This is one of a series of posts describing the new features in Carousel 5.2 which will be entering Beta testing very soon. Be sure to check out the other posts in this series so far:
One of Carousel’s most impressive features is the fact that the entire user interface is web-based. This means that you can create and update your digital signage content from anywhere, as long as you have a web browser.
There is, however, one drawback to this feature… Unless you are near a Carousel Player running a DisplayEngine, you can’t actually see what your signage channel looks like. Wouldn’t it be nice if there was a way to preview your channel directly in your web browser?
Well, yes. It would! In Carousel 5.2, you can now see a full preview of your channel, including the layout of all the zones on that channel. Here’s how.
From Carousel’s Main Menu, click the “Configure” button, and bring up the Channel list:
Next to each channel name, you’ll see a little full screen preview button. Clicking on this button will open up a new browser window with your channel on display!
If you’re feeling really industrious, you can even include this preview directly into your website by creating an inline iframe on your site that points to the URL of your channel’s full screen preview. Imagine Carousel’s beautiful output in your hallways, on your computers (using the optional Carousel Screensaver), and on your website. Pretty neat!
There are a couple caveats to be aware of… Because this preview is displayed directly in your web browser, you won’t be able to see the crawl, or other media types such as video, flash, powerpoint, live video, etc. Additionally, the new preview takes advantage of modern, standards compliant web browsers, so you’ll need to be using a recent browser like Firefox 2+ or Internet Explorer 7+. Nevertheless, it’s a great way to take a look at your channel when you’re not near a Carousel Player.
One Comment
This is awesome…that has always been a problem