Comments on: Registration Kiosks

By: Becky Granger

Becky Granger — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 13:53:09 +0000

Great point. I should have mentioned that we always make sure to have redundant connections if we are reliant on the internet (in cases where we can’t bring the apps onsite). For example, at our annual meeting, we get a dedicated connection set up to a local university but we make sure to have a cutover plan to the facility’s connection in case the local loop gets cut (like say by a backhoe in a parking lot…not that it has ever happened or anything). :-)

By: Wes Trochlil

Wes Trochlil — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 12:35:15 +0000

Great thoughts, Becky. Your point about relying on the internet is well-taken, but in this age of hosted solutions, I’m not sure bringing the database onsite is always possible. But it raises the issue of having a backup plan for when (not if) the internet connection goes down.

By: Becky Granger

Becky Granger — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 17:01:01 +0000

We’ve had self-check-in kiosks at the EDUCAUSE Annual Conference since 2000. It’s worked really well but we have learned a few lessons along the way:

– Bring the database and web application onsite – don’t rely on the internet because if it goes down, you are in big trouble.

– Segment the registration server and kiosks onto their own private VLAN to keep other network traffic from impacting performance.

– The kiosk should ask short yes/no questions. More clicks are better than complex questions.

– Don’t ask the users to remember where to go after the y finish at the kiosk because they won’t. We are actually changing our entire layout this year to address that issue.