How to Display a Menu of Websites On Your Kiosk

In order to make it easy to navigate between a series of websites on your kiosk we’ve added a menu feature to KioskSimple.

This is particularly useful if you’re allowing users to navigate away from your website to 3rd party websites.

In the case of a 3rd party website you probably don’t control their content and it will be difficult for users to find their way back to your website.

In this short article I’ll show you just how simple we’ve made it to create a menu of websites so your users can always find their way back home.

Continue reading “How to Display a Menu of Websites On Your Kiosk”

9 Reasons to Develop Your Kiosk Application as a Native App

If you’re developing a kiosk application you’ve probably wondered what technology you should use.

The two most common options are creating a website or a native application. In this article we’ll focus on the benefits of creating a native kiosk application.

Our developers have been creating large-scale, unattended payment applications for many years now and the following are the reasons we choose to develop our kiosk applications as a native application (typically in .NET WPF).

Continue reading “9 Reasons to Develop Your Kiosk Application as a Native App”

How to Get Great Results and Save on Costs with Hourly Based Software Developers – Part 3

We work with many of our clients on an hourly basis so I wanted to share some tips on how you can save on development costs and get great results working with hourly based software developers,

In the first part of this three-part series on working with hourly software developers we addressed some frequently asked questions. In part two we covered several tips for working with hourly based developers to ensure that your project is a glowing success.

In this third and final part of our three-part series we’re going to cover our final four tips to help ensure the success of your project.

Continue reading “How to Get Great Results and Save on Costs with Hourly Based Software Developers – Part 3”

How to Get Great Results and Save on Costs with Hourly Based Software Developers – Part 2

We work with many of our clients on an hourly basis so I wanted to share some tips on how you can save on development costs and get great results working with hourly based software developers,

In the first part of this three-part series on working with hourly software developers we addressed the following frequently asked questions…

When does is make sense to hire an hourly based developer?
How can I save money with an hourly based developer?
How can I ensure that my project stays within budget without having a fixed price?

In this second part we’re going to cover several tips for working with hourly based developers to ensure that your project is a glowing success.

Continue reading “How to Get Great Results and Save on Costs with Hourly Based Software Developers – Part 2”

How to Get Great Results and Save on Costs with Hourly Based Software Developers – Part 1

We work with many of our clients on an hourly basis so I wanted to share some tips on how you can save on development costs and get great results working with hourly based software developers,

Charging on an hourly basis is also referred to as “billing for time and materials” where the developer is paid for every hour worked. This is appealing to the developer because it lowers their risk of working for free, but you may be wondering how this works to your advantage as the client.

To the unseasoned this may seem like a risky proposition since there’s no guarantee of the final cost, but with an experienced development firm it’s possible (encouraged even) to work on a budget so costs don’t spiral out of control.

In most cases hourly software development will end up saving you money and I’ll explain how in this article.

In the first part of this three-part series on working with hourly developers I’m going to address the following frequently asked questions…

When does is make sense to hire an hourly based developer?
How can I save money with an hourly based developer?
How can I ensure that my project stays within budget without having a fixed price?

Continue reading “How to Get Great Results and Save on Costs with Hourly Based Software Developers – Part 1”

What’s Your Excuse for Not Starting Your Kiosk Project?

Have you ever wanted to start your kiosk project, but found an excuse to delay the launch and the project fizzled?

Assuming the project is worth doing, then why does this happen? I think in many cases it’s because we let our fears of the unknown get in the way.

Here are a few of the reason’s I’ve encountered why some of our potential clients get cold feet and their kiosk project and never get started.

Continue reading “What’s Your Excuse for Not Starting Your Kiosk Project?”

Windows Kiosk Mode vs. Kiosk Software

A common question I hear from new clients is “why would I want to use kiosk software when I can just use kiosk mode in Windows 8 (aka Assigned Access)?”

This is a fair question, so I’m going to explain the limitations of Windows Kiosk Mode and when there is a need for kiosk software.

The short answer is that kiosk software makes up for the short comings in Windows Kiosk Mode and adds an additional layer of security and ease of use to get you up and running quickly without all the headaches.

Our kiosk software is designed to be so simple that no nerd degree is required.

Continue reading “Windows Kiosk Mode vs. Kiosk Software”

How to Make Your Kiosk Software Project a Success – Part 2 Execution

In this short series on how to make your kiosk software project a success I’m going to focus on the development aspects of planning and launching a successful kiosk project.

In the first article I focused on the initial planning of your kiosk software project. In the second part of this 2-part series I’m going to focus on executing your kiosk software project in a manner which helps ensure your success.

RedSwimmer has been developing custom kiosk software since 2007 with an emphasis on retail and unattended payment applications.

Since our background is in kiosk software development, this series will focus on the planning and development of your kiosk software, but also touch a little on the hardware side.

Continue reading “How to Make Your Kiosk Software Project a Success – Part 2 Execution”

How to Make Your Kiosk Software Project a Success – Part 1 Planning

In this short series on how to make your kiosk software project a success I’m going to focus on the development aspects of planning and launching a successful kiosk project.

RedSwimmer has been developing custom kiosk software since 2007 with an emphasis on retail and unattended payment applications.

Since our background is in kiosk software development, this series will focus on the planning and development of your kiosk software, but also touch a little on the hardware side.

The first article in this two-part series will focus on the initial planning of your kiosk software and the second article will focus on the execution.

Continue reading “How to Make Your Kiosk Software Project a Success – Part 1 Planning”

System Downtime May Be Costing You More Than You Think

Does your system have too much downtime and you don’t even know it? Are your customers running away to your competitors without your knowledge?

The answer may be YES if your system experiences regular downtime and worst of all you may not even be aware of the extent of the damage until your reputation has been irreparably tarnished.

The term ‘downtime’ derives from when a system, combination of systems, or any application or service is unable to perform a desired operation. Downtime can be expected and scheduled, such as planned maintenance, or it can be an unintended interruption of service such as a server overload or device failure.

This article is intended to help broaden your thinking about the costs and types of system downtime.

Continue reading “System Downtime May Be Costing You More Than You Think”