Using Offline

Tim,
there are some old threads about using Sytist offline at events but the people i know who do this are Mac users.
Is there a straight forward way to run a purchased second copy offline with Windows?
thank you
Andy

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I would also be interested if anybody has experience of using Sytist offline in an event photography capacity with maybe 10 or more viewing terminals accessing a sytist server offline, especially if users can still search for their images using passcodes.

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You would have to install something like XAMPP in order to run Sytist, it makes it run similar to a server. But that is all I know about it. Perhaps someone with experience can chime in.

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Tim, if you don't mind me saying, I think you are missing a trick here and are leaving good money on the table.

If you could code a turnkey 'on-sytist' ;) Event photography solution that has features such as :

- Sytist DB as the backend for on-site / off-line customer viewing
- with multiple viewing stations terminals that only need cheap raspberry PI's micros and chromium browsers perhaps
- with automated anti-copy measures (cos the buggers photograph the screens if not manned) without the need to watermark images on the server
- optional passcodes entry on terminals with scanners so that uneducated customers only need to scan their QR codes to see their images
- xampp client / server networking and switch gubbins all worked out and 'out of the box'
- a dedicated 'purchase desk' / image server computer with special sales assistant user accounts for simple sales desk manning (so we don't have to teach them how to use sytist backend)
- one click printing for orders by sales assistants, one click for black and white, one click for bottom right logo using GD or imagemagick etc etc.
- integrated payment mechanisms for contactless with sales ledgers
- with maybe a very simplistic big button 'touch UI design' for end customers to control with familiar phone type interactions (for photographers that can afford touch screen terminals)
- automated uploads to a normal on-line sytist installation for after event purchase or purchased image download.

There must be a market for this type of thing as we come out of the pandemic?

I'm still using a networked Google Picasa when I need such a system, but it's a bit of a ball-ache.

I know, don't ask for much, do I....

Edited Thu Feb 10, 22 5:36 AM by Trailboy

Trailboy, i have turned a old computer into a local server/host with WiFi connectivity, people can just use their own device to log in, although this was a few years ago with a different gallery developer it worked great. I used a WiFi card in my camera and the attendant would process and load images into the gallery. cut costs, less things to go wrong, and no damaged or missing pads. I have enough gear to pack, and now with laptops as fast as they are i probably will do this again with even a smaller footprint.

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I used Sytist for that, but than I moved to another gallery maker software.
So far I am no longer using viewing station and I use my online Stylist to upload photos with a 4G modem/router that customers can watch at their own peace (smartphone or tablet),without creating crowds at the events .
In any case it doesn't depend from windows or Mac,it depends just from the software you decide to use for your server, windows or linux.
In both cases you should recreate a server environment using XAMPP (LAMPP if you want to use a Mac as a server),and then install Sytist as it is a normal installation.
Take in account that a bit of knowledge on network creation,is required to create the server and the whole environment.
I think you should talk to Tim on how to activate the product on your server than.

Edited Fri Feb 11, 22 5:14 AM by Marco Cappalunga