Re: Whaddaya mean my grandmother can't use Linux? (kiosk)

[Michael Jinks <michael twopoint com>]

"W. Wade, Hampton" wrote:
> 
>  Could you please summarize those posts -- possibly a new thread -- on
> kisoks?

The most helpful was from Ramon Gandia.  I'll attach it below.  The
"single user with no login" problem was addressed by someone who
described using runlevel #4, set up just like runlevel #5, but instead
of starting xdm do this:

su username -c startx


The post from Ramon:

Marco Shaw wrote:
> 
> > Linux is not for grandmothers to install and configure, but
> > if she's lucky
> > enough to have a grandson who can do this for her, then Linux
> > is as easy
> > to "USE" as any system on the market.  Even more so because it doesn't
> > degrade over time and will work predictably.
> 
> Since her grandson isn't readily available, then it should be Windows.
> Don't get me wrong, I'm a big 'cheerleader' for Linux/FreeBSD and the like.
> I remember some 60-ish person on this list about a year ago asking if she
> should go for it.  Remember this is your grandmother's PC, not yours to
> prove to your Linux-friends that 'you converted your grandmother to Linux'.

I hear you, but I beg to mildly disagree.

Bruce Tong with my help, set up a "kiosk" machine running RedHat 5.1. 
It
boots up into runlevel 5, with a nice logon window.  Once the logon
is made, it loads up Netscape 3.04 for Linux and connects PPP via diald.

It is crashproof and prying-finger proof for 99.99% of the people.  A
linux savvy person could drop out of runlevel 5 to runlevel 3, but
would still need a shell account, which this computer does not have
except
for root).  

With very slight modification, this would work nicely as an Internet
Appliance at minimal cost.  We used a DEC Venturis Pentium 75 machine
which
was obtained for $100 off an auction site.  We added an internal modem
but
left the network card for troubleshooting.

The beauty of the system was that it required NO Linux knowledge
whatsoever
to use.  We put this machine in a coffee shop, of all places, and let
total
strangers have at it with no problems at all.  Bruce created an RPM and
docs for it, which I may yet post to contrib.redhat.com if there is any
interest.

The only rough spot is shutting it down.  It is quite resistant to it! 
If
you three finger salute it, it goes back to the login screen in due
course.
You have to throw the switch at the precise time.  In the coffee shop,
that happens when the place is locked for the night, if ever.

A nice touch would be a software switch.  Pressing the button initiates
runlevel 0 and when its done, goes into halt with a display "Its safe to
turn off computer now".  Alas, we haven't done that.


-- 
Ramon Gandia ==== Sysadmin ==== Nook Net ==== http://www.nook.net
285 West First Avenue                                rfg nook net
P.O. Box 970                                    tel. 907-443-7575
Nome, Alaska 99762-0970 ======================= fax. 907-443-2487


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