Audience: All
Technical Level: Pretty Geeky

Since our OPACs are essentially glorified web browsers, expensive, overpowered Windows machines could be replaced with a more secure, much less maintenance-intensive, and cost-effective (read: free) solution, making use of already available hardware. I will demonstrate how I built Web-browsing kiosks for our library OPAC machines using Firefox and GNU/Linux. The kiosk project is Live-CD based, and I will demo the kiosk as part of the presentation.

The presentation will cover the following issues:

  • Remastering the CD
  • Installing packages
  • Securing the system
  • Tweaking and Locking down Firefox
  • Windows machines not completely gone! (just mostly)
  • Current status of the project

slides: http://calicon06.classcaster.org/blog/resource/firefox_kiosk_slides/cali.tar.gz

MP3: HurleyLR3Th1030.mp3

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Play It Now!



Michael Hurley
Webmaster/System Administrator
University of Connecticut Law School