JostleTV is an optional feature that allows you to stream your platform on any number of connected display devices. If you're interested in adding JostleTV to your platform's subscription package, please contact Support or your Customer Success Manager.
Table of contents
- Configuring JostleTV
- TV setup
- Linking devices & PINs for Running Programs (Monitor/Smart TV/Amazon Fire TV)
- About Programs
Connecting to JostleTV
Connect to JostleTV using any of the following devices:
- Computer monitor (PC or Mac)
- Widescreen TV used as a computer monitor*
- Smart TV with browser capabilities.
*16:9 aspect ratio is ideal
JostleTV can be run on the following browsers:
- Chrome
- Firefox
- Safari
Recommended devices:
- Amazon Fire TV Firestick (2nd Gen)
Visit Amazon Help for Firestick setup and troubleshooting.
Configuring JostleTV
Enabling JostleTV
Before you get started, you'll need to enable JostleTV as follows:
- Click the Admin Settings link at the bottom of the Main Navigation
- Then go to the Views and Functions section and select Manage Views and Options
- Scroll down to JostleTV and select Enabled
- Click Save at the bottom of the screen
Once you navigate to a new view or refresh your screen, you should see a TV settings option appear on the Admin Settings action menu in the Main Navigation (see image below), confirming JostleTV is enabled. This is where you'll go to manage and run the JostleTV Programs to display on linked devices to the rest of your org (see "Linking devices" below).
To set up a new JostleTV Program (System Admins):
- At the bottom of the Main Navigation, click the action menu icon (three dots) next to Admin Settings.
- From the popover menu, select TV settings
- Go to Programs and click on Add a Program...
- On the Add Program page enter a Name for the Program
- Then select your Program length (viewing time)
- Choose a User with the view permissions you want to associate with the Program (see more below).
- When you’ve completed the rest of the form, click Save at the top of the screen.
- Your Program will now appear on the TV settings screen
About Targeted users
When you target a user to a Program, it maps the Program's settings to the view permissions on that user's Profile.
TIP: For better management control, it is recommended that you use a dedicated Shared user account as the targeted user rather than assign the role to an existing user’s account.
NOTE—if you're creating a brand new user account specifically to be the targeted user, create it as an Internal user account first, and then switch it over to a View-only user (via Administration Settings > User Accounts and Data > Edit, Invite, Disable Users) after it has been activated.
TV setup
Setting up a widescreen TV as a PC/Mac monitor
- Check that you have an available HDMI port on your PC/Mac and one on your TV (they look similar to USB ports, but wider and with notched ends).
- Get an HDMI cable and use it to connect the ports on your PC/Mac and TV.
- Using your TV’s remote control, set the TV to the input you’ve connected (usually it will say something like “HDMI 1”).
- Mac: Your Mac screen should appear on your TV after a few moments.
- PC: Press the Windows button + P to open the Projector menu and select your display option (“Duplicate” will show the PC display on your PC and your TV, “Show only on 2” will only show the PC display on your TV).
- If you wish, adjust the Display and Sound settings in your Windows Settings/Apple System Preferences.
- Next, follow the "Linking a Program using a Monitor" steps below to run a Program on your PC/Mac.
Linking devices & PINs for Running Programs (via Computer monitor/Smart TV/Amazon Fire TV)
After you create your Programs you can run them on specific devices by linking them via a PIN code. This method also enables you to display the same Program on multiple devices (in these cases, you will still have to link the devices individually, so the Program will not be playing in sync across all of them, but the content being displayed will be the same).
Linking a Program using a Monitor or Smart TV* (for System Admins)
(*for Fire TV setup, scroll to the next section below)
- If using your widescreen TV as a PC/Mac monitor, open your browser and login to your platform as the targeted user for the JostleTV Program you wish to run.
- If using a Smart TV, or similar display device, connect it to the internet, either directly through your router with an ethernet cable or by setting up your TV’s wireless connection (usually found in its Network Settings menu). Also, log into your Jostle platform via the Jostle desktop or mobile app.
Then:
- You have two options. On your monitor or SmartTV, either: download the JostleTV app from the Google Play store* and then open it (best option) OR open a browser tab** and enter the following URL: https://tv.jostle.us.
- Either way, a screen with a numeric code should appear. Copy down the numeric code.
- Go to your platform's Main Navigation, click the action menu icon (three dots) next to the Admin Settings link.
- From the popover menu select TV settings
- Then go to Program and click on the name of the Program you want to run.
- Scroll down and click on "Link a device..."
- On the popup screen enter the code in the field provided.
- Click "Link" and the selected Program will now run on the linked device. If the linked device is your PC/Mac, your Program will automatically start running in a new browser tab, so you can switch to it right away. If your linked device is your connected Smart TV, there may be up to a 15-second delay before the Program begins.
* Make sure you're on the TV Play store. Some Smart TVs may direct users to the mobile Play store.
** The built-in browsers of some Smart TVs may cause performance issues. If your Smart TV supports the installation of other browsers, JostleTV runs best on Chrome, Firefox, and Safari.
Linking a Program using Amazon Fire TV
NOTE—please refer to Amazon Help for any Firestick-specific setup and troubleshooting issues.
- After you have set up your Firestick (2nd gen or better) with your TV, go to the Fire TV home page.
- Use Search (the magnifying glass in the top left corner) to locate the JostleTV app.
- Download and install the app.
- After it's installed, open the app and you should see the "Link this device to display a Program" screen. Copy the numeric code from this screen.
- Go to your platform's Main Navigation, click the action menu icon (three dots) next to the Admin Settings link.
- From the popover menu select TV settings
- Then go to Program and click on the name of the Program you want to run.
- Scroll down and click on "Link a device..."
- On the popup screen enter the code in the field provided and click the Link button.
JostleTV/Fire TV Troubleshooting
Timed-out sessions - JostleTV sessions can run uninterrupted for a two-week cycle. After that, the session may timeout and require you to enter a new numeric code to relink the device with the program. To prevent timeouts from occurring, you can try doing the following sometime during each two-week cycle:
- Click the Home button on your Fire remote to exit the JostleTV program.
- When you return to the Fire TV home page, wait for a few seconds.
- Then select the JostleTV app from Recently Watched and relaunch the program.
Not working as expected - If your JostleTV app isn't working on Fire TV as expected (for example, if you see the Jostle sign-in screen instead of the "Link this device" screen), here are some options you can try to correct this:
- Force-stopping the app
- Clearing your app's cache
- Clearing your app's data*
and/or
- Uninstalling/reinstalling the app*
*will require you to complete the PIN setup again
The above options can all be found on the Manage menu, located as follows:
- From the Fire TV homepage, go to the far right of the menu bar and select Settings
- Then open Applications and select Manage Installed Applications
- Scroll down the menu and select Jostle
- Select your desired action and when it completes, select Launch (or, if applicable, reinstall the app and then launch) the JostleTV app
NOTE—if you have Jostle switch you to a custom sub-domain for your platform, you will need to follow the steps above (clearing data and cache) in order to get JostleTV to correctly sync your program content again.
About Programs
Program content
The items that are shown in your Program will always be the highest-ranked items in the content target you selected for your Program.
Ranking is based on a combination of three factors:
- Time since last shown (the longer the time, the higher the ranking)
- Time since posted (the longer the time, the lower the ranking)
- Social metrics/Likes, comments, views (relative to the content average)
Once an item gets published, its cycle for appearing in JostleTV should generally last for about a week. However, if an item has received a high number of likes or comments, its popularity could extend the time of its cycle.
NOTE—if you don’t have enough current content, the system may pull some popular older items to cycle into the Program to avoid repeating the same current pieces over and over.
Program length
The program length options are generally used to set how much time elapses before an item is shown on your JostleTV again. They’re not used to create a set cycle of items for your program (the distribution of qualifying content is ultimately random), but rather to ensure that your items don’t get shown repeatedly within a set time frame.
As well, the length only indirectly affects the number of items you’ll see, as longer programs will spend more time displaying each item than shorter programs.
To illustrate, say a News Article and an Album are currently in your JostleTV program:
- A Short program may show 2 Article comments and 2 photos from the Album.
- A Long program may show 5 Article comments and 5 photos from the Album.
With that knowledge, you can determine which program length would be suitable for the area(s) where you have a display running JostleTV.
For example,
- Short programs would work well in high traffic areas, like hallways.
- Medium programs would be appropriate for front desk/lobby areas.
- Long programs would work best in lunch or break rooms.
Content cycle
If you regularly publish enough content you should never see the exact same thing on JostleTV cycle after cycle after cycle. But, as mentioned above, even if your fresh content does begin to dwindle, older items may be brought in to your cycles to keep them from getting too repetitive.
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