign project for all CLAS department websites

The Dean's Redesign Project

45 department websites and 20 center websites

Creation of a consistent look and feel throughout the College

Common header for familiarity and ease-of-use across websites

Utilize the University colors (Black and Gold)

Capture attention faster and spark more interest

Should we use Drupal?

Drupal was free and was already gaining momentum on campus

Easier for us to use the same interface for both projects

Nearly 32,000 contributed modules available on drupal.org

We could create our own custom modules to go above and beyond

Online resources were helpful for finding solutions to problems

music.uiowa.edu

clas.uiowa.edu/history

theatre.uiowa.edu

What we came up with...

Theme based on the new CLAS design and identity

Signage Theme

Used the CLAS theme as inspiration for the digital signage theme

Utilizes the University colors (Black and Gold)

University and College logos to enforce identity

Large, bold fonts for better clarity from distance

Academic Programs and Student Development

Macbride Hall

What we came up with...

Responsive design for various display types

Responsive Design

Fluid Grid CSS Framework

One-, Two- and Three-column flexible layouts

Tablets, 720p, 1080p, and 4k displays

Landscape and Portrait Orientations

Flexible Layouts

What we came up with...

Core and modules

Drupal Core and modules

Core

CAS

Chaos Tools

Date

Feeds

Flexslider

Organic Groups

Panelizer

Panels

Views

Independent Slideshows

Content Managers can create up to three independent slideshows

Slideshow content can be scheduled and shared across groups

Independent Slideshows

What we came up with...

Additional Scripts/Modules

Additional Scripts/Modules

Date/Time

Weather Forecast - wunderground.com

BONGO (Bus On The Go) - ebongo.org

Video Player (YouTube and Vimeo)

Earthquake Data Map (USGS) - USGS.gov

Scrolling News Marquee

Rotating Events

Facebook*

Twitter*

Weather Forecast

Create a shell script (forecast.sh) to pull the forecast from Weather Underground^® and create a local forecast.json file:

#!/bin/sh
mv -f <path>/forecast.json <path>/forecast.json.bak
curl -s http://api.wunderground.com/api/<WeatherUndergroundID>/forecast/geolookup/
  conditions/q/IA/Iowa_City.json?pws=0 -o "<path>/forecast.json"
            

Weather Forecast

Create a cronjob to run the forecast.sh script on a schedule:

MAILTO="email@domain.edu"
*/3 * * * * root <path>/forecast.sh >/dev/null 2>&1
            

Weather Forecast

Tell the JavaScript to read from the local forecast.json file:

function displayWeather() {
   $.ajax({
      cache : false,
      type : 'GET',
      url : '<path>/forecast.json',
      dataType : 'json',
      error : function() {
         // Error handling
      },
      success : function(parsed_json) {
        // Do something here
      }
   });
}
            

News and Events

Feeds module used to pull news from department websites

Pulls events from the University Localist Event system

Automatic removal of outdated news and events

BONGO (Bus On The Go)

Earthquake Data Map

What we came up with...

Hawk Alert (Emergency Notification System)

Hawk Alert

Create a shell script (hawkalert.sh) to pull the Hawk Alert CAP Feed and create a local hawkalert.xml file:

#!/bin/sh
mv -f <path>/hawkalert.xml <path>/hawkalert.xml.bak
curl -s http://emergency.uiowa.edu/hawk-alert-CAP -o "<path>/hawkalert.xml"
            

Hawk Alert

Create a cronjob to run the hawkalert.sh script on a schedule:

MAILTO="email@domain.edu"
*/5 * * * * root <path>/hawkalert.sh >/dev/null 2>&1
            

Hawk Alert

Tell the JavaScript to read from the local hawkalert.xml file:

function displayHawkAlert() {
   $.ajax({
      cache : false,
      type : 'GET',
      url : '<path>/hawkalert.xml',
      dataType : 'xml',
      error : function() {
         // Error handling
      },
      success : function(xml) {
         if( message has children ) {
            // Do something here
         }
         else {
            // Resume normal content
         }
      }
   });
}
            

e.uiowa.edu

What we came up with...

Easy-to-use User Interface

Panels In-Place Editor

What we came up with...

"Media Player" Setups

Original "Media Player"

Dell Optiplex 3020 Micro PC or similar device

CLAS IT Standard Plus Image (SCCM) 32-bit Windows 7 Enterprise

System updates received monthly via SCCM

IE9 with Kiosk Mode feature enabled

Group Page launched automatically on boot

LanSchool Classroom Management software - lanschool.com

Basic build cost = ~$400

Raspberry Pi

Raspbian OS Image

Chromium with Kiosk and Incognito modes enabled

Group Page launched automatically on boot

Preconfigured setup available on additional SD cards

Powered via Micro-USB cable connected to display

Raspberry Pi 2 Complete Starter Kit (Amazon) = $70-80

raspberrypi.org

Intel Compute Stick

New SCCM Image 32-bit Windows 8.1 Enterprise

Google Chrome with Kiosk and Incognito modes enabled

Connects directly to HDMI port on back of display

Wireless, Bluetooth, USB 2.0, and MicroSD connections

Powered via AC power adapter (included)

TigerVNC - tigervnc.org / Apple Remote Desktop - ARD

* Intel Compute Stick (Amazon) = $130

Intel Compute Stick

http://intel.ly/1xCN0C4

LanSchool

Allows us to remotely monitor each display and restart if necessary - http://lanschool.com

TigerVNC + Apple Remote Desktop

Allows us to remotely monitor each display / force restart with no additional cost to clients
TigerVNC - Apple Remote Desktop

Where it's worked...

Academic Programs and Student Development
Anthropology, Biology, Chemistry,
Computer Science, Dance, English,
Geographical and Sustainability Sciences,
Health and Human Physiology,
Iowa Advanced Technology Labs,
Journalism and Mass Communication,
Mathematics, Physics and Astronomy,
Religious Studies, Social Work, Theatre Arts,
World Languages, Literatures and Cultures

...then others wanted it...

Information Technology Services

University Admissions

University Athletics

Housing and Dining

Graduate College

College of Engineering

College of Medicine

Main Library and Learning Commons

...and the word spread

Penn State University

Stanford University

Georgia Tech University

What are we doing now?

Creating a University wide Digital Signage solution with Central IT

New slideshow functionality to improve sharing of content

Mapping / Wayfinding

White Pages / Directory Listing

Sharing our solution

When we finish the new solution, we plan to share it with others

Can collaboration with others to make the project even better?