Digital Technologies and the Museum Experience

Handheld Guides and Other Media

Contributions by Jonathan Bowen, James Bradburne, Alexandra Burch, Lynn Dierking, John Falk, Silvia Filippini Fantoni, Ben Gammon, Ellen Giusti, Halina Gottlieb, Sherry Hsi, Peter Lonsdale, Julia Meek, Ross Parry, Paul Rudman, Peter Samis, Mike Sharples, Jeffery K. Smith, Loïc Tallon, Pablo P.L. Tinio, Giasemi Vavoula, Kevin Walker Edited by Loïc Tallon

Publication date:

28 August 2008

Length of book:

264 pages

Publisher

AltaMira Press

ISBN-13: 9780759111219

The biggest trend in museum exhibit design today is the creative incorporation of technology. Digital Technologies and the Museum Experience: Handheld Guides and Other Media explores the potential of mobile technologies (cell phones, digital cameras, MP3 players, PDAs) for visitor interaction and learning in museums, drawing on established practice to identify guidelines for future implementations.

Chapter 1 Foreword
Chapter 2 Introduction: Mobile, Digital, and Personal
Part 3 Part I. Defining the Context: Three Perspectives
Chapter 4 Chapter 1. The Exploded Museum
Chapter 5 Chapter 2. Learning with Digital Technologies
Chapter 6 Chapter 3. Designing Mobile Digital Experiences
Part 7 Part II. Delivering Potential
Chapter 8 Chapter 4. Audibly Engaged: Talking the Walk
Chapter 9 Chapter 5. Mobile Multimedia: Reflections from Ten Years of Practice
Chapter 10 Chapter 6. Improving Visitor Access
Chapter 11 Chapter 7. Structuring Visitor Participation
Chapter 12 Chapter 8. Designing for Mobile Visitor Engagement
Chapter 13 Chapter 9. Cross-Context Learning
Chapter 14 Chapter 10. Interactive Adventures
Chapter 15 Chapter 11. Afterword: The Future in our Hands? Putting Potential into Practice

This book makes an important and timely contribution to the field of museum studies. For museum practitioners, it provides a useful reference work on the application of digital interpretive technologies. Along with practical and technical information, there is much to stimulate thought about how such technologies encourage and empower the user. The book wisely ends on a cautionary note: to be successful in the longer term 'new museum media always need to harmonize with existing practice.'