SOS Kiosk 6.0.0 Release Notes

This document summarizes the changes and additions to the Science On a Sphere® (SOS) Public Kiosk (“Kiosk”) in the SOS 6.x Kiosk release.

The Kiosk software provides a touch screen controller running on Windows intended for a general public audience to interact with an SOS exhibit when there is no presenter available. The Kiosk provides a flexible and easy-to-administer public controller that can be localized to native languages by using standard SOS playlists.

For detailed information on setting up, customizing, and using the Kiosk, please refer to the SOS Public Kiosk Manual. Note that this manual includes instructions for using the media2kiosk utility, a command-line program that is installed on the SOS machines running Ubuntu along with the main SOS software. This utility is needed if you wish to tailor which datasets may be selected on your Kiosk.

Version 6.0.0

March 4th, 2026

• SOS Public Kiosk 6.0.0 requires Windows 7, 8, 10, or 11
• This release is available from this Download Link
• The Kiosk is installed on a Windows machine with touch screen by double clicking the downloaded installer program, SOS_Public_Kiosk_6.0.0-Setup.exe, and following the directions

If you install 6.0.0 over a previous version, the installer will replace your existing groups and dataset modifications with these new defaults. Any custom groups or custom dataset additions you had (for example your own “Community” or “Education” group, or changes to which datasets appear in a group) can be overwritten.

If you have customizations you want to keep, please see below for the steps you will need to take. This process is also detailed in Appendix-E of the Public Kiosk Manual.

Version 6.0.0 is a stability‑focused release, while also including updated content. It protects your kiosk configuration settings and content from corruption, prevents common UI failures during FTP operations, and improves behavior when the network is unstable or when another client (like the iPad remote) is connected. It also updates the default groups and datasets that ship with the kiosk and adds a tool to help you keep your customizations when you upgrade.

The default groups and datasets that come preinstalled with the Kiosk have been updated in 6.0.0.

• Real-time — A new group with live data, including:
  • Clouds and precipitation
  • Earth in true color (GOES-East and West)
  • GFS forecast models (temperature, precipitation, clouds)
  • Earthquakes, drought risk, fires, vegetation
  • Snow and ice, coral bleaching hotspots
  • Sea surface temperature and anomaly
  • Sun (GOES SUVI)
• Refreshed dataset lists in each existing group.
• Updated trackball images for some datasets.
• The new default group order is: Popular, Real-time, Air, Water, Land, Snow and Ice, Space, People, Movies.

• Protected the kiosk configuration settings file so it is no longer wiped if the kiosk is interrupted during a save
• Reduced the risk of partial or corrupted settings during startup
• Automatic backup and recovery if the kiosk configuration file is missing or damaged

• Fixed the issue where dataset content folders could be deleted before the FTP connection completed
• If an FTP download fails or is canceled, the kiosk now restores the previous content instead of leaving the system empty
• Clicking “Apply” during an FTP transfer no longer causes missing icons or a blank screen

• Fixed crashes caused by missing data or server communication issues
• More robust startup checks to prevent graphics initialization failures
• Improved error handling to keep the kiosk running through transient issues

• Improved stability when both the kiosk and iPad remote are active at the same time
• Reduced freezes or hangs on WiFi by handling slow or dropped connections more gracefully

• Logging output to C:/shared/sos/kiosk/kiosk.log to help with troubleshooting

If you added your own dataset groups or changed the default datasets and want to keep those changes while still getting the new 6.0.0 defaults (including the Real-time group), we provide a merge script that does both.

• Sites that added custom groups (e.g. “Community” or “School programs”).
• Sites that removed or reordered default groups.
• Sites that changed descriptions, icons, or other playlist settings.

If you only use the standard defaults and never changed them, you can upgrade normally and do not need this tool.

1. The script looks at: the old defaults, the new 6.0.0 defaults, and your current playlists on the server.
2. It figures out what you added, removed, or changed compared to the old defaults.
3. It applies those customizations on top of the new defaults and writes a merged result.
4. It backs up your current playlists (with a timestamp) before changing anything.
5. It then updates the playlists on the server and runs the normal process that regenerates the kiosk’s groups and datasets.

So you get the new content (like the new Real-time dataset group added in version 6.0.0) and your custom groups and changes.

1. Download the merge tool onto your server
   The merge script is intended to run on the SOS server (the machine that runs media2kiosk), not on the kiosk PC itself. It is designed for Ubuntu.

   Download the file merge_kiosk_defaults_ubuntu.sh to your SOS server.

2. Upload your customizations on the server (before upgrading)
   On your current Kiosk PC, open the Kiosk setup and run “Kiosk to Server.” This uploads your current groups and datasets to the SOS server so they are saved under /shared/sos/kiosk/playlists. Do this before you install version 6.0.0.

3. Run the merge script on the server
   On the server, open a terminal and run these commands in this order:

   chmod +x merge_kiosk_defaults_ubuntu.sh
   ./merge_kiosk_defaults_ubuntu.sh
   

   (If you’re not in the same folder as the script, use the full path, for example:
   ./path/to/kiosk/tools/merge_customizations/ merge_kiosk_defaults_ubuntu.sh.)

4. Let the script finish
   The script will print what it’s doing. It creates a backup folder (e.g. playlists_backup_20241219_143022), then replaces the playlists with the merged result and runs the tool that regenerates the kiosk content.

5. Upgrade the Kiosk
   Download version 6.0.0 of the SOS Public Kiosk on your Windows kiosk.
   Install version 6.0.0 of the Kiosk software on your Kiosk PC.

6. Pull the merged content back to the Kiosk
   On the Kiosk PC, open the Kiosk setup and run “Server to Kiosk.” This downloads the merged groups and datasets from the server to the Kiosk so it shows both the new 6.0.0 content and your customizations.