The world of digital signage is becoming more and more awesome. The prices of display units are cheaper than they have ever been in the history of the planet, digital signage software is no without advanced that anybody can use it, and the length and breadth of all the things digital display units is far in advance of what we thought they could do just twenty years ago. Short of them becoming 3D holograms, our every expectation has been exceeded.
Why Opt For Digital Signage With Ubuntu
Ubuntu is an operating system. You are probably using a Windows or Apple operating system on your PC, and you may be tempted to use such an operating system on your digital signs, but it just isn’t practical these days.
The likes of Apple, Windows and Android requires a lot of maintenance. It would be like buying an industrial crane to get you to and from to the corner shop, whereas all you really need is a push bike. Is Ubuntu the “Push bike” of operating systems? No, but it is far more configurable than your average operating system.
For example, if you buy a new Android Smartphone, you may notice that things like the Netflix app cannot be deleted, they can only be disabled. This is because the makers of the operating system (Google) have a deal with Netflix to push their product on their phones. In order to delete the app correctly, you need to root your phone, which then makes it difficult to update your phone in the future. If your phone were run by Ubuntu, you could delete that app and any other feature you liked.
Why is a Stripped Down Operating Systems Better for Digital Signs?
Forget the marketing fluff that Ubuntu and sign manufacturers put on their websites. They talk a lot out twaddle about being secure, reliable, simple, blah, blah, blah. The benefit of Ubuntu with digital signs is that it is highly customizable.
Ubuntu isn’t specifically stripped down. The point is that you can strip it down. You can customize it to your exact specifications. This may not seem like a big deal when you just have one sign. A bit of extra baggage never hurt anybody, but what if you have ten signs, one hundred signs, one thousand signs. In those cases, that bit of extra baggage is just more space wasted and more processing power going to waste.
With the correct type of customization and optimization, you can create a perfectly honed tool that fits exactly what you need it to do. Be you creating a mirror kiosk, a sales poster signs, or be you creating a multi-screen panel to create one big image, you can customize your operating system to do exactly that task and nothing more.
Does Ubuntu Need More Technical Skill?
If you can drive a car, can you drive a forklift truck? Probably not, but the experience you get from driving a car makes it easier to learn how to drive a forklift truck. Using Ubuntu isn’t super difficult, but honing, customizing and optimizing does take a lot of learning, practice, trial and error. Something worth getting isn’t always easy to get.
Should I Buy an Ubuntu Digital Sign?
There are digital signs and sign kiosks that are pre-built with Ubuntu already installed. Should you run out and get one, or should you be rigging up your own signs and operating systems? One may be inclined to say you should make your own rigs and do your own customizing. One may say that because it is cheaper and because it gives you more control. However, the signs, the kiosks and the hardware in general is becoming so cheap that it is seriously worth considering buying a unit that is already set up with Ubuntu. It is a little like buying those bags of pre-cut diced onion in the supermarket rather than buying your own onion and chopping it up yourself. Nevertheless, if the cost of the unit is easily within your budget, then seriously consider buying digital sign hardware that is already set up with Ubuntu.