It looks like development on the Kitchen Screen has paused while Chromis POS is being developed, so I decided I would take a crack at adding some features to the Kitchen Screen.
Here are the features I have so far: Added a recall function. There is now a recall button located at the bottom of the screen. When the user clicks on the button, the last order that was closed will be added back to the screen. The application has a new configuration property to determine how many orders can be saved in history (from 0 to 50 - if set to 0, the recall function will not be used). Added ability to map keyboard keys to actions in the application. Now the application can be controlled entirely by a keyboard instead of a mouse/touchscreen. This should theoretically will allow the user to use a waterproof keypad or a bump bar. So far I tested it with a regular keyboard, but I ordered a Logic Controls bump bar to test. This will be a cheaper option than a touchscreen. Added ability to determine what should happen when the exit button is pressed. Now you can determine if the application should prompt the user to close the kitchen, automatically close the kitchen, or just exit without prompting. I also added a new option to only close the current display instead of the entire kitchen. Organized the configuration screen into tabs.
I have tested this on a Windows machine, but I have yet to test this on Linux, Mac OS, or on Raspberry. I have also only tested this on a MySql database, so I will need to test with PostgreSQL, Derby, and Oracle.
So far I have all of my changes in a branch called ndeppe-v1.5. It's just the source code. I haven't packaged the project with an installer yet.
Of course, if the good folks at Chromis would like, they are welcome to incorporate this code into their project. I plan on adding even more features in the future that I think will enhance the application.
Hi Nick, this is exactly how it should go. Thanks for the contribution, and yes, you are right, here are just a very few people trying to get all organized. A lot at hands, Fanzam is running left and right as you will have seen, John is busy at all corners, and we all have to earn a living as well.
We will look into your work, keep it coming...
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Yes, I figured everyone was very busy. Hopefully what I'm doing helps you guys. I'm going to keep testing this on Linux and Raspberry pi. After I'm finished with this, I plan on adding ability to play sounds when a new order comes in.
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Thanks for the code, I will get it downloaded as soon as possible. They may need to be some tweaks for the Raspberry Pi, as it is a different code base to allow it to work. I was looking at a bump bar as you mention below, but time is not being kind to me at the moment. So you have saved me time.
This is the kind of input into the projects, I wanted to achieve, changes that are of benefit to the masses, not just the individual.
I will look at creating the installer package within the next couple of days and posting in the files section.
John
Last edit: John L 2015-10-06
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One cool thing about being able to map keys in Chromis Kitchen Display is now it is possible to use a bump bar instead of a touchscreen. I bought a Bematech KB1700 bump bar to test this (I'm not sure if this is available in Europe). I was able to use it right out of the box on Windows. I then mapped the keys I needed in Chromis, so now I am able to control everything using the bump bar. This is useful because: 1) The bump bar + standard monitor is cheaper than a good touchscreen monitor (I say good touchscreen monitor - one that's large, water-resistant and anti-microbial), and 2) if you are in a situation where a monitor can't easily be mounted in a place where the worker can touch it, you could mount the bump bar more easily.
You could also get the same functionality from just a USB keypad, although it's not quite as elegant as the bump bar. Here's a link to what I'm talking about. This is made of waterproof silicone, so it can be cleaned if it gets dirty. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00139TVRA?qid=1444062241
I have yet to test the bump bar in all environments. I have a feeling I'm going to have trouble on the Raspberry pi. I'll post the results when I get a chance.
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Well, since the release of Fallout 4, progress has, um, slowed...
This is something I need to get back into because I'm going to be working on a project over the Winter to set up a system with 6 POS terminals and 5 kitchen displays. In my tests, the bump bar worked perfectly with Chromis on Ubuntu and Windows (7 and 10), but as I predicted I had some problems with Raspberry. I need to work out these problems over the next several days because the business I'm working with wants to buy the equipment before the end of the year.
Sorry for the delay, but you know, I've been busy saving my infant son from wasteland marauders and what-not.
Nick
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OK, so I played around with it, and I did confirm that the Bematech KB1700 does indeed work out-of-the-box on Raspbian. The only problem remaining is to get the newest version of Chromis Kitchen Display to run on Raspbian because the newest version can handle keyboard input. Currently, the highest version of Chromis Kitchen Display packaged for Raspbian is v1.4 .1, which will not accept keyboard input.
According to one of John L's previous posts, the kitchen display software needs a special build to run on Raspbian, but I'm not entirely sure what needs to be done. I'll have to play around with it some more to get it to work.
At this point, though, I would say I'm confident that a bump bar on a Raspberry Pi will work, but there will need to be some more finagling before we can get there.
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Hi All,
It looks like development on the Kitchen Screen has paused while Chromis POS is being developed, so I decided I would take a crack at adding some features to the Kitchen Screen.
Here are the features I have so far:
Added a recall function. There is now a recall button located at the bottom of the screen. When the user clicks on the button, the last order that was closed will be added back to the screen. The application has a new configuration property to determine how many orders can be saved in history (from 0 to 50 - if set to 0, the recall function will not be used).
Added ability to map keyboard keys to actions in the application. Now the application can be controlled entirely by a keyboard instead of a mouse/touchscreen. This should theoretically will allow the user to use a waterproof keypad or a bump bar. So far I tested it with a regular keyboard, but I ordered a Logic Controls bump bar to test. This will be a cheaper option than a touchscreen.
Added ability to determine what should happen when the exit button is pressed. Now you can determine if the application should prompt the user to close the kitchen, automatically close the kitchen, or just exit without prompting. I also added a new option to only close the current display instead of the entire kitchen.
Organized the configuration screen into tabs.
I have tested this on a Windows machine, but I have yet to test this on Linux, Mac OS, or on Raspberry. I have also only tested this on a MySql database, so I will need to test with PostgreSQL, Derby, and Oracle.
So far I have all of my changes in a branch called ndeppe-v1.5. It's just the source code. I haven't packaged the project with an installer yet.
Of course, if the good folks at Chromis would like, they are welcome to incorporate this code into their project. I plan on adding even more features in the future that I think will enhance the application.
https://github.com/nickdeppe/ChromisKitchenScreen/tree/ndeppe-v1.5
Here's a PDF with some screen shots of the changes:
https://github.com/nickdeppe/ChromisKitchenScreen/blob/ndeppe-v1.5/release/windows/Changes%20to%20Chromis%20Kitchen%20Screen%20v1.5.pdf
Hi Nick, this is exactly how it should go. Thanks for the contribution, and yes, you are right, here are just a very few people trying to get all organized. A lot at hands, Fanzam is running left and right as you will have seen, John is busy at all corners, and we all have to earn a living as well.
We will look into your work, keep it coming...
Hi Anton,
Yes, I figured everyone was very busy. Hopefully what I'm doing helps you guys. I'm going to keep testing this on Linux and Raspberry pi. After I'm finished with this, I plan on adding ability to play sounds when a new order comes in.
Hi Nick
Thanks for the code, I will get it downloaded as soon as possible. They may need to be some tweaks for the Raspberry Pi, as it is a different code base to allow it to work. I was looking at a bump bar as you mention below, but time is not being kind to me at the moment. So you have saved me time.
This is the kind of input into the projects, I wanted to achieve, changes that are of benefit to the masses, not just the individual.
I will look at creating the installer package within the next couple of days and posting in the files section.
John
Last edit: John L 2015-10-06
Just a follow-up from my original post.
One cool thing about being able to map keys in Chromis Kitchen Display is now it is possible to use a bump bar instead of a touchscreen. I bought a Bematech KB1700 bump bar to test this (I'm not sure if this is available in Europe). I was able to use it right out of the box on Windows. I then mapped the keys I needed in Chromis, so now I am able to control everything using the bump bar. This is useful because: 1) The bump bar + standard monitor is cheaper than a good touchscreen monitor (I say good touchscreen monitor - one that's large, water-resistant and anti-microbial), and 2) if you are in a situation where a monitor can't easily be mounted in a place where the worker can touch it, you could mount the bump bar more easily.
Here's a link to the Bematech KB1700: http://www.bematechus.com/kdssystem/bump-bar-kb1700/kb1700/
You could also get the same functionality from just a USB keypad, although it's not quite as elegant as the bump bar. Here's a link to what I'm talking about. This is made of waterproof silicone, so it can be cleaned if it gets dirty. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00139TVRA?qid=1444062241
I have yet to test the bump bar in all environments. I have a feeling I'm going to have trouble on the Raspberry pi. I'll post the results when I get a chance.
HI Nick,
Thanks in advance for your time.
I am interested in your work in progress, this will give more options.
Fanzam
Hi Fanzam,
Well, since the release of Fallout 4, progress has, um, slowed...
This is something I need to get back into because I'm going to be working on a project over the Winter to set up a system with 6 POS terminals and 5 kitchen displays. In my tests, the bump bar worked perfectly with Chromis on Ubuntu and Windows (7 and 10), but as I predicted I had some problems with Raspberry. I need to work out these problems over the next several days because the business I'm working with wants to buy the equipment before the end of the year.
Sorry for the delay, but you know, I've been busy saving my infant son from wasteland marauders and what-not.
OK, so I played around with it, and I did confirm that the Bematech KB1700 does indeed work out-of-the-box on Raspbian. The only problem remaining is to get the newest version of Chromis Kitchen Display to run on Raspbian because the newest version can handle keyboard input. Currently, the highest version of Chromis Kitchen Display packaged for Raspbian is v1.4 .1, which will not accept keyboard input.
According to one of John L's previous posts, the kitchen display software needs a special build to run on Raspbian, but I'm not entirely sure what needs to be done. I'll have to play around with it some more to get it to work.
At this point, though, I would say I'm confident that a bump bar on a Raspberry Pi will work, but there will need to be some more finagling before we can get there.
Hi Nick
Thanks for the feedback I will look at the Raspberry pi version as soon as possible to try and up grade it.
John