There are other ways to "bolt down" and restrict Linux or Windows XP machines to offer a browser only service.  However there are advantages in using a bespoke programme, one of which includes the web based "screensaver" option.  This can give information in the waiting room.

How much has it been used?   Seldom.  A few patients come in and look at their web mail and go away again.   I do not think it is worth spending much money on, apart from making use of an old computer, and I do not think there could be any revenue stream derived from web browsers in waiting rooms.   Much below is a bit out of date.

We originally one of the old fundholding Pentium 133 computers to build an internet kiosk for patients to use in reception to call up medical information sites. The whole set up has cost £40 in cables so far, although we paid $170 license for the SiteKisok software that protects the system and runs a stripped down browser. We will need a touch screen to make an internet cafe/kiosk really useful. Few people dare touch the mouse at the moment, but at the very least, when not being used, the screen displays large-letter information notices (which we are making up) for patients, in a random sequence. It will be interesting how much the kiosk is really used. The kiosk does use the NHS Net connection. There is no infringement of NHS Net security, as it is only using the dial-up, not the NHS Nets domain name servers. The computer display in the waiting room uses a programme called Sitekiosk, which does the following: * Disables all access to the Kiosk computer's windows operating system. Even crl-alt-delete is disabled. After a power cut, on reboot, up comes the same screen. No desktop, no start button and so on. Nobody can access the operating system or reboot the computer from the waiting room except yours truly with secret keys and passwords. * Site kiosks sets web sites to be prohibited, so we set all nhs net addresses, as nww.anything.nhs.uk as prohibited. * Sets a search engine of one's choice, which I set to www.patients.co.uk * Resets to a home page after x minutes of inactivity, and then calls up every x seconds a list pages which we use for patient info and displaying the selected site links with logos. Only the screen, mouse and keyboard is in the waiting room; the main box is in the receptionist area. We set the computers TCP/IP properties so the computer does NOT use NHSnet's DNS, another serrvice so no NHSnet addresses are available to the kiosk. In any case any domain starting nww is blocked by the software. It bypasses the proxy server. We may use another proxy server so we can sensibly cache all the selected sites main pages. This is an opportunity of offer patients real information, and will replace out of date leaflets. On the pages that come after 4 minutes of inactivity, I have list chosen sites with their logos, including the health authority and in also NHS Directs site. Since this is so cheap to set up the HA could consider setting it up for all NHS Practices, and feed down the information pages....before some private companies puts in their systems with junk advertising. (Later edit: Commercial systems never really took off.  I cannot see that a limited browser in the waiting room has a future since Mobiles and PDAs have ever increasing greater functionality.