BG-Map TechNote
How
to Customize BG-Map Visitors QUICKFinder
BG-Map
Updated
2/24/12
This
document explains how to customize BG-Map Visitors QUICKFinder (VQF) for your
institution.
VQF
Options
The behavior of VQF is
determined by the settings you enter in the VQF Options window. To access it, click Utilities/VQF Setup/VQF
Options. These settings are maintained
separately for each BG-Map user name. It
is best to create a separate BG-Map user for the kiosk. Then log in as that user, and set the VQF Options. You must also set the Print Options
separately for each user (Print Menu).
If you wish to create
multiple kiosk configurations, create several kiosk users, and set the VQF
Options separately for each - for example, you could create user names Kiosk1,
Kiosk2, etc.
For more details, see How to Set Options for BG-Map Visitors QUICKFinder.
Displaying
Unmapped Plants
VQF can display unmapped
as well as mapped plants. For details, click here.
Displaying
Memorial Trees and Benches
VQF can display memorial
trees, benches, and other memorials.For details, click here.
Causing
BG-Map to Start Up Directly in Kiosk Mode
If a user name begins with
the word “Kiosk”, BG-Map will launch directly into kiosk mode when starting.
Logo
To display your institution’s logo in
VQF, replace this file with an image file containing your institution’s logo.
The image size should be 90 x 90 pixels:
\bgmapwin\vqf\logo.bmp
If
your installation is networked, this image is located on your server.
Changing
the Pictures on the Home Page
In VQF Options, click the “Home Page
Images” tab. Select either BMP or JPG
images. Horizontal images of any size may
be used, but smaller images, will load faster than very large images.
Topics,
Special Collections, and Special Characteristics
Topics, Special Collections, and
Special Characteristics are set in VQF Options window. For details click “Help” in VQF Options.
Displaying
Nursery Information
VQF can display
information about nurseries that carry the plants visitors are interested in.
For details, click here.
Allowing
Visitors to Send E-Mail
VQF can allow visitors to
e-mail home plant information, maps, and images. For details, click here.
Creating
a Log of VQF Activity
VQF can create an activity
log that allows you to create reports that list when and how often specific
plants and topics are accessed. For details, click here.
Collecting
Feedback From Visitors
VQF can collect feedback from
visitors, including comments, suggestions and mailing list data. For details, click here.
Mozilla
Active-X Control
This control must be installed on each
kiosk. It is not required on other
BG-Map workstations. For download and
installation instructions, click here.
Screen
Resolution
VQF is optimized for a screen
resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels. It
will, however operate properly at higher resolutions.
Widening
Scroll Bars
Here's how widen scroll bars to make
them more comfortable to use with a touch screen monitor. Right-click on the
Windows Desktop, and select "Properties". Select the
"Appearance" tag, and click on the scrollbar in the sample window
display. In the "Size" box, type in a value of between 35 and 45.
Then, click "OK". This will make scroll bars wide enough to be used
easily with a touch screen monitor. (To return scrollbars to their normal size,
change the size setting to 16.)
Setting
the Taskbar Properties
The taskbar properties should be set
so that the taskbar never appears when Visitors QUICKFinder is in
operation. Right-click on the Windows
Taskbar, and select “Properties”. The item
labeled “Keep the taskbar on top of other windows” (Windows XP) or “Always on
top” (Windows 2000) should be unchecked.
Using
BG-BASE Images
Images entered either into BG-Map or BG-BASE
will be displayed by VQF. You can
exclude certain BG-BASE images from VQF by entering the keyword NO_VQF into the image record.
Entering
BG-BASE Data
Your goal should be to fill in as much BG-BASE data as possible in order to provide maximum information to your visitors. For details, click here.