Progress report Aug 26-08

Memestreme 2008 Progress Report. Hitting the ground running with GPS and rfid tech.

IAD students Minnie, Jackie and Naurelle have been out in the field, creek really, getting across all things GPS.  We've laid in waypoints and routes on the Garmin eTrex HC and tested the ASUS Virtual Tour Logger.  So that we can plot our routes onto Google Earth we've been transcribing the GIS data into a spreadsheet on the laptop and inputting the manually.

Parks and Wildlife staff Aaron Kopp, Donald Turner Graeme Horne and Dylan Wesley Cole are building the media data sets we'll be using with the NECS rfid Learning table

This involves preparing mp3 audio, jpg photos, text, video and PowerPoint presentation, caching them into discrete media presentations [multimedia slideshows] and editing them with the rfid tech so that the tags trigger specific media slideshows. By selecting the rfid tag next to an item in the museum [embedded in a laminated A4 info sheet] and swiping the sheet across the tag reader at the base of the large screen display additional media information is made available to the user.

The actual Virtual Guded tour has been completed and we are now collaboratively 'fine tuning' the accompanying media. This involves ensuring the metatagging is suitable, there's a little bit of mp3 editing with Audacity to be done, and we are still testing what is the best style of map to use. Were using 3 different maps in our field testing;

1. some beautiful high quality maps generously supplied by Andy Roberts at NT Dept. Lands Planning and Infrastructure 
   
2. PDF visitor  handout maps
   
3. google earth
   

Surprisingly we get excellent GIS accuracy with a PDF copy of the NT Parks and Wildlife Services Telegraph Station visitor handout sheet. Which reminds me of the zillions that NASA spent in the early 1960's developing ballpoint pens for their astronauts in zero gravity... while the soviets used pencils.
Notwithstanding, the lands and Planning maps seem to offer the best user experience [clarity and accuracy, but this is a collaborative project and we'll advise you when a firm decision has been made.