While the normal check-in screens run really well in mobile Safari, we have created a native iPad application to host the check-in experience. This application can be downloaded for free from the Apple App Store. The application displays the same Rock check-in screens as the browser but also adds the ability to print straight from the iPad to your network-connected printers. The application can also cache the labels, which increases check-in performance. NoteAs of Rock v9, the iPad app only runs on iOS 10 or newer, which means very old hardware like the iPad 2/3 and original iPad Mini will no longer work. Configuration After installing the application from the App Store and running it for the first time, you'll be prompted to enter the address of the check-in start page you want to use for the application. For most organizations this address will be https://[your-rock-server]/nextgen-checkin. NoteNavigating Complex ConfigurationsOrganizations with multiple check-in configurations might want to point to a simple navigation page that allows the individual to select the check-in configuration on load. Once you provide this address, all subsequent launches will load this address on startup. If you want to modify this address later, or access advanced configuration settings, you can select Settings on your iPad and scroll down to the Rock Check-in application settings. From there you can adjust the following settings. SettingDescription Check-in AddressThis is the initial page that will load when the application launches. Enable Label CachingThis setting will cache the loading of check-in labels, which keeps them from being downloaded on each check-in. Cache DurationThis determines how often the labels will be re-downloaded. The cache can also be expired by stopping the application and restarting. Enable Label CuttingIf your label printer has a cutter, enable this feature to automatically perform cuts at the end of each set of labels. See the Printing chapter above for more information. Printer OverrideThis setting has the effect of always printing from the iPad to the printer IP address you provide. Bluetooth PrintingDetermines if the Printer Override setting contains a Bluetooth printer name or an IP address for Wi-Fi printing. Enable in Application SettingsEnables or disables the 5-finger long press gesture to get to the in-app settings screen. You can also change how long a person needs to press before the settings screen appears. UI ColorsYou can easily customize the background and foreground colors of the interface by adjusting these settings. CameraSelect whether the iPad should use the front or the rear camera for scanning barcodes. You can also adjust the exposure if the image is too bright or too dark. See the iPad Barcode Scanning section below for details on enabling this feature. Bluetooth Printing The iPad Application supports Bluetooth Low Energy printing to supported Zebra printers. As of this writing, these are the ZQ300, ZQ500, ZD400, ZD600 and ZT600 series printers. Zebra also has some older “Bluetooth Classic” printers, but these are not supported. If you are thinking of buying Bluetooth printers, try just one first to make sure everything works before you buy them all. To configure the use of a Bluetooth printer you need to use the in-app settings screen. While you are in the Rock Check-in app, press five fingers on the screen for two seconds to access the settings screen pictured below. When you enable Bluetooth Printing, a list will appear that contains nearby Bluetooth devices. Select the name of the Bluetooth printer and it will auto-fill the Printer Override setting for you. You may have noticed the Print Test Label button pictured above near the bottom of the screen. This feature is enabled if you have a Bluetooth printer name or an IP address in the Printer Override field. Tapping this button will print a simple test label to verify the connection to your printer. NoteNote About iPad RestrictionsIt's not uncommon when using iPad kiosks to "lock down" the iPad as much as possible via the use of iPad Restrictions, to prevent individuals from changing the configuration or using it in a way that wasn't intended. We have discovered a minor issue in iOS 10 where restricting the use of Safari Browser prevents the Rock check-in app from working properly. (Check-in worked fine in iOS 9 and earlier.) So be aware that you won't be able to disable the use of Safari when running iOS 10 or newer if you want the Rock app to function. iPad Barcode Scanning You can use an iPad’s built-in camera to scan barcodes or QR codes for check-in. This speedy option is easy to set up and comes with a variety of customization options. To start, make sure that you have at least one Device set up with the camera feature enabled as shown below. See the Configuring Kiosks section for full details on setting up a Device. Remember, a single Device configuration can be used on multiple physical machines at the same time. Kiosk Type - In this case, be sure iPad is selected as the Kiosk Type.Has Camera - This option must be enabled to use a camera for scanning barcodes or QR codes with the selected Device.iPad Camera Barcode Configuration - Select the camera configuration setting that applies best to how it will be used:Off: If selected, the camera will be off and can’t be used for check-in.Available: This will add a button to the Welcome screen, allowing the person to choose between scanning a code or providing a phone number to proceed with check-in.Always On: Select this option to require scanning for every check-in. The camera feature will activate immediately when the Welcome screen is accessed.Passive: With this setting the camera is always on, but the camera view isn’t shown on the screen. In this case, the individual will have to know to place the barcode into the camera’s field of view. If a Camera Barcode Configuration option is not chosen in the Device settings, then the Welcome block’s settings will be used by default. Those settings can be changed by navigating to Admin Tools > CMS Configuration > Pages > Check-In > Welcome and editing the Welcome block. TipIn-App Camera SettingsThere are more camera options you can set within the iPad application itself. See the Configuration section above for details. Now that Rock knows about your camera, you’re ready to start using it. If a camera-enabled device is selected in the Administration Screen, the configuration settings described above will impact what you see next. We’ll start with the Available option, which adds a button to the Welcome screen as pictured below. When the barcode button is tapped in Available mode, the camera will activate and look for a code to scan. If Always On has been selected, you’ll be taken directly to the camera view pictured above immediately after moving past the Administration screen. The code being scanned should be placed within the semi-transparent brackets to be read properly. If the Passive setting is used, then the barcode button will still appear on the Welcome screen as a reminder that scanning is available but tapping it will not take you to the camera view page pictured above. The person scanning the code will need to know where to position it. NoteChanging the Barcode ButtonThe barcode button can be customized in the application’s Configuration, or by modifying the Check-in Display Settings. When the Off setting is used, the process will be the same as if the camera were disabled. The barcode button will not appear, and the camera will not activate. After a valid code has been scanned, the check-in process will continue according to your overall setup.