Set Up the Digital Whiteboard (How-To)

Article Details

Summary

This article shows you how to set up the Digital Whiteboard integration with Gingr.

Before You Begin

You need a monitor or television, a streaming device that can connect to the internet and show a web page, an internet connection, and power. See Recommended Hardware for Digital Whiteboard.

Steps

Step 1: Create a User Group

Create a group with a single user for this feature.

  1. Go to Left-hand Navigation: Reports and More » Groups.
  2. Select Create Group.
  3. Name the group "Digital Whiteboard."
  4. Turn on the Can Access API permission for this group.

Step 2: Create a New User Account

The digital whiteboard needs its own user account. This account does nothing else.

  1. Go to Left-hand Navigation: Reports and More Icon » Users.
  2. Select Create a New User.
  3. Enter "Digital" as the First Name.
  4. Enter "Whiteboard" as the Last Name.
  5. Enter a real, unused email address in Email. It cannot match an existing user's email.
  6. Enter 000-000-0000 as the Phone number.
  7. Enter a secure Password. You do not need the password to use this feature, but the field is required.
  8. Enter the password again to confirm it.
  9. Set the Location to the location the digital whiteboard is for.
  10. Set the User Group to the Digital Whiteboard group you created.
  11. Select Sign Up.
  12. Refresh the page and edit the Digital Whiteboard user.
  13. Scroll to the API Keys section and select Create New Key.

    Create New Key button highlighted.

Step 3: Set Up Your Digital Whiteboard Hardware

Internet to Streaming Device to TV

You need power, a television or monitor, a streaming device, and an internet connection (wired or wireless, depending on the device). The streaming device must run a website on its own through an installed browser, or stream from another device. If you use a device like Apple TV or Chromecast, the device you stream from must always be on and connected. This takes more work.

  1. Connect your television and streaming device to power.
  2. Connect the streaming device to the television with an HDMI cable or another display connection.
  3. Set up the streaming device to connect to the internet by Wi-Fi or Ethernet. Depending on the device, you may need to install software on a computer to finish setup.

Step 4: Generate a Digital Whiteboard Link

  1. In Gingr, go to Left-hand Navigation: Admin » Digital Whiteboard.
  2. Optional: Turn on Enable Push to Digital Whiteboard Option. It is on by default. Staff can then choose whether to send a pet to the digital whiteboard when they check out from the dashboard. This helps you avoid extra updates during busy hours.
  3. Select the Digital Whiteboard user account you created.
  4. Select the Location where you installed the digital whiteboard.
  5. Optional: Set the Optional Filters:
    • Select Reservation Type(s): Pick the reservation types to show. Leave it blank to show all types.
    • Time Period: Check Today to always show all pets checking in or out on the current date, at any time.
    • Last/Next X Minutes: Enter a number to show pets checking in or out within that many minutes.
  6. Set Number of Records Per Page to the number of animals to show in a column at a time. Larger televisions can show more records. You may need to adjust this number after setup to fit your screen.
  7. Set Seconds Per Page to how many seconds the screen shows a list of animals before it moves to the next page. This matters when more animals check in or out than fit on the screen.
  8. Copy the whole custom URL at the bottom. Then set up your streaming device with this URL. For a device like AirTame, which shows a web page on its own, paste the link into the AirTame Partner App on your computer. For a device like Chromecast, keep the link open in a browser window and streamed to the Chromecast at all times.

Step 5: Test Your Digital Whiteboard

  1. Open the link in a Chrome Incognito window on your computer, or test on the whiteboard device. Do not use the window where you are logged in as a user.
  2. Create a test reservation and check it in.

If the test reservation shows on the digital whiteboard, you are all set.

Step 6 (Optional): Send Reservations to the Whiteboard at Check Out

If you turned on the push option, a new column shows on the Dashboard under the Checked-In (green) and Going Home Today (blue) tabs, to the right. The checkbox is on by default.

Dashboard column with the digital whiteboard checkbox.

If the checkbox is not selected, the reservation does not show on the digital whiteboard at check out. If it is selected, the reservation does show. For businesses that use webhooks, the webhook does not fire at check out when the checkbox is off. It fires and shows content on the board when the checkbox is on. The display content in the webhook does not change.

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