Jul

9

Kiosk Browser, is as its name suggests, a browser that acts like a kiosk.

You can limit the browser to a specific site or allow external sites to be loaded, optionally in the default standard browser. The browser has some additional features allowing the sending of Toast messages to the user from javascript, showing and hiding the title bar and launching applications on the device.

These special functions available from Javascript are demonstrated by the code below:

 
<input type="button" value="Show Preferences screen" onClick="Kiosk.showPreferences(); return false;" />
<input type="button" value="Show Platform Settings" onClick="Kiosk.platformSettings(); return false;" />
 
<input type="button" value="Clear cache, form data, history" onClick="Kiosk.clearCaches(); return false;" />
 
<input type="text" size=30 name=something>
<br>
<input type="button" value="Back" onClick="Kiosk.goBack(); return false;" />
<input type="button" value="Forward" onClick="Kiosk.goForward(); return false;" />
<input type="button" value="Reload" onClick="Kiosk.reload(); return false;" />
<input type="button" value="Stop" onClick="Kiosk.stop(); return false;" />
 
 
<input type="button" value="Disable Menus" onClick="Kiosk.disableMenus(); return false;" />
<input type="button" value="Enable Menus" onClick="Kiosk.enableMenus(); return false;" />
<input type="button" value="Disable Scaling" onClick="Kiosk.disableScaling(); return false;" />
<input type="button" value="Enable Scaling" onClick="Kiosk.enableScaling(); return false;" />
 
 
 
<input type="submit" value="Android app interface" onClick="Kiosk.showToast('Hello Android!'); return false;" >
 
<input type="button" value="Fullscreen" onClick="Kiosk.hideTitlebar(); return false;" >
<input type="button" value="With title" onClick="Kiosk.showTitlebar(); return false;" >
<input type="button" value="Restart" onClick="Kiosk.endApp(); return false;" >
<input type="button" value="Launch" onClick="Kiosk.launch('fm.last.android','fm.last.android.LastFm'); return false;" >
<input type="button" value="Launch 2" onClick="Kiosk.launch('fm.last.android-1','fm.last.android-1.activity.Profile_RadioTab'); return false;" >
 
 
<a href=http://www.google.co.uk>External</a>

UPDATE: 04-November-2011: Added more javascript interfaces and preferences… (sorry about the 2 updates in one go) Second update allows for zoom to be set from 1 to 200

UPDATE: 29-October-2011: Rearranged some of the options to make preferences a little less messy.

Added an optional “Page Loading” message, this blocks screen access until the page has completely loaded so be aware that it may just sit there forever if your network drops out. The good news is the addition of the labs section may help here.

Also added a ‘Labs’ preference section where experimental stuff can go. Currently there’s one active preference in there called “Network Connect”. What this does is run the kiosk application when the network goes up or down. What this means is that you can have the kiosk automatically run when the device boots (and gets unlocked). Feedback on how useful it is would be useful 😀

Seems I’ve managed to mess up the comments section :/

Some simple documentation is available here

There’s also some information on the next iteration of Kiosk Browser



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July 9, 2011 15:14


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36 Comments so far

  1. Liz on August 18, 2011 10:42

    Hi there

    I downloaded this app however I can only see the news feed – there are no options for the secure browser. Please could you get in touch. Using V 2.2.

    Liz

  2. RSMM on September 8, 2011 19:47

    We are looking for a kiosk type application that will display only a set site in the browser, but that also will not allow users to access the system properties, or home screen, as well as other apps. Basically, we only really want web functionality on a tablet. Is your application set up when it restricts access back to the home screen? Thanks you for your time and assistance.

  3. Cedric on September 12, 2011 23:12

    Hi,
    your Kiosk Browser is exactly what i need, so I tried to get it. Unfortunately my Archos 7 Home Tablet has not the official android market installed but the appslib: http://appslib.com/ (for android tablets)
    Would you consider to place it there too, or could you send me the apk?

    That would be great!

    Thanks
    Cedric

  4. Bernardo on October 6, 2011 01:48

    Does your kiosk application work on android tablets? If so can you sent me an email with a download app please

    thanks,

  5. Herve on October 12, 2011 09:31

    Hello,
    Could you please explain how the “Default Zoom Level” works ? It seems to have a limited action when using fullscreen mode.
    Also, is there a way to display flash movies without using an external app?
    Great app by the way!
    Best,
    Herve

  6. Peter on October 14, 2011 05:24

    Hi there,, very interested in learning more about this app.. please if you can contact me by email to possibly have some insight on how I can use this in my retail kiosks!

  7. Jeremy on October 26, 2011 16:03

    Hi Andy!

    Do you have any recommendations for specific Android tablets that aren’t too expensive and well-suited to Kiosk work? I understand that root access may be needed in some cases, such as with Honeycomb to hide the system bar. Thanks!

  8. ScaredyCat / Andy Powell on October 29, 2011 23:23

    Liz,

    If you press the menu button on your tablet/phone you should see the Preferences option pop up, select that and you’ll go into the configuration options.

  9. ScaredyCat / Andy Powell on October 29, 2011 23:25

    RSMM,

    No, currently my kiosk application does not block the back button. It may be worth looking at tablets running up to 2.3.3 with buttons and then block physical access to them.

    I have just tested the kiosk application set as the default home screen and this does work without a problem. However it is possible to end up in a situation where you can’t get back to a normal homescreen if you don’t take a little care. I’m quite nervous about releasing that into the market because of the inevitable negative feedback that would result from it. If you want to discuss this, please get in touch via the android market send email button.

  10. ScaredyCat / Andy Powell on October 29, 2011 23:26

    Cedric,

    I’ll take a look at adding it. I appreciate the archos and some other tablets don’t have market access.

  11. ScaredyCat / Andy Powell on October 29, 2011 23:28

    Bernardo,

    Yes, it works with android tablets. You can find it in the android market here

  12. ScaredyCat / Andy Powell on October 29, 2011 23:31

    Herve,

    I’ve updated the kiosk application to support flash if it is installed, hope that’s useful.

    The Default zoom level allows you to resize a site so that if will fit (mainly width wise) – for example on my Nexus 1, my blog fits at a default zoom level of 44.

  13. ScaredyCat / Andy Powell on October 29, 2011 23:36

    Jeremy

    I really only have access to a couple of phones and an Asus Transformer but any android tablet should work. One of the things people seem to want to do is enclose the tablets in some type of case to prevent the user from pressing the back and menu buttons.

    Looking at the stats for my application the Acer Picasso seems to be popular, but that’s not really a recommendation – I’ve never used one.

  14. Nicolas on November 2, 2011 10:39

    Hi there!

    Your kiosk browser is exactly what I was looking for.
    I’m using it to display the web interface for my home automation. There’s only one thing:
    In the previous version there was the possibility to set the default zoom level to any number. Now it is somehow limited to 100%. Would it be a big problem to “reimplement” this? Because the default zoom level for other (android) browsers seem to be 150% and my web interface only looks good if displayed at 150%.

    Thanks!
    Nicolas

  15. ScaredyCat / Andy Powell on November 4, 2011 22:04

    Hi Nicolas,

    If only I’d read your message before posting the latest update 🙁 – I’ll add it to the next update which should be very very soon…

    [You should have the new version now]

  16. dashboard on November 7, 2011 20:18

    Idea of ‘Home, Back, List’ buttons closing or your Browser or allowing access to preferences..

    Some apps have a popup asking if you want to close the app IF these buttons are pushed.

    You could have a Password popup come up, if correct password put in, app closes or access to preferences is granted.

    Lost password, one should uninstall and reinstall app.

  17. v on November 11, 2011 18:38

    In last version local pages (file://sdcard) without network connection have ceased to work. The good browser

  18. ScaredyCat / Andy Powell on November 11, 2011 23:32

    V,

    I’ve done a fix for this and will push the new version tonight. When you get the new version, go to Preferences->Kiosk Setup and select “Always offline”

    Hope that sorts it out for you.

  19. Dave on December 7, 2011 22:18

    I have several clients that are using your app for donation kiosks; it’s a great solution and I thank you for making it.
    I had one user report an problem while trying to install the app on her tablet: it said it could not load because the tablet was not linked to an Android phone.
    I can’t seem to duplicate the problem on my end. Any advice?
    Thanks!

  20. Dave on December 8, 2011 11:08

    Good App, however, once you have set your kiosk load page – great, it works… But then if you update the website with new content,your kiosk app continue to load old version. Could that be something to do with local cache or saving history? I’ve cleared browser, but Kiosk app continues to load old pages.
    Thanks for your help.

  21. Dave on December 8, 2011 11:17

    Hi again.

    Yep.. that’s the problem. Went into Android “manage Apps” and cleared data from there and then set up kiosk app again and all worked fine.

    All your customers who get round to updating their websites will i guess find this problem out over time. Cheers.

  22. Dave on December 8, 2011 11:20

    Hi again,

    Yep, that’s the problem. Went into “manage Apps” on android + cleared data from there and once settings had been reloaded into your app, new webpage was loaded. I guess all your other customers will find this problem over time. Cheers.

  23. shawn koehnen on December 10, 2011 06:16

    You really need to be able to Turn Off Remember form data. Public kiosk BIG problem

  24. Jure on December 13, 2011 11:09

    Hello Andy really great app,
    i have one problem, when i boot my tablet automaticaly Kiosk Browser runs, and the problem is while at the startup network ist reachable yet so the web page doesnt loads.

    And if doesnt loads at startup then i need to restart browser, is there any way that the browser refreshes until the network is up again, or the web page is loadet or something similar.
    Thanks for answering

  25. David on December 19, 2011 20:56

    I am new to the whole tablet market. I need to use a tablet to display an interactive flash file.
    Since I can not do this with an iPad I am looking for a tablet other than apple.
    If I understand correctly, I can use any tablet with android and use your app to play the file stored on the tablet, then place the tablet into a case to cover the physical buttons.
    Is this correct? Is there a minimum version of android needed? Should I look for any specific tablet?

  26. ScaredyCat / Andy Powell on January 17, 2012 14:50

    @Dave

    That’s a very odd situation, the application doesn’t require the device to be a phone. Can you give me any more detail ?

  27. ScaredyCat / Andy Powell on January 17, 2012 14:53

    @Dave

    You’re right, it might be a caching issue. You can force the clearing of the cache and form data via javascript using clearCaches()

  28. ScaredyCat / Andy Powell on January 17, 2012 14:56

    @shawn

    I’ll add this to the next version.

  29. ScaredyCat / Andy Powell on January 17, 2012 14:59

    @Jure

    In the preferences (in the labs section) you can turn on/off reloading when the network comes up. Make sure Preferences->Labs->Network Connect is selected.

  30. ScaredyCat / Andy Powell on January 17, 2012 15:01

    @David

    Yes this will work, you should aim for a 2.3 tablet – something like this might be what you’re after

  31. Gabriel on March 1, 2012 16:01

    Hi, i´m developing a cheap kiosk based on tablet with one condition: only html and javascript. But when write the specs about the behavior i see that they are the same that your product have !!
    I´m test now the free version, great !!!!!!!! You think all details about the kiosk must be.
    My big question, your comercial version can run on Android 2.2 ? Because the 2.3 tablets are more expensives. Thanks very much , and again, excellent product.

  32. Gabriel on March 1, 2012 16:03

    And a last question, how launch your app from the shell am command ??? Regards

  33. ScaredyCat / Andy Powell on March 16, 2012 15:37

    There is a bug in earlier (2.2) versions of android that can cause the application to exit with no logging or error reporting. That’s why I am recommending >2.2 for this. I think 2.3.3 tablets are at a reasonable price point these days.

  34. Amador on March 21, 2012 20:50

    Hi.

    Works great on ICS. But can’t remove the bars (device are rooted).

    We would like to see in future version a option for hide the android keyboard 🙂

    Good job!

  35. Herve on April 12, 2012 15:28

    Hi,

    Using an ICS tablet, Kiosk Browser HC cannot display videos, using flash or html5.
    Is there a way around it ?

    Best regards,
    Herve

  36. ScaredyCat / Andy Powell on May 9, 2012 07:59

    Herve,

    Make sure you have flash installed and enabled on the device.

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