Web-based applications for open display networks: developers' perspective

Open Display Networks represent a new paradigm for large scale networks of public displays that are open to applications and content from third parties. Web technologies may be particularly interesting as a technological framework for third-party application development in Open Display Networks because of their portability and widespread use. However, there are also significant challenges involved that result from the specificities of this particular usage domain and the lack of specific development insights for this context. In this work, we address the concept of public display application (display app) from a development perspective. The overall goal of this paper is to identify and characterize some of the key specificities of display applications and the appropriate Web solutions that can serve in the development of this type of application. The contribution of this paper builds on our extensive experience with the application development for a real world public display infrastructure and also on a short-term experiment with third party developers. Overall, the results show that Web technologies are valuable building blocks for public displays applications and their adoption is not only a subject for adaptation procedures but also for redesigning their use according to the characteristics and user experience offered by public displays. This research will inform the design of new Web-based models of display applications and shed light on the challenges that may impede third party development and the evolution of an application ecosystem in this area.