Contents

• TLDR
• Requirements
• Shopping List
• Implementation

TLDR

I originally set out to create a simple dashboard, but after investing some time and a wad of cash, we have a fully-interactive console in our kitchen that is showing a lot of promise.

Requirements

• Management of family calendar
• Management of family tasks
• Access to recipe manager
• Access to shopping lists

Shopping List

Items in the Final Build

• ViewSonic TD2465 24 Inch 1080p IPS Touch Screen Monitor
  • This is the brand of touch screen that Dakboard recommends, and the responsiveness is really nice.
• Intel NUC 11 NUC11ATKC4 Atlas Canyon Mini PC
  • This is a Windows 11 machine.
  • You can save a lot of money in hardware and energy costs by going the Raspberry Pi route.
  • I chose this machine to have more flexibility with the purpose of the machine in case the Dakboard implementation didn’t work out.
• USX MOUNT TV Wall Mount Monitor Mount Bracket
  • Low-cost, easy-to-install wall mount.
• Woods SlimLine 2241 16/3 Flat Plug Indoor Extension Cord
  • Running this cord allows you to keep all of the NUC cabling behind the monitor.
• SOULWIT 50Pcs Self Adhesive Cable Management Clips
  • Sturdy little wire clips to help keep the cabling contained.
• UBOOM L Portable Wireless Speaker
  • Highly rated bluetooth speaker. It sounds great, can be easily relocated, and can pair with other devices than the computer.

The Return Pile

• TETVIK Monitor Wall Mount
  • Unfortunately, this mount left too small of a gap between the monitor and the wall to fit the NUC.
• Cord Cover Raceway Kit
  • I haven’t done the raceway yet. If the screen stays long-term, we may elect to use a TV cable-hiding outlet kit instead.
• HumanCentric Mounting Bracket Compatible with Intel NUC
  • Wasn’t compatible with the NUC that I purchased…oops. In the end, I just zip tied the NUC to the kickstand on the back of the monitor, which worked nicely. I feel like the use of zip ties makes this an authentic NUC implementation, anyway…

Implementation

Here are the interfaces I have tried with the display:

Keepers

• Browser with three default tabs:
  • Dakboard (Free) – Displays the time, weather, upcoming appointments, and a rotating wallpaper.
  • Copy Me That – Our recipe and shopping list management service.
  • Google Calendar – For a more robust calendar view and the ability to enter new appointments.
• Spotify – For crankin’ up tunes in the kitchen.
• Microsoft To Do – For family task assignment and management.
• Microsoft Whiteboard – A neat markerboard replacement, especially for our homeschooling operation.
• Power Automate (Desktop) – Since the primary user of the display is my lovely but less-than-technical wife, I wanted an easy way for the displays to launch, resize and orient themselves without user input. With Power Automate, a single touch completely configures the display for use.

Bad Fits

• Dakboard (Paid) – The paid version (starting at $5 / month) of Dakboard allows features like multiple / configurable screens, multiple synced calendars, access to dozens of widgets, and the ability to enable touch-responsive interfaces. There were a few reasons it was not worth the money in my case:
  • Calendars are read-only, meaning you can’t add new appointments or even drill down to see additional details.
  • Likewise, Task Management lists are read-only unless you use their own native Dakboard task management app, which simply was not feature rich nor intuitive.
  • Despite the wide offering of widgets, I was unable to setup an interface with synchronization with our recipe manager or our shopping lists.
• Windows Calendar – This was my first choice for displaying our Google Calendar, but the app is in the process of being deprecated.
• Outlook Calendar – This was Microsoft’s recommendation for those who wanted to use Windows Calendar. As much as I love using Outlook for work, the UI simply disqualifies it from being the right tool for this job.