Monday, June 25, 2007

Graduation Result

Got a 1st Class Honours - Happy with that!
Me and my gorgeous wife Sara

Me with my parents


Here's a link to my Research Paper
http://www.savefile.com/files/839330

and CV (Video and Print)
http://nigelwhitbread.blogspot.com/2007/06/nigel-whitbread-ba-hons-cv.html

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

End of the Road

Introduction

“Whilst on this course I have developed an inquisitive interest in the realm of locative media and the technology that drives it. The premise of my project is a pilot version of a GPS (Global Positioning System) enabled electronic guide for St Fagans National History Museum, providing it with a walking tour that will incorporate audio, photos, text, and video, to provide historical facts and information of the site and it’s buildings to be viewed on a hand held device. After graduating I hope to carry on working in these areas of interest and help develop new concepts.”

The end is in sight and I will soon being graduating and let loose again on the brave new(media) world full of hopes and fears. The aim of this blog is to save you from having to read through my research paper and supporting blogs and allow you to view the information and the prototype in action through the convenience of the play button.

So press away, press away, press away...

Footage from youtubeit on BBC2W


Pen-rhiw chapel user testing


User Testing 1


User Testing 2


Kennixtrain User Testing

Wednesday, May 16, 2007

Tag Cloud – Keywords

1) Locative Media
2) Mobile
3) Mapping
4) Museums
5) GPS
6) Mediascape
7) PDA
8) Expectations
9) Technology
10) Design Process
11) User Testing
12) Flash
13) Regions
14) Interface
15) Video
16) Maps
17) Historical
18) Context
19) Signal Strength
20) Trilateration
21) Usability
22) Integration
23) Interactive
24) Handheld

Video Footage of Project


Youtubeit broadcast on BBC2W

User Testing and Comments

User Comments

Friday, May 4, 2007

Busy Busy Busy

with writing research paper and arranging for it to be printed and rewriting and proof reading and......and.....and.....

Sunday, April 29, 2007

Last week of April

Mon, April 23, 2007
Went to St Fagans to check on GPS set up and regions again.

Wed, April 25, 2007
Went to St Fagans to check on GPS set up and regions one last time before user testing.

Fri, April 27, 2007
Started user testing at St Fagans, few problems with audio and headsets.

Sat, April 28, 2007
Second day of user testing down st Fagans.

Sun, April 29
Last day of user testing down St Fagans

Sunday, April 22, 2007

User Testing Questionnaire & Poster

Link to Questionnaire
Poster

Third week of April

Mon, April 16, 2007
Went to St Fagans to check out GPS again, remap regions and video all the buildings I need for my project.

Tue, April 17, 2007
Started editing video footage from yesterday

Wed, April 18, 2007
Finished editing video footage

Thu, April 19, 2007
Edited photos to fit screen size of PDA. Worked on design and application of user interface.

Fri, April 20, 2007
Added audio cues, remapped regions and linked up all the user interface files.

Sat, April 21, 2007
Tested out Mediascape on all the PDA's I'm going to use next weekend for using testing (all work fine). Put together questionnaire and poster for user testing.

Friday, April 13, 2007

Second week of April

Monday 9th
Went to St Fagans to test GPS positioning and video the chapel portrait mode

Tuesday 10th
Recorded audio soundtracks to put over video of the buildings at St Fagans - happily my beautiful wife Sara agreed to narrate the audio for me, so now I get to listen to her all day instead of cringing at my own voice.

Wednesday 11th
Put together video of the pen-rhiw chapel using footage filmed and audio recorded yesterday. Added the basics of an interface for controlling the video and viewing a map.


Thursday 12th
Sent emails to people involved in locative media projects to try and get some advice on interface design and user testing - "test it, test it and test it again"

Saturday, April 7, 2007

First week of April

Been looking at different ways of using video in the project.
Small landscape video with control buttons (portrait mode)
Small landscape video with choice to go large(portrait mode)
Large video with choice to go small (landscape mode)
Large portrait video (portrait mode)

Set up a website at http://mappingmuseums.moonfruit.com/ to publicize my project and to be an online resource for my research paper.
Screenshot of site

Visited St Fagans to check GPS mapping, satellite strength and to take some video - talked to the estate manager about incorporating the gardens into my project. He's been looking into the idea for some time and has recently attended a conference on the possibilities in Botanic and other gardens in Feb in Hereford.

Friday, March 30, 2007

Update for this and last week

Went to HP Labs in Bristol on the 15th of March for a meeting with Ben Clayton. Picked up a box of goodies (IPAQ's and GPS units) for when I do my user testing and was given a run through of the updated software their developing which they've let me use for my project.
Went to St Fagans on the 26th of March for a meeting with Meinwen Ruddock to talk about getting hold of some of their photographiic, audio and video archives. Tested out the new software while I was there but was unable to get the GPS working even though I'd managed to get it to work fine at home.

Went back to St Fagans on the 28th of March and this time got the GPS working, think I must of messed the co-ordinates up last time. Need to tweek the co-ordinates a bit to get the regions to match up with the real world perfectly, not on the money just yet.
Screenshots of me putting my project together using HP's Mediascape software

Today - Put together some photos of St Fagans to make up an loader opening page for the E-guide.

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Breakdown of project and development

Mapping Museums St Fagans Past And Future Providing Historical Locative-Aware Content to the Grounds of St Fagans Museum of Welsh Life

Nigel Whitbread
B.A. (Hons) Design for Interactive Media
School of Art and Design
Business School
University of Wales Institute Cardiff
nigelwhitbread@yahoo.co.uk

Introduction
The premise of this project is to create a pilot version of an electronic guide for St Fagans Museum of Welsh life providing a walking tour incorporating audio, photos, text, and video to provide historical facts and information of the site and it buildings to be viewed on a hand held device.
The concept is similar to the multimedia tours provided inside the Tate Modern but instead of using wireless technology I wanted to use GPS (Global Positioning Systems) technology to deliver the content to site specific locations, so that when you are approaching Pen-Rhiw Chapel for example, you’ll be receiving data about the Chapels history, when it was built, who lived there etc.

Aims & Objectives
• In regards to Locative Media, research what devices can be used, what content is being broadcast, and what applications are being used to produce the content.
• To provide an investigation into what innovative ways locative media is being used to provide context driven content.
• This project will be looking at what devices (PDA’s, mobile phones, Node) would provide the best platform for location aware content. They are to be used at St Fagans Museum of Welsh Life to provide historical location context driven data about the site and its buildings.
• To determine what content is required to enhance the historical sense of St Fagans and give the user a sense of where the buildings came from originally. To find out if users would prefer audio, textual, stills, video driven content or a combination of all four. Using primary questions and the information uncovered I will create a prototype application to run on a specific device.
• To see how the media can trigger real social and cultural interaction when linked to real places.
• Target Audience – Visitors to St Fagans
• To propose a basis for future projects and development.

Methodology
The methodology I propose will include, semi structured interviews (of the general public, museum visitors, staff and school children of a variety of ages) to be undertaken online and face to face to gain an understanding of the interest people show in using devices to look at historical content with contextual relevancy. Analysis of acquired data – filmed, photography, audio, interviews, questionnaires. Creation of a prototype on a relevant device based on users expectations.

Mapping Museums St Fagans Past And Future
After researching the subject of locative media and hand held devices for the past few months, I finally came to the conclusion that the best way to go about producing a pilot GPS electronic guidebook for St Fagans is to use Hewlett Packards’ Mobile Bristol Toolkit.
http://www.mobilebristol.com/flash.html

After visiting St Fagans to scope it out and talking to The National Museum Cardiff I feel it best to limit the prototype to about a third of the site. As you enter the outdoor museum you see a map showing what’s to see around the main entrance, it seemed to make sense to limit the guide to this area and these buildings.

Exhibits in this area

1. Galleries
2. Kennixton Farm
3. Bee Shelter
4. Corn Mill
5. Llwyn Yr Eos Farmstead
6. Hendre'r-Ywydd Uchaf
7. Nant Wallter Farmhouse
8. Llain Fadyn Cottage
9. Cae Adda Byre
10. Hayshed
11. Abernodwydd
12. Pen-rhiw Chapel
13. Y Ty Gwyrdd

And other symbols
• You are here
• Toilets
• Shop
• Restaurant
• Playground
• Information
• Train stop
• Tunnel
• Parking
• Sandwich rooms (education)

Using GPS software whilst walking around the site I discovered that depending where I was I could pick up between 5 and 9 satellites which is enough to give a good fix as you only need 3 to triangulate your position.

Initial Storyboard Ideas

Monday, March 12, 2007

Checking out mediascape at St Fagans

Went to St Fagans today to test out what I'd put together for my mediascape. The regions worked fine with the basic sounds I'd put on them but the GPS positioning was slightly out so I need to adjust the co-ordinates slightly to get it working as I want. I was surprised at how well the GPS worked inside the buildings, it didn't lose any signal.

Sketch of GPS trace outside the main entrance at St Fagans

Map of St Fagans design prototype

Opening Welcoming ScreenLanguage Screen

Monday, February 19, 2007

A sign of the times: Ignore your sat nav

Story in todays Metro about vehicles getting stuck in a lane whilst blindly following their sat nav

http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=37839&in_page_id=34

Thursday, February 15, 2007

Visit to St Fagans

Went to St Fagans Museum of Welsh Life yesterday (St Valantines Day) to scope out the areas I want to focus on for the elactronic guide and map it out with GPS.
Map from outside the main entrance showing what their is to see in its immediate area

Overview of map showing highlighted area around the main entrance

Seeing as when you enter the outdoor museum you see the above map showing whats to see around the main entrance it seemed to make sense to limit the prototype to this area and these buildings.
Exhibits in this area
  • Galleries
  • Kennixton Farm
  • Bee Shelter
  • Corn Mill
  • Llwyn Yr Eos Farmstead
  • Hendre'r-Ywydd Uchaf Farmhouse
  • Nant Wallter Farmhouse
  • Llain Fadyn Cottage
  • Cae Adda Byre
  • Hayshed
  • Abernodwydd
  • Pen-rhiw Chapel
  • Y Ty Gwyrdd
And other symbols
  • You are here
  • Toilets
  • Shop
  • Restaurant
  • Playground
  • Information
  • Train stop
  • Tunnel
  • Parking
  • Sandwich rooms (education)
Using GPS software whilst walking around the sight I discovered that depending where I was I could pick up between 5 and 9 satelites which is enough to give a good fix as you only need 3 to triangulate your position.



Tuesday, February 13, 2007

BBC Mobile Phone Stories

Talk moves on at mobile congress in Barcelona
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6340235.stm

BBC Documentory

Monday 12th Feb, the film company Forgetaboutit.TV came in again today but this time to film us and our personal project work for a documentary for the BBC.

Wednesday, February 7, 2007

National Museum of Wales Meeting


Had a meeting at the National Museum of Wales with John Williams, Jace Tyler, and David Thorpe. We talked about my project, my recent visit to HP and what resources can be made available to me.
The main thing that came from the meeting is that I should put together a more indepth report based around my proposal, detailing what I want to accomplish, how the prototype is going to work, what areas of the site I'm going to incorporate into the tour, and an idea of the timeline of the project.

Tuesday, February 6, 2007

HP Labs Meeting


Went to HP Labs in Bristol today and talked to Ben Clayton, one of the developers for the mobile bristol mediascape application. He showed me what could be done with the latest software they are developing, which now has a much more usable GUI with drag and drop capabilities and and better emulator for testing on PC.
We also talked about my project with St Fagans and what equipment I might need for development and user testing. Looked at a couple of videos of previous work.
All in all a very good meeting with lots of helpful feedback.

Friday, February 2, 2007

Things Happening Next Week

On Tuesday I've got a meeting with HP Labs to talk about my project and its aims, and thet are going to give me a demonstration of the toolkit. If it turns out that the mediascape system fits my requirements they might be able to let me have a pre-release version of the software.

The New Media Group have approved support for my proposal for an electronic guidebook for St Fagans. On Wednesday I'm at The Museum for a project initiation meeting to scope the project and agree what resources they will be able to provide to enable me to prepare the guide.

Tuesday, January 30, 2007

St Fagans Collections

Library

Purpose

Reading Room

The Library at St Fagans provides a resource and a service, mainly for the Museum's staff, facilitating all aspects of their work: identifying objects, interpreting them in their sociohistorical context, caring for them, answering enquiries, preparing exhibitions, and so on. Members of the public too are welcome to use the Library, which is used especially by students and the media, as well as by individuals. The Library also answers enquiries received by telephone and post.

Scope

The scope of the Library can be defined simply by such terms as folk life, ethnography, social history, which, however, comprise subjects as wide-ranging as:

Library Shelves

Religion; sociology; politics; migration; economic history; crime and punishment; education; commerce; transport; folk customs, lore and tales; children's lore; proverbs; sociolinguistics and dialectology; technology; medicine; farming and rural life; cooking and house-keeping; crafts; manufacturing and manufactured goods; buildings; vernacular architecture; folk music, song and dance; the eisteddfod; pastimes; geography; topography; biography and memoirs; genealogy; personal and place-names; heraldry; Welsh history; musical instruments; handicrafts; clocks; arms; furniture; textiles; costume and accessories.

The scope of the Museum, strictly, is the history of these subjects in Wales in the post-medieval period, but they cannot be interpreted properly without considering the British, European, and up to a point, world-wide contexts, and this is reflected in the Library's collection. It contains approximately 40,000 volumes, 200 maps, and 260 current periodical titles.

History

The Library's origins go back to the 1920s, when the study of Welsh folk culture was researched and interpreted within the Archaeology Department at the National Museum and Gallery, Cardiff, and books on the subject were collected.When the Welsh Folk Museum (as it was called until 1995) was established in 1948 the relevant staff and the books relating to folk life moved from Cardiff to the Welsh Folk Museum in St Fagans. The book collection continued to be administered from the National Museum & Gallery, Cardiff, until 1969, when the Welsh Folk Museum Library was established with new purpose-built premises, and its own professional librarian was appointed to manage it.

Opening hours and conditions of use
Reading Room

The Library is open to members of the public Monday - Friday, 9.30 - 1.00, 1.45 - 4.30. It is closed on weekends and national holidays. Members of the public wishing to use the Library should contact the Librarian to make an appointment, either by telephoning (029) 2057 3446 (the Librarian's direct line), or (029) 2057 3500 (the telephonist), or by writing to: the Librarian, St Fagans: National History Museum, St Fagans, Cardiff CF5 6XB, WALES, UK. It should be noted that the Library is for reference only; books may not be borrowed, though books may be loaned to other libraries through recognized inter-library lending schemes.

Staff information

Niclas L. Walker; MA, DipLib, ALA; Librarian; responsible for the Library at St Fagans.

FAQs

A number of reading lists are available covering frequently received inquiries, e.g. Wales (general), Welsh vernacular architecture, Tracing your family history, Local history research, Agriculture to industry in south east Wales, The Rebecca Riots, The Treason of the Blue Books, The coracle, Folk dancing, Furniture, Dry stone walling, Social conditions in the countryside, The harp in Wales, Drovers and drovers' roads.


Ref http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/stfagans/collections/

St Fagans Collections

Oral Traditions and Archival collections

  • The audio-visual archive consists of about 9,000 audio recordings, of which 7,000 contain original fieldwork recordings. The recorded oral information includes material relating to folk narrative, linguistics, folk medicine, traditional music, folklore and customs and oral history relating to the museum collections in general. There is a collection of 210 films, both historic and records of fieldwork undertaken by Museum staff.
  • The manuscript archive consists of over 6,000 documents relating to Welsh ethnology. In addition there are over 150,000 photographic images in the archive, comprising both historic and contemporary record photographs.
Ref http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/stfagans/collections/

St Fagans Collections

Agricultural, Craft and Transport collections

Farm cart
  • The collection comprises a range of agricultural tools, implements, vehicles and machinery dating from the late 18th century to the mid-20th century. Most of the artefacts are either of Welsh manufacture or have strong links with Wales.
  • The craft collections represent the working life of rural and semi-industrial Wales; they include woodworking, leatherwork and metalworking crafts as well as basketmaking, cornmilling, pottery and other rural occupations. The textile craft collections include quilting, embroidery, lacemaking, tailoring, textile machinery and products of the woollen industry in Wales.

Ref http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/stfagans/collections/

St Fagans Collections

Cultural Life

  • These include collections relating to music, folklore and customs, cultural, educational and social institutions, popular culture, sport s and children's toys and games.

St Fagans Collections

Domestic and Costume collections

Clogs
  • These collections include a comprehensive range of interior fixtures and furniture, ranging in date from the 16th century to the present day.
  • Clothing from all of the above periods is also collected, both fashionable and everyday wear, official uniforms and occupational dress. Also included are accessories of all types and items of personal use. A study collection has also been compiled for use by students and specialised school groups.
  • There are comprehensive collections of cooking, dairying equipment, household appliances, tableware, ornaments and furnishing fabrics.
  • The horological and country furniture collections are particularly strong, with a large proportion displayed in the re-erected buildings.
  • There are large collections of female dress of the 19th and 20th centuries, richly displayed in the costume gallery.

Ref http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/stfagans/collections/

St Fagans Collections

Corporate Life collections

  • These collections consist mainly of business and trade materials, including ironmongery, grocery and other shop contents related to the furnishing of commercial and other occupational buildings.
  • Other collections include medical, law and order and ecclesiastical items.
Ref http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/stfagans/collections/

Monday, January 29, 2007

St Fagans Collections

Buildings

1920s interior, Rhydycar Cottages

The collection currently consists of two in situ buildings and over forty historical buildings that have been dismantled and re-erected on the Museum site.

The collection comprises of a variety of building types, including farmhouses and outbuildings, dwelling houses, craft workshops, commercial premises, a school, a workmen's institute and places of worship.

there is also a collection of over 1,000 items of house fabric and fittings.

Buildings and structures are not accepted for removal to the Museum unless threatened with demolition or collapse. Dismantling them and re-erecting them at St Fagans is a means of ensuring their future.

Tŷ Gwyrdd

House for the Future Exterior

One of the Museum's most challenging projects to date was the building of Tŷ Gwyrdd (Green House). The structure was inspired by a joint St Fagans/BBC Wales competition to design a house showing how housing in Wales evolve over the next fifty years. It was to be based on traditional building techniques such as can be seen in many of the buildings on site but using them in innovative and forward-looking ways.

The winning design was created by Jestico & Whiles and is aimed at contributing to the on-going debates about issues such as energy efficiency, sustainability, changing family structures and new patterns of work and leisure.

Tŷ Gwyrdd, built by Redrow Homes, combines the vernacular tradition with cutting-edge technology in one integrated package.

As with many houses in the Museum collection, timber is the main building material, combining tradition with sustainability. The roof is shaped as a natural water collector and is insulated with a thick layer of sedum, which also acts as a natural filter. This 'grey water' is then re-cycled, so that the House is frugal in its water consumption. The south face of the House is extensively glazed to maximise solar energy, controlled by a 'skin' of shutters, which are automatically adjusted.

House for the Future Living Room
House for the Future Kitchen

The House makes highly efficient use of energy. Local materials were used wherever possible, thus avoiding energy being used for haulage. A striking example is the re-use of the earth removed from the foundations being used to make bricks for the spinal wall, providing the building with thermal mass. Wool is used as highly effective insulation for the walls. By keeping the use of externally produced electricity to a minimum, it is estimated that the House is virtually self-sufficient and produces no carbon dioxide emissions. Central heating and hot water is provided by means of an electric ground-source heat pump - a kind of fridge in reverse - which pumps cold water down to a depth of 35 meters, taking natural heat from the ground and releasing it as warmth.

The design and furnishing of the interior was co-ordinated by leading Welsh designer, Angela Gidden. The products designed and developed especially for the project address the same concerns as the House itself. The garden, designed by Richards, Moorhead and Laing and created by Gerald Davies Ltd, again has a strong theme of sustainability, and environmental responsibility.

This should not be seen as an ideal home, but rather as a possible practical solution to future housing needs in Wales. In this, the House for the Future embodies one of the primary aims of the Museum, which is to use knowledge of the past to inspire informed discussion about the future.

St Teilo's Church

The Building

the St Fagans specialist Historic Buildings Unit is currently working on its most ambitious project to date, namely the re-erection and refurbishment of a medieval church from Llandeilo Tal-y-bont in west Glamorgan. This is the first time such a church has been moved to an open air-museum in Britain. Although some churches have been re-erected in museums on the continent, the vast majority of these are timber-built, whereas this building is of solid masonry construction.

History

The Church is believed to have been built during the 13th century on the site of an earlier pre-Norman church. Over time the building was altered and extended. The oldest parts of the present structure, the nave and chancel, are believed to have been built during the 13 or 14th centuries. During the late 14th century, two small transepts, or chapels, were added to the north and south of the chancel to create a cruciform church. Two arches were formed to link both transepts to the chancel. The north chapel was known as the Gronow Chapel, presumably in recognition of its benefactor. During the late 15th century the Church's capacity was increased by the addition of an aisle to the south side of the nave. The old south wall was replaced by two arches, with a third arch opening into the chancel. In order to improve the congregation's view of the altar from the south aisle, a 'squint opening' was formed through one of the side walls of the chancel arch. Finally, a porch was added to the entrance door leading into the south aisle of the church.

Architectural features

The roof timbers are of typical early 15th century design (arch-braced collar-beams) though they may in fact be somewhat later in date. The west wall of the nave was altered in the early 18th century (datestone 1736) and most of the stone-mullioned windows were replaced by timber-mullioned windows at this time.

Later, some of these windows were blocked and new (Victorian gothic) windows inserted in the north and south walls. One original two-light stone-mullioned window (14/15th century) survives in the south aisle. The head of another two-light cusped window were found in the north chapel where they had been used to block-up a window opening. Probably the oldest surviving feature is the stone font, which is believed to have been carved in the 13th century but might in fact be even earlier.

Ref http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/191/

St Fagans Intro

A walk around Wales – from Celtic times to the present day

St Fagans Castle

St Fagans opened on 1 July 1948. Today, it is one of Europe's foremost open–air museums and Wales's most popular heritage attraction. It stands in the grounds of the magnificent St Fagans Castle, a late 16th-century manor house donated to the people of Wales by the Earl of Plymouth. During the last fifty years, over forty original buildings from different historical periods have been re-erected in the 100-acre parkland.

The re-erected buildings include houses, a farm, a school, a chapel and a splendid Workmen's Institute. There are also workshops where craftsmen still demonstrate their traditional skills. Their produce is usually on sale.

Native breeds of livestock can be seen in the fields and farmyards, and demonstrations of farming tasks take place daily. Visitors gain an insight into the rich heritage and culture of Wales, and the Welsh language can be heard in daily use amongst craftsmen and interpreters.

There are also galleries with exhibitions of costume, daily life and farming implements. Special exhibitions are also held regularly. Throughout the year, St Fagans comes to life — literally — as traditional festivals, music and dance events are celebrated.

Gwalia Stores - 1920s grocery & ironmongery

St Fagans explores all aspects of how people in Wales have lived, worked and spent their leisure time. Like generations of visitors, you will be inspired by its celebration of Welsh traditions and lifestyles.

Ref http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/stfagans/

St Fagans National History Museum

Cardiff
CF5 6XB
(029) 2057 3500

Open 10am–5pm daily

Friday, January 19, 2007

Tutorial with Simon Pope

Talked to Simon about projects at almost perfect which he went to over in Canada. Need to get in touch with HP Bristol and Node to talk to them about the platforms they use for their projects and to people who had projects with almost perfect.

PDA St Fagans Questionnaire

Here's a link to a questionnaire I've put together to guage peoples perceptions and reactions to using handheld devices to provide locative aware context driven data.
http://www.formdesk.com/deribbeddesigns/locativemedia

Wednesday, January 17, 2007

Research Paper Pro Forma-St Fagans

BA/BSc Hons DESIGN for INTERACTIVE MEDIA (Top-up)

Module Number ADM306b
Module Value 4
Year 2005-2006
Semester 1 & 2
Tutors WKB/DL/SN/SP
Assignment Personal Project Pro Forma

Student name: Nigel Whitbread

Student number: 06000671

Email address: nigelwhitbread@yahoo.co.uk

RESEARCH PAPER PRO FORMA

I. Your general field of enquiry

Locative Aware Services – Locative Media. Research what devices can be used, what content is being broadcast, and what applications are being used to produce the content. An investigation into what innovative ways locative media is being used to provide context driven content

II. Your chosen subject

This research project will be looking at what devices (PDA’s, mobile phones, Node) would provide the best platform for location aware content. They are to be used at St Fagans Museum of Welsh Life to provide historical location context driven data about the site and its buildings.

III. Your objectives. What are you going to document /uncover / explain / question?

To determine what content is required to enhance the historical sense of St Fagans and give the user a sense of where the buildings came from originally. To find out if users would prefer audio, textual, stills, video driven content or a combination of all four. Using primary questions and the information uncovered I will create a prototype application to run on a specific device.

IV. A description and assessment of research base. Primary sources. Secondary sources.

A large part of my primary research will involve visiting museums and historical sites of interest, and conduct interviews and questionnaires with visitors, staff and the general public. Secondary data will be taken from existing research papers on locative media and handheld devices.

V. An indication of your preferred methodology and why it is appropriate. What academic approach will you choose that is best suited to the analysis, contextualisation and cultural critique of your subject?

The methodology I propose will include, semi structured interviews (of the general public, museum visitors, staff and school children of a variety of ages) to be undertaken online and at St Fagans to gain an understanding of the interest people show in using devices to look at historical content with contextual relevancy. Analysis of acquired data – filmed, photography, audio, interviews, questionnaires. Creation of a prototype on a relevant device based on users expectations.

VI. References to key thinkers/academics

Researchers and academics in the Locative Media sector, including – Anne Galloway, Mathew Ward, RK Harle, A Hopper, Nicolas Nova, and Ben Russell.

VII. Indicative bibliography

Galloway, Anne and Matthew Ward (2005): Locative Media as Socialising and Spatialising Practices: Learning from Archaeology (DRAFT). Forthcoming Leonardo Electronic Almanac, MIT Press. Available online: http://www.purselipsquarejaw.org/papers/galloway_ward_draft.pdf

Harle, R. K. and Hopper, A. (2005): Deploying and Evaluating a Location-Aware Systems. In: Proceedings of the Mobisys 2005. Available online: http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/Research/DTG/~rkh23/pubs/mobisys2005.pdf

Russell, Ben (2004): Transcultural Media Online Reader Introduction, TCM Online Reader.

Mobile Location Based Services. Andrew Jagoe., Prentice Hall PTR, 2002

LocationBased Services: Fundamentals and Operation, Küpper, Axel, John Wiley and Sons Ltd, 2005.

Pasta and Vinegar webblog., Nicolas Nova, http://tecfa.unige.ch/perso/staf/nova/blog/, 2006,

Locative.net, Http://www.locative.net

VIII. Additional information that is relevant.

Will map out a schedule of work so that I can effectively manage my project
Will consider what I would like to be able to publish and where, e.g. who is my intended audience, names of conferences and journals/publications that may be interested in your work.

IX. Any questions you may have for staff.

I would like feedback on how viable my proposal is, if they think it can go the distance and do they think it would be worthwhile approaching museums, schools and other institutions.

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Proposal for an Electronic Guide Book

St Fagans Natural History Museum - Forwarded Proposal

My name is Nigel Whitbread and I am a final year student at the University of Wales Institute Cardiff (UWIC) School of Art and Design. I am studying towards a BA/BSc (HONS) Top-up in Design for Interactive Media.

A major part of my degree involves producing a year long research project. My general field of enquiry is Location Aware Services and Locative Media. This research project will be looking at what devices (PDA’s, mobile phones, Nodes) would provide the best platform for location aware context driven content.

I am interested in creating an electronic guidebook for St Fagans to be viewed on a mobile device. The device is to be used out of doors on the site of the Natural History Museum, and provide historical location context driven data about the site and its buildings. I would like to provide a walking tour incorporating audio, photos, text, and video to provide the historical facts and information.

The concept is similar to the multimedia tours provided inside the Tate Modern but instead of using wireless technology I want to use GPS (Global Positioning Systems) technology to deliver the content to site specific locations, so that when you are approaching the St Fagans Castle for example, you’ll be receiving data about the castles’ history, when it was built, who lived there etc.

The methodology I propose to use will include, semi structured interviews (of the general public, staff, visitors, and school children of a variety of ages) to be undertaken at St Fagans to gain an understanding of the interest people show in using handheld devices to look at historical data with contextual relevancy. I will use analysis of acquired data-filmed, photographic, audio, interviews, and questionnaires to create a prototype on a relevant device based on users expectations.

I would like to be able to directly link my project and my ties to UWIC with your institution and maybe gain access to your library and archives for material to be used as content for the electronic guide.

I thank you for your time in considering my proposal and hope we can work together in the future.

Saturday, January 6, 2007

Visit to Oxford Castle Unlocked

Went to Oxford Castle today with my wife to check out their UNLOCKED multimedia hand held tour using the NODE Explorer Platform. You walk through the ancient buildings of the castle and use the NODE Explorer to experience the stories that connect you the place your walking about in.
Video story with character talking and subtitles.

Menu of route to take with numbers that link up to specific rooms.