proposal for the AVI '98:
Interfaces for Cultural Heritage
Cultural Dimensions of Interspaces
Around the world, contents of libraries and museums are being digitized.
Cultural Heritage introduces a series of problems for interface design.
It must for example integrate text with images of original objects, their
reconstructions, copies, imitations, fakes, with video, film, sounds etc.
Other challenges include how to:
-
adjust the system to a range of different access choices
-
keep a common interface while adjusting to different levels of education,
adjust the system in keeping with different levels of education, adjust
the system in keeping with different kinds of learner and types of learning,
relating individual lessons to courses, texts, curricula and corpuses of
learning
-
shifting seamlessly between different levels of knowledge
-
integrate different approaches to quality
-
include measures of quantity
-
offer systematic use of simple questions: who, what, where, when, how,
why
-
deal systematically with problems of space, time, cognitive models, and
representations
-
include a rostrum of tools
A prototype for a system for Universal Media Searching (SUMS © 1992-1997),
which integrates these features will be demonstrated and discussed. SUMS
is part of G8 pilot project 5 (Multimedia Access to World Cultural heritage)
and of the MOSAIC project which is linked with the European Commission’s
Trans European Networks (TEN) programme. This system assumes a distributed
network of databases housed in respective museums and libraries. A shortcoming
of such a system lies in relating different versions of authority files
for names, places etc. For this reason, it is suggested that a long-term
solution may well lie in a centralized database of meta-data which would
serve as a digital reference room on a global level and become a key for
a System for Universal Media Access (SUMMA) in a distributed network.
Underlying this approach is an ability to:
-
move from two-dimensional lists to three-dimensional spaces from spatial
to spacial
-
utilize the concept of spatial metaphors as a vehicle for viewpoint generations
and transportation and interface design
-
relate long-term enduring knowledge with short term knowledge of the day
-
correlate the search functionalities of classifications, thesauri and lists
-
use agents to gather information while retaining an active role as a searcher
for the user
-
establishing new ways of visualising subjective viewpoints in objective
data
-
employ the methodologies of Computer Aided Design (CAD), Geographic Information
Systems (GIS) and Global positioning Systems (GPS) in visualizing conceptual
relationsships, theme-scapes and Problem- Learning-Solution Spaces.
The three individuals leading the seminar offer a very diverse set of experiences.
Kim Veltman is a scholar in the field of new media linked with the McLuhan
Program, and President of SUMS Corp. His focus on perspective led from
the history of science at the Warburg Institute to Leonardo da Vinci and
the Perspective Unit in Toronto. Anthony J.N. Judge is Research Director
of the Union of International Associations and has for many years been
working on issues such as problems of cultural biases in databases, intercultural
dialogue, multi-lingual classification and publication. Heiner Benking
is co-founder of infoterm, Associate of the FAW in Ulm, consulted UNEP-HEM
to establish a meta-database, including a multi-lingual, multi-media repository
concepts, for the Harmonization of Environmental Data. In the past 25 years
he has been engaged in subjects connected to data visualisation, with additional
focus since the late 70ies on consulting, marketing, and market research.
He has proposed a theme-scape or mind-scape, a ‘Cognitive Panorama - 3Space/Time’,
a combination of spacial models, which will be introduced briefly. This
Panorama can be understood as a global index or scaffolding for common
frames of references, a layout or design to share orientations and views.
It helps to map and index bodies known and unknown of knowledge.
We recommend:
Veltman: http://www.web.net/~akfe
http://www.web.net/~akfc/perspective/perspective.html
http://www.web.net/~akfc/sums/index.html
http://www.web.net/~akfc/contemporary/contemporary.html
http://www.fis.utoronto.ca/mcluhan/prog3.html
http://www.web.net/~akfc/space.html
http://www.web.net/~akfc/frontiers.html
http://www.give.at/monastry21.htm
http://www.couch.ca/veltman.html
Judge: http://www.uia.org
http://www.uia.org/uiadocs/liber.htm
http://www.uia.org/strategy/stratcon.htm
http://www.uia.org/transfor/01over.htm
http://www.uia.org/uiadocs/transdis.htm#top
http://www.uia.org/uiademo/vrml/vrmldemo.htm
Using Virtual Reality for an Overview of World Problems experimental use
of VRML techniques by the Union of International Associations, eg. Displays:
viscious loops of world problems - Displays: international organizations
- Displays ...
Benking: http://newciv.org/cob/members/benking/benking/
http://newciv.org/cob/members/benking/metapara/
and http://heri.cicv.fr/council/
http://www.fh-koeln.de/fb-spr/su/tke96.htm
http://lucy.lut.ac.uk/c_cog96_workshop.prog.html
http://www.newciv.org/cob/members/benking/CreativeMemberPresentation.html
http://lucy.lut.ac.uk/c_cog96_workshop.prog.html
Veltman/Benking: http://www.wi.uni-trier.de/etc/Isko97/ISKO97.htm
Central the themes of this tutorial with focus on KO Knowledge Organisation
and Switching Systems http://www.wi.uni-trier.de/etc/Isko97/ISKO97.htm
GLOBAL VILLAGE SYMPOSIUM - Friday, February 14, 1997 PANEL 3 and 4
Global Communicators Session and Hypermedia: New Approaches to World Cultural
Heritage and Knowledge
Benking, Judge: Design
Considerations for Spacial Metaphors: http://www.uia.org/uiadocs/spatialm.htm
- reflections on the evolution of viewpoint generation and transportation
systems, acm/ECHT 1994
Kim H. Veltman, Toronto, Anthony J.N. Judge, Brussels,
Heiner Benking, Ulm, Berlin