Location programs: manual cues and controller mode

Manual cues are content that a guide or driver triggers by hand, for the parts of a tour that don't happen at a fixed place. The safety briefing, the welcome, the announcement that lunch is served. Someone presses a button and the content plays.

Cues can be organized into groups for easy access, and a cue always replaces whatever is currently playing on the display.

Set up a cue

Each cue has three settings:

• Label: what the driver sees on the button. Keep it short. A cue button on a moving vehicle is read in a glance, so Safety beats Pre-departure safety briefing (all routes).
• Content: a playlist or a media item. A media item can be an image, a video or an audio file.
• Display time (seconds): how long the cue stays on the display. The default is 30 seconds. This only applies to content with no length of its own, like a still image. A video, audio file or playlist plays for its full duration.

Cues are buttons the guide presses. Groups nest one level deep.

Organize cues into groups

Groups keep a long list manageable (Safety, Commentary, Announcements).

Groups nest exactly one level deep. A group holds cues. It can't hold another group, and it has no content of its own.

Empty groups and cues with no content assigned are hidden from the picker. If a cue you created isn't appearing, check that it has content on it.

A cue always replaces what's playing, regardless of the program's When a trigger interrupts setting. If a guide presses a button and nothing happens, it looks like a fault, so cues always take over the display.

The driver's controls

Beyond the cue buttons, the driver or guide has three controls:

• Stop: clears what's playing, empties the queue, and returns to the ambient zone layer.
• Blank Screen: turns all displays black. Useful for a night crossing, a quiet leg, or any time content would be intrusive.
• Arm / disarm triggers: turns automatic triggers on or off. A trigger already playing is allowed to finish, and zones keep working normally.

Disarming triggers is useful when you want the map and background content but not the automatic commentary. That might be a private charter, a repeat group, or a route being run out of sequence.

Set up a controller and players

A controller is the device the guide or driver holds. It shows the cue buttons and plays nothing itself. Players are the passenger displays, and they play whatever cue the controller fires.

Before you start

You'll need:

• An Android or Windows device for the controller, on a Signage - Standard license.
• Player displays that can reach the controller over a network.
• A location program with cues, assigned to the controller and to every player.

Step 1: Make the controller

1. In STQRY Builder, go to Displays and open the display you want as the controller.
2. Set Launch mode to Controller.
3. Save the display.

Once the device picks up the change, it shows the cue picker instead of content.

Step 2: Copy the controller's address

On the controller, tap the gear icon on the cue picker to open Settings. Copy the address shown under CONTROLLER IP ADDRESS.

Step 3: Point each player at the controller

1. In Builder, open a player display.
2. Set Cue source to Poll a controller.
3. Paste the controller's address into Controller URL.
4. Set Poll interval (seconds) shorter than your shortest cue.
5. Save the display.

Repeat for every player. A player that checks less often than your shortest cue lasts can miss it entirely. A 30-second cue on a player that checks every 60 seconds can start and finish between checks.

Player displays poll the controller for its current cue.

Test it

Press a cue on the controller. Every player should switch to it within one poll interval.

The Cue source options

Use the cue picker in a vehicle

For vehicles with Android Auto, the cue picker appears on the head unit. It's a reduced, safe-to-use-while-driving view with the current status and the cue list. Settings and configuration stay on the phone as parked work.

Two practical notes if you're planning this:

• Wired Android Auto will not work through a USB-C hub. The head unit has to be the USB host and the phone the accessory, and a hub reverses that. No cable or hub fixes it.
• Vehicles without native wireless Android Auto need a wireless adapter. Treat that as a provisioning requirement, not an accessory.

Talk to us before committing to an Android Auto deployment.

Behavior notes

• A cue's display time only governs content with no length of its own, such as a still image.
• Disarming triggers does not affect zones. The ambient layer keeps resolving as the vehicle moves.
• Stop empties the queue as well as clearing the current item, so a queued trigger doesn't play afterwards.

FAQ

Why isn't my cue showing on the picker?

It has no content assigned, or it's inside an empty group. Both are hidden rather than drawn broken.

Can a group contain another group?

No. Groups nest exactly one level deep.

Will a cue interrupt a trigger that's playing?

Yes. A manual cue always replaces whatever is playing.

Next steps

• Location programs: an overview
• Set a display's location source
• License types and what each includes