Skip to main content
Question

Casper Focus - Notify students to turn down iPad

  • November 13, 2014
  • 4 replies
  • 36 views
M
Forum|alt.badge.img+3

We have been approached by a teacher inquiring if there is a way from Casper Focus to notify students when they need to turn their iPads down on their tables. There's times when a few kids are too much into using the iPad that they don't hear instructions to turn their iPads down. We couldn't find an application to focus to that "does nothing" or only shows this message to students. We thought about focusing on a website (with the message) but since that only creates a thumbnail for easy access to the page, it doesn't really help that much. Any suggestion as to how we can accomplish this?

Thanks in advance. =)

    4 replies

    A
    Forum|alt.badge.img+1
    • aedwards
    • New Contributor
    • November 13, 2014

    This is a really good question. I don't have an iPad in front of me to try this with, but what about focusing them to the bundle ID "com.apple.springboard"? We've been able to focus them to built in apps (like iBooks and Photos) by uploading a fake "in-House app" using the system app bundle ID names.

    M
    Forum|alt.badge.img+3
    • Marlowe
    • Author
    • New Contributor
    • November 18, 2014

    @aedwards

    Thanks for the suggestions. What does focusing to the bundle ID "com.apple.springboard" mean though? Are you referring to this: "Mobile Devices>>Apps>>New>>In-house app>>Bundle Identifier"? Also not sure about what "uploading fake in-house app using the system app bundle ID names" means? Sorry, kind of a newbie here.

    Thanks in advance.

    A
    Forum|alt.badge.img+6
    • ahopkins
    • Contributor
    • November 19, 2014

    If I understand you correctly, an app that will come up with a screen message to put down iPads.

    as of now Apple won't approve an app that just come up to one screen with a message. They require some sort of interaction. I wrote an app like this for our district, I could only put it on 90 devices as an in house test.

    The one page website does work.. And it shuts down sounds from other websites and games.

    M
    Forum|alt.badge.img+3
    • Marlowe
    • Author
    • New Contributor
    • November 19, 2014

    Thanks @ahopkins][/url .

    Yes. This will let a teacher focus on that app and if it had a message to put the iPad down, that would be better. We have quite a number of iPads and... I don't know how to write apps (lol).

    What focusing on a website does is create a bookmark (thumbnail) on Safari for easy access to the page, eliminating typos when students key the address manually. So the page doesn't really pop up when an iPad is focused on Safari.

    We found this app called Substrate (https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/substrate/id363801721?mt=8). It's a screensaver app. Requested a teacher to try focusing on this app. It draws lines on the screen pretty slowly. If a student taps on the screen he/she might notice the small "i" button on the bottom right corner and access the settings. We're hoping little kids don't find this interesting. haha. I think the teacher just needs to brief their kids that when this app launches, they have to turn the iPad down. I wonder if Casper Focus will have a "Lockdown iPad" feature in the future to give teachers more control over iPad use by students while in class..

    Terms & ConditionsCookie settingsAccessibility statement