Signage networks can be push technology where the user pushes new information to his screens when he wants to, or pull technology where the screen initiates contact with the host server periodically to see if new information is available. Both have pros and cons but we prefer pull technology for signage.
Signage networks can be as small as several menus in a restaurant to hundreds of displays across a large geography. You may not be a nationwide enterprise but the typical school campus, chain of connivance stores or restaurant franchise covers too much area for the administrator to physically check the status of his screens. A pull system can be set up to maintain a record of the dialog between the signs and the host server so the administrator always knows the status of his network.
Media players in a pull system are programmed to receive information from only one source; the sign server it is paired with. In order to change the address of the media player’s host server you need to be in physical possession of the player. The address cannot be changed over the internet, so some clever hacker can’t divert your signage to display his information from his server on your screen.
Media players in a pull system have the sign content stored in local memory. The media player does not need the network connection to display sign content. If the network connection is interrupted you will never see a blank screen because the program will continue to play from memory. The network connection is necessary to download new content so the media player is programmed to connect to the host server every few minutes to see if new content is available for download. If there is new content, it will download in the background and when the download is complete it will begin to play in accordance with the schedule for that content.
The server keeps a record of the dialog from the media player. It maintains a log of every contact so the network administrator can always check if a media player is actively online and working properly. Another log file maintains a record of the content the media player is displaying and the times it played. This information can be used to generate reports for proof of performance where required.
The media player is very reliable with no moving parts. The local memory is solid state; not a hard drive. The media player is programmed to delete any sign content it has in memory not required by its current playlist. The memory is thus self cleaning and the administrator does not have to worry about running out of memory. In the event of failure, the media player can be replaced with a new one in the field with no preprogramming or setup because once online it will automatically download the correct content and program schedules for that location because the program is always available on the server.
Failure is unlikely however because a media player does not use a graphics card to generate high definition video; it uses a media chipset that produces very little heat, so the media player runs cool. The software is embedded Linux and media players are commonly called “appliances” to differentiate them from PCs or similar signage computers. If power fails, the media player will stop. When power is restored the media player will start right back up because it does not have to load an operating system like a PC.
The media player is usually connected to the network with an Ethernet cable but Wi-Fi can also be used. If you have an area that is too difficult to provide with a network connection; the media player can be updated manually by downloading the program from the server to a USB jump drive and physically changing the program in the media player.
As of this writing we have more than 6,000 media players in the field with the oldest ones installed at the end of 2006 and still working perfectly. Our installations cover hundreds of computer networks and has given us the experience and confidence to recommend this technology for your application.
