Source Creation for Libraries

This page explains how to configure a fresh Userful system with the Cloud Desktop and Web Browser sources to create basic desktop and catalog sessions for users.

By default, Userful is configured with a number of sample Sources. Most can be safely deleted. Click each Source, then click Delete Source in the window that appears. Leave the Userful Desktop and Web Browser Sources.

We want to split them up to create two separate Resource Groups.

Welcome Screen

In the current example, we have enabled a Welcome Screen for the Internet Desktop, but not the Web Browser source. There is also an active link for the Control Center, which we don't want.

Enable the Welcome Screen for both Resource Groups, and disable the Control Center icon (the gear ⚙️ icon).

Setting up an Internet & Office Desktop

Let's start by customizing an Internet Desktop session. We create one in the animation below, where we:

  1. Change its Name.

  2. Keep the Cloud Desktop source type.

  3. Customize the home page.

  4. Remove Userful Control Center from the dock.

  5. Add LibreOffice icons to the dock.

  6. Start Chrome on login.

  7. Set a wallpaper.

This leaves us with a functional desktop (with ala.org as the homepage).

This was just an example - create your own!

Setting up a Catalog Kiosk

A few tweaks of the Web Browser session will turn it into a functional Web kiosk.

All we really do here is set the Homepage. In this example, we switched to a full-screen Chrome browser that removes the address bar and other controls.

Next we will Map a couple of displays to the Kiosk source.

This shows our Kiosk session - a simple full-screen browser.

Next, go to Session Management to learn how to apply logins, timers and filters to your sessions.

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