In this tutorial, we'll set up a Solstice Pod to display a Google Slides slideshow when it is not being used for presenting.
We will point the Solstice pod to a URL that we will create with the Iowa State University Go URL Shortener.
Task 1: Create Your Slideshow
Log into Okta by going to https://login.iastate.edu
Log into Google by clicking on the Google Accounts panel: 
Create a slide show in Google Slides: 
Publish your slides under File / Publish to the web: 
Choose the Embed tab and choose options as follows: 
Now you have access to the URL that points to your slideshow. Carefully copy the URL, which appears between the first pair of quotes. Do not copy the quotes themselves.
Task 2: Create Your Short URL
Log into the Iowa State University Go URL Shortener: https://admin.go.iastate.edu/ using the gren Sign In button.
Note: If you have already created a Short URL, do not create a second one. Simply edit the one you have already created.
Click on the green New Link button to create a Short URL: 
Enter the URL of your Google Slideshow that you copied at the end of Task 1, above:
Task 3: Point the Solstice Pod to the Short URL
This is a task for your IT administrator. Give them the Short URL that you created, which will look something like https://go.iastate.edu/ABCDEF
Your IT administrator can then point the Solstice Pod digital signage module to the Short URL using the Solstice administration dashboard. Example:
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do I need a Short URL? Why can't the Solstice Pod be given the URL of the Google Slideshow?
We use a Short URL so that the Solstice Pod only need be configured once. Otherwise every time you made a new slideshow you would have to ask your IT administrator to update the settings on the Solstice Pod.
Instead, you can update the destination of the Short URL.
How do I Make a Different Slideshow Appear on Solstice?
Suppose you created a winter-themed set of slides. Currently your Short URL is pointing to your original slideshow and you want to change it to point to your winter-themed slideshow. You would go to https://admin.go.iastate.edu and log in, then click on the My Links menu:
Then click on your existing Short URL to see its details, and click on the blue Edit button to edit: 
Now the exact same Short URL you had before is pointing to a different slideshow.
I Did That But the Solstice Pod Still Shows the Old Slideshow!
Connect to the Solstice pod using the Solstice App. Then disconnect. The new slideshow should then be retrieved and displayed.
Why Do I Have to Use the Embed Link Instead of the Link?
When you choose Link then Google will send the X-Frame-Options: SAMEORIGIN header which prevents the Solstice Pod from displaying the slideshow in any mode except Full Screen. The Embed link does not send this header which allows the Solstice Pod to overlay the footer with the pod's IP address and four-digit key so that people can still easily use the pod for presenting.