Datasets

Datasets store structured, tabular data in OTS Signs and display it dynamically on screen. Instead of hard-coding information into a layout, you connect a layout region to a dataset, and the on-screen display updates when the data changes.

Navigate to: Sidebar → Datasets

What Can Datasets Be Used For?

Datasets work well for any content that changes frequently and follows a consistent structure:

• Daily specials or rotating menu items
• Staff directories or contact lists
• Sports scores or league tables
• Product pricing
• Event listings
• Queue or waiting time displays

Dataset Types

OTS Signs supports three types of datasets:

Type	Description
Standard	Data entered manually through the interface
Remote	Data fetched automatically from an external URL (JSON or CSV)
Real-Time Connector	Data populated by a custom JavaScript script

Browsing Datasets

Navigate to Datasets in the sidebar. The list shows all datasets with:

Column	Description
Name	Dataset name
Description	Optional description
Columns	Number of columns defined
Last Edited	Date last modified
Owner	The user who created the dataset

Creating a Standard Dataset

1. Navigate to Datasets in the sidebar.
2. Click Add Dataset.
3. On the Basic tab, enter:
   • Name: e.g. “Daily Specials”
   • Description (optional)
   • Code (optional): a short reference identifier
4. Leave Remote Dataset toggled off.
5. Click Save.

Defining columns

1. Open the dataset.
2. Click Add Column.
3. Enter a column name and select a data type:
   • String: text
   • Number: numeric values
   • Date: date or time values
   • Image: a reference to an image in your library
   • External image: a URL pointing to an external image
4. Repeat for each column.

Adding rows

1. Click Add Row.
2. Fill in the values for each column.
3. Click Save.

Importing data from CSV

If you have data in a spreadsheet:

1. Open the dataset and click Import CSV.
2. Map your CSV columns to the dataset’s columns.
3. Click Import.

Tip

The first row of your CSV should contain column headers.

Creating a Remote Dataset

A remote dataset fetches data from an external URL on a schedule. Use this to display live data without manual updates.

1. When creating a dataset, toggle on Remote Dataset.
2. Switch to the Remote Source tab and configure:

Field	Description
Method	GET or POST
URI	The URL to fetch data from
Auth	Authentication credentials (if required)
Custom Headers	Any HTTP headers to include in the request
Source Type	JSON or CSV
Data Root	The JSON path to the data array (for JSON sources)
Refresh Rate	How often to fetch updated data
Clear Rate	How often to clear stale data
Truncate on Empty	Clear the dataset if the source returns no data
Row Limit	Maximum number of rows to import
Limit Policy	What to do when the row limit is reached (error or truncate)

3. Click Save.

OTS Signs will fetch and update the dataset at the configured refresh rate.

Creating a Real-Time Connector Dataset

A connector dataset is populated by a custom JavaScript script. Use it for cases the standard remote fetch cannot handle: complex data transformations, multi-step API calls, request signing for authentication, or combining data from multiple sources before display.

Use a Real-Time Connector when:

• The data source requires custom authentication logic.
• You need to transform or filter data before it reaches the display.
• You are combining data from more than one source.

Use a Remote Dataset instead when you only need to fetch from a simple JSON or CSV URL.

1. When creating a dataset, switch to the Connector Script tab.
2. Write or paste your JavaScript connector script. The script is executed by the player and should return data in the expected column format.
3. Click Save.

Editing Data

1. Open the dataset.
2. Click Edit next to any row.
3. Update the values and click Save.

Managing RSS Feeds

If a dataset is connected to an RSS feed, you can manage the feed configuration from the dataset context menu → Manage RSS Feeds.

Deleting a Dataset

1. Click the three-dot menu → Delete and confirm.

Layouts connected to the deleted dataset will stop showing dataset content until updated.

Connecting a Dataset to a Layout

In the Layout Editor, add a Dataset or Ticker content widget to a region and select the dataset to display. Configure how many rows to show, scroll speed (for tickers), and visual styling.

Permissions

• Viewers can view datasets.
• Editors can create and edit datasets.
• Admins have full access.