PIXILAB BLOCKS
PIXILAB Blocks® is software for producing and managing rich experiences for visitor centers, museums, exhibitions and corporate presentations. It features a unique mix of content and display management, control system capabilities, interactive presentation and mobile guide functions.
Blocks runs on MacOS, Windows and Linux computers, connecting to virtually any number of displays, players and other subsystems. You produce, configure and manage everything over the local network using your web browser.
This web page contains detailed technical documentation of many aspects and applications of Blocks. Before continuing below, you should be familiar with the basic concepts of Blocks as described in the Blocks Manual.
Blocks resources
Learn how to use blocks from our resource collection.
Blocks manual
The most valuble resource when getting to know the concepts and the components in Blocks.
Video collection
Our collections of video tutorials that help with everything from familiarizing yourself with Blocks to advanced tutorials for custom development.
Application Notes
Application notes provide inspiration and make it easy to try out ideas, hone your Blocks skills and learn best practices. Many of them come with a complete set of files, including everything you need to run it on your own Blocks server/laptop.
User forum
Another great resource for support is the Pixilab Blocks user forum. For any support queries that may be of general interest, this is the recommended option.The forum is monitored by Pixilab as well as Pixilab partners and users.
Downloads, Installation, Configuration and Updates
Here you can find instructions on installing and deploying Blocks on different platforms, creating and deploying a PIXILAB Player to create a locked-down playout device for Blocks content. There also some guides for other devices that can been used to play Blocks content.
Blocks Server Software for Mac, Windows and Linux
In order to use Blocks on your own computer, you must have a valid Blocks license to that computer. Blocks will not start unless this hardware or cloud-based license is found.
PIXILAB Player
Free software for running on PC-style hardware to play out Blocks content.
Other display hardware setup guides
How-to guides helping you installing and configuring displays with your Blocks system. Blocks can be used with a wide variety of display devices and technologies.
Devices may change from time to time outside our control as new devices are introduced and old models are taken off the market. The guides presented here are "best practices", and are not to be considered as endorsements or purchase recommendations. You're should perform your own tests to ensure performance, reliability and compatibility before chosing a device or software.
Content
Most of the content in blocks is created by combining different block types inside the Blocks editor. Styling is added to the system using the different method descibed in the styling article below. It is also possible to extend the content capabilities of blocks using other methods such as creating custom web content.
Styling
Content in Blocks is styled with the same methods as any other web content, using CSS.
Control System Functions and Tasks
For basic control needs, binding buttons and other controls directly to properties provides a level of programmability that's intuitive and easy to use. More complex actions can be programmed using the step-based programming capabilities provided by Tasks.
Device Drivers and User scripts
Device Drivers
Blocks comes with a plug-in architecture for controlling most devices equipped with a network, serial data or IR remote control port.
Custom scripting
For complex applications, calling for fully custom designed solutions with advanced "code level" programming requirements, Block goes even further, offering advanced scripting capabilities.