Tutorial: Create a dashboard

Once you have Meerkat up and running, you will want to create your first dashboard.

Its probably best to have a sensible background first. The background needs to be a browser displayable image, even an animated gif is possible! We have used diagram tools for backgrounds, pictures of racks, world maps etc. It helps if you have thought about how you want the checks and background image to overlay together beforehand. You can author the Background Image in any program that can spit out image files that browsers can display. We have tested png, jpeg and webp. The background resolution should match the target resolution of the display, to allow for correct alignment and scaling.

  1. Make a new dashboard by clicking Create New Dashboard button and giving it a name. Dashboards can then be edited and viewed from the main page.
  2. Edit your dashboard and add a Background Image.
  3. Add new Elements and pick the type of Element you want to add.
  4. Drag and drop your Element over the top of the map to somewhere that makes sense relative to the background. You can resize and rotate elements.
  5. Click Save.
  6. Click Home and then view your dashboard.