MyLifeBits - The start of the real Orison?
Whilst discussing this project with Paul Chambers, I remembered reading this article in the Guardian over the christmas vacation.
It looks at a project currently being undertaken by Microsoft, entitled MyLifeBits. This project was itself based on the Memex, a project conceived by Vannevar Bush, an American Engineer & Science Administrator, in his 1945 paper As We May Think.
The Memex was a system which allowed the user to establish links between a pair of microfilms, each of which would contain hi-res data - This is said to have been one of the inspirations behind hyperlinks.
Users of the Memex would also be able to add their own information to the microfilm either via photographs or a touch-sensitive translucent screen - an idea which is deemed to be one of the first attempts at a personal computer.
MyLifeBits on the other hand is a basically a multimedia database system.
The project allows one researcher, Gordon Bell, to record almost every aspect of his daily life. From storing his emails and recording conversations to capturing video footage and photographic stills of his experiences.
Each piece of information is stored centrally in a huge database running on Microsoft SQL servers. The information is all tagged with MetaData which creates specific links to each individual nugget, but also allows for hyperlinks to be dynamically generated for every new inclusion.
For instance, a photograph of some friends or family members instantly generates name based metadata regarding the poepl in the composition. This information is then automatically linked to Contact Information, Birthday details, emails, other photos etc.The project seems to allow for a persons life to become entity similar to the internet in size and searchability.
An article in New Scientist considers how in the future of the project, it may be used as a research tool to analyse the lives of our ancestors. This is similar to how the Orison is used in Cloud Atlas.
I believe that the Microsoft project has attempted to make parts of the information gathering stage a more organic experience. GPS, cameras, mouse trackers - these are just some of the tools that are used to input information into the database. Although these technologies are by no means organic technically, they do allow a user to record data using methods that they are already accustomed to, there is no need to follow yet another set of complex instructions in order for the data capturing process to work. The technology seeks to become ubiquitous, and therefore less obtrussive to the user.
It looks at a project currently being undertaken by Microsoft, entitled MyLifeBits. This project was itself based on the Memex, a project conceived by Vannevar Bush, an American Engineer & Science Administrator, in his 1945 paper As We May Think.
The Memex was a system which allowed the user to establish links between a pair of microfilms, each of which would contain hi-res data - This is said to have been one of the inspirations behind hyperlinks.
Users of the Memex would also be able to add their own information to the microfilm either via photographs or a touch-sensitive translucent screen - an idea which is deemed to be one of the first attempts at a personal computer.
MyLifeBits on the other hand is a basically a multimedia database system.
The project allows one researcher, Gordon Bell, to record almost every aspect of his daily life. From storing his emails and recording conversations to capturing video footage and photographic stills of his experiences.
Each piece of information is stored centrally in a huge database running on Microsoft SQL servers. The information is all tagged with MetaData which creates specific links to each individual nugget, but also allows for hyperlinks to be dynamically generated for every new inclusion.
For instance, a photograph of some friends or family members instantly generates name based metadata regarding the poepl in the composition. This information is then automatically linked to Contact Information, Birthday details, emails, other photos etc.The project seems to allow for a persons life to become entity similar to the internet in size and searchability.
An article in New Scientist considers how in the future of the project, it may be used as a research tool to analyse the lives of our ancestors. This is similar to how the Orison is used in Cloud Atlas.
I believe that the Microsoft project has attempted to make parts of the information gathering stage a more organic experience. GPS, cameras, mouse trackers - these are just some of the tools that are used to input information into the database. Although these technologies are by no means organic technically, they do allow a user to record data using methods that they are already accustomed to, there is no need to follow yet another set of complex instructions in order for the data capturing process to work. The technology seeks to become ubiquitous, and therefore less obtrussive to the user.
posted by Paul Coffield at 3:46 AM
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