Digital Signposts

Domesday Reloaded (Part 2)

Domesday System by ljw Licence CC  BY-NC-SA

Riding on the wave of excitement generated through BBC Domesday Reloaded project makes this a good time to take an objective look at some of the wider issues arising out of Domesday for learning technology, and if possible learn some lessons for the future.

“In 1986 the BBC launched an ambitious project to record a snapshot of everyday life across the UK for future generations. A million volunteers took part…”

This an interesting statement, because it was never realised through the original project format; but now may be with the release of the Reloaded project, and even more so if the data on the National Disc is finally released. Unless folk were associated with a school or had access at a library it is unlikely they would have had  hands-on experience of the Domesday system.

Many blogs and tweets suggest that Domesday Reloaded is a complete reconstruction of the original 1984-86 project, but that is quite far from the truth. It does not contain any of the rich data from the National Disc. The National Disc contains a great deal of, (authoritative), media and statistics. Just how much can be gauged in the first  section of this promotional video,  specifically from 03:15 > 9:32, on the timeline. It is clear that the Community disc data is culturally significant and  the National data disc completes that anecdotal snapshot of the UK picture with an even and focused coverage.

Neither is it true to suggest that the only reason for the loss of the Domesday data is obsolescent technology. Human shortcomings are just as much, if not more to blame. Although obsolescent technology may have contributed to the the loss of the Domesday system, it was not the only cause. This is evidenced by the fact that researchers based at Leeds University and the University of Michigan working on the Camileon Project were successful in accessing and emulating the BBC's Domesday project on a PC.

Although the systems were superseded by digital optical media, many of the surviving systems, (c.1000 sold), were just left in cupboards or as I heard through trusted anecdotal evidence - in one LEA (Local Education Authority), 2 were simply thrown in the skip when moving offices. Again the human factor... one wonders how many times this was replicated?

Evidence, from Charlesworth. University of Hull, (2002); suggests that the greatest obstacle was clearing Copyright. Nearly all the content, including both data and software has IP rights attached. It appears to be an extremely complex web of rights. Charlesworth’s report also indicates, even at the time of writing (2002),  some rights holders were untraceable and it could be 2090 before all data would be in the public domain.

Should ever such a venture be undertaken in the future (using public funds and contributions) it would make sense to ensure that content providers and contributors were asked to make their work available under a Creative Commons licence, or at least the BBC Creative Archive Licence.  Unfortunately this is not a requirement of the Reloaded initiative and there is no real licencing guidance for contributors other than the BBC’s normal T&Cs. (Even so, everyone should contribute because of the cultural significance of the project).  Similarly it would be hoped any future venture would be developed using Open Source software.

In addition to the  Domesday Reloaded will achieve is to generate awareness and of Domesday, (including the original Domesday Book, which is also online), judging by blog post and tweets this is already happening.  In order to fully appreciate the nature of the BBC Domesday Project it is worth reading this detailed description of Domesday and also the work of  Darlington, Finney and Pearce describing the recovery of the data on the discs. Sadly; Adrian Pearce died in 2008 and his original site is no longer available but the http://www.domesday1986.com/ URL now links to the Domesday Special Interest Group.

Update
There are indications from the Centre for Computing History that they are working with the National Disc and hoping to make it live in the near future. Great news if it happens.

 

If there are any factual errors in this post please let me know and I will amend as appropriate.

 

"All Yesterdays Tomorrows Today"

As promised in my preceding post, I would like to share another of my digital treasures;  the  eponymous blog, Modern Mechanix, which also includes extracts from  various science and technology magazines published in the US from 1920's till the 1980's. Modern Mechanix is a continuum of speculative prediction  and articles that range from the bizarre  to the mundane, occasionally revealing a grain of truth with echoes in the present, or depicting a paradoxical utopia/dystopia. 

Those who know me understand my fascination for the absurd, and the surreal. I love these images and illustrations which would grace the portfolios of the Futurists, Surrealists and indeed the Dada movement.  They are source of creative inspiration and  resources when needed. Although there is much to laugh at, there are also some disturbing underlying concepts.

From todays standpoint is is fascinating to revisit the zeitgeist, and try to interpet the aspirations and fears of the times. Modern Mechanix provides an interesting subtext to the official histories and journals; after all  what kind of man would own his own computer?  Please feel free to add your own nominations of current technologies, which might be included in future issues of Mechanix, as a comment. Finally, this entry, always makes me think of Andrew Keen and typewriters. Thanks to Boing Boing for the pointer.

Its that time of the year again

image credit quinn.anya

It's summer, a time to relax and share with you, some of the delights from my digital cornucopia.  Firstly some Music.

David Byrne has a 'radio station',  featuring themed playlists he changes monthly, past episodes have covered  Afro Cuban, Psychedelia and even  Catchy Tunes.  This August he targets opera with an honest and direct approach;

"Here's an area I know very little about: Classic Opera. I am familiar with some of the well-known tunes — incredibly moving, over-the-top tunes many of us have heard without knowing their sources — so that's pretty much what I've assembled here. They may not be the definitive performances, or in some cases they may be, but they're all pretty grand. In many cases these are old recordings, so the quality of the recording will vary, but the emotion is more or less consistently pedal-to-the-metal."

This echoes my sentiments exactly, never being  as knowledgeable as I, (thought), I should be on the finer points of opera.  I am now playing this fantastic music as loud as I can get away with,   enjoying it in the manner intended;

"...the Italians and French excelled at incorporating elements of regional music into their productions. I believe I hear elements of Neapolitan song in Verdi. They were the popular music of the day and the audiences were rowdy and noisy — you could eat, drink and probably fornicate in the theaters at that time. Farmers and fishermen sang these tunes in fields and bars — and so can we."

Spot on, David.

These pages will speak for themselves.

Here is an inspirational project in its early stages, but already worth a visit. Thanks to Information Aesthetics for the pointer.

 

The world's biggest, never ending, slide show

This is seriously addictive. Dave Troy has just released a beta version of Flickrvision; a site that lets you view geotagged images on a  dynamic Google map, in real time, as they are uploaded to Flickr. The effect is hypnotic, photos from around the globe continuously appear and disappear from view, as the map shifts around to accommodate them. The potential is vast, especially as new features are promised to allow developers to customise this service; for example, checking on uploads from a specific location.

In class, even 5 minutes of watching this should inspire students, encourage questioning, help them identify social and cultural aspects around the world and discovering places and their relationships in the wider world. Please comment on any good ideas for educational use.

Footnote: although only a day old, this site has already had  over 1500 posts on del.icio.us

TeacherTube

It may be worth keeping an eye on this new online video service for education. Although still relatively few, the numbers of videos are growing rapidly, with 34 last night increasing to 54 by this afternoon.  It will be Interesting to see how it will sit alongside established services such as YouTube and TTV.  My own view is; the more the merrier, as long as good search and RSS tools are included. Video is becoming one of the most important formats for learning on the Internet. Another educational application of video highlights, that it is only a matter of time before those that continue to block Web 2.0 and online video services will have to rethink their strategies.

Want some more good music?

Ewan's post on Pandora seems to have have planted music firmly into the educational blogosphere this weekend, so to continue the trend....geeks, creatives, film and music fans will be heading for the 10 day SXSW  (South By South West) interactive arts and music festival in Austin Texas. Unfortunately much as I would love to be there, (preceded by attending TED); I will have to console myself with the next best thing; the SXSW website. Lots of news, 'interactive tools' and the SXSW Player includes links to the acts' websites and their own bio page, (most with mp3s for download). The music covers most genres including; indie, rock, folk country, jazz and hip hop. You can find out about the hundreds of new and established artists appearing. Since last night I have 'discovered' at least 20  acts I will be following closely.  If you want more, well theres the First torrent of 793 mp3s to download. At 3.1GB that's enough to beef up anyones iTunes library. Now  perhaps next year.....

Distant Voices

Screencast compilation from voicebook examples

Having just spent a few hours exploring  voicethread beta site, I am convinced that this is a digital storytelling  application with enormous potential for education and learning. What makes the service special is, it combines personal creativity and social interaction. You build a voicebook digital slideshow by combining your images with an accompanying narration. Whilst listening to the narration viewers can zoom and pan around the image. The whole thing is superbly structured with really useful interactive features including:

• audio comments contributed by viewers
• facility to add text, drawn annotations and hyperlinks
• sharing with private and public settings
• full integration with Flickr

The icing on the cake is that potential classroom use has been carefully considered by the developer, who has provided information and advice on setting up a class Voicebook. I recommend having a look at some of the excellent voicebooks already on the site.

BBC looks down the Tube

At first glance the BBC's link up with YouTube would appear to be another positive move. However having looked at their contribution; 32 clips, (which include a 5 second video of their Logo), there seems to be very little of of real substance or value. In fact what we have is nothing more than a series of promotional clips and some behind the scenes chit chat with various personalities; talented as they might be.

A quote from Ashley Highfield, the BBC's new media chief on the Register clarifies the BBC position;

(it is) "not about distributing content like full-length programmes; YouTube is a promotional vehicle for us".

and it gets worse;

The problem is, the complexities of adhering to the corporation's charter using a global medium are already making a monkey out of director general Mark Thompson's goal to have BBC content available "anytime, anywhere".

Two thirds of the promo content won't be available to UK users - because the BBC isn't permitted to show advertisements in the UK. Meanwhile, much of the BBC's digital content can't be viewed outside the UK.

This is all a far cry from the bold venture that was the  Creative Archive, where the BBC provided something something of real value. It appears the BBC is freeloading at the Web 2.0 party without giving anything back in return. Again quoting the Register;

Executives also said the deal was "a testing ground" for the BBC's own iPlayer

I am not sure how the Flash based content on YouTube relates to the BBC's intention to make their, (DRM laden), content available on on Windows XP and Vista only. Perhaps it is the BBC's way of distracting attention from the real issues, regarding their proposed provision of digital content.  Whichever way you look at it ...quite frankly, this deal leaves a bad tase.

"A Rather Unremarkable Piece of Sky"

Or "The most important image ever taken". There's something that keeps bringing me back to this video essay by Tony Darnell of Deep Astronomy. Is it the fantastic blend of images and video, edited together from  the NASA and ESA Hubble Telescope website, the soft, insistent, hypnotic voice of the narrator, the staggering numbers and concepts of time and space involved? Or could it be the juxtaposition of the brilliantly entertaining Numa Numa guy, perhaps hinting at our place in the greater scheme? Enjoy!

Footnote: all content on the ESA NASA Hubble site is copyright free. If you are looking for original high and quality, secondary, digital assets for your school or college project; then this site is well worth a visit.