Interpretive.Tech

Open Technology for Informal Education

Open Frameworks

Teaching takes many forms and utilizes a wide range of tools.

Digital technologies can add dimension to informal education.

CLIO

Adaptive digital interactives

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POP

Build-It-Yourself modular kiosk

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Development

Community-focused technology

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Our frameworks supplement your existing resources with adaptive interactives that can be used on-line and in-person.

Examples

Mix and match technologies to create new interaction experiences.

All from the same activities.

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Blog-Based Lesson

Create interactive activities for your blog-based lessons and then embed them within pre-recorded facilitation videos.

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Community Feedback

Host CLIO over the internet and provide public access to prototypes to gather community Feedback.

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Gallery Exhibit

Design discrete interactives to reinforce educational outcomes and display them in a gallery alongside your collection.

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Live Broadcast

Embed activities into a live digital broadcast to demonstrate key concepts.

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Online Exhibit

Leverage digital interactives to bolster your online exhibits and demonstrate necessary context.

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Pop-Up Exhibit

Bring kiosks on the road and pop-up an interactive experience for your audience, tailored on-the-fly by trained Facilitators.

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Remote Learning

Share interactive activities in your video stream and send web links for synchronous participation.

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Virtual Kiosk

Host CLIO over the internet and set-up a temporary kiosk on any computer with a mouse and web browser, or provide access during development testing.

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An Open Ecosystem

Our frameworks are open-source, meaning you don't need to worry about licensing or fees. We incorporate work from numerous open communities:

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Raspberry Pi

This microcomputer is about the size of a deck of cards and offers the same technologies as a conventional computer at a fraction of the cost.

They are excellent for running CLIO and powering interactive exhibits. The Raspberry Pi provides unparalled extensibility through add-on modules created and maintained by a vibrant open community.

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Linux

Computer operating systems comes in many flavors, but most Linux distributions share a similar open ethos.

Global communities contribute to this open technology, creating an expansive web of human expression and technological connection.

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3D Printing

Fused Filament Fabrication, or FFF, is an open-source 3D printing technology that fuses plastic filaments to create objects by stacking hundreds of thin layers.

This technique works perfectly for prototyping interactives, printing the POP kiosk, and creating props for use within an exhibit.

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Web Technologies

CLIO is based on open web technologies that have continued maturing since the early days of the internet.

HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript and PHP provide a wide range of power tools to developers while still being accessible to those looking to learn.

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Python

Python is an accessible programming language that provides powerful ways to control open hardware.

CLIO combines JavaScript, PHP and Python to create a framework for controlling the Raspberry Pi as well as external hardware – such as lights and motors – through an interactive interface.

When everything is easy to modify and share, you can create a pretty impressive ecosystem.

Please remember to credit and contribute accordingly.

Digital Interactives

Creating digital interactives can be daunting. We developed our open resources alongside knowledge institutions to help guide your creative process.

Our frameworks supplement your traditional educational techniques to deepen connections, promote exploration and provide context.

Activity Types

Activities are created through templates based on common interactions. They are perfect for repurposing multimedia, displaying digital collections and showcasing interpretive language.

We provide seventeen different activity types to get you started. Some examples include:

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Image Gallery

Display a gallery of images with captions.

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Visual Thinking

This inquiry-based learning activity can be used to highlight a collection of images and provide a prompt so that the user can learn more about the things they find most interesting.

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Narrative Text

Display rich text and play a narrated voiceover.

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Collections Gallery

This activity is designed to draw connections between a museum’s “home” collections and the objects on display in outreach programming.

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Timeline

This activity creates an ordered timeline that users can navigate through, date by date.

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Development Stack

Our frameworks are designed to be a starting point for creating digital interactives. They build on top of resources that your intstitution already has.

CLIO

POP

Institution

Interpretation

exhibits, lessons, rich text, multimedia

Facets

professionals, collections, identity

Development Roles

Cultural heritage professionals balance numerous responsibilities. Some are educators, or designers, or makers. Many are more than one.

We've broken down our documentation into role-based archetypes to help make better sense of our creative process.

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Designer

Designers integrate the frameworks into your institution's aesthetic and branding.

They alter the interface, modify multimedia, and help design new Activity Types.

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Developer

Developers maintain code and provide insights into technology integration.

They encode drafting templates, help create new Activity Types and collaborate with Makers to develop interactive experiences.

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Educator

Educators define learning outcomes, write informative language, and choose multimedia for the activities.

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Evaluator

Evaluators gather information about improving the interactives in certain contexts.

They collect community feedback, analyze information within established frameworks and collaborate with other team members during development.

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Facilitator

Facilitators setup events, lead educational sessions and help Visitors interface with the available technology.

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Maker

Makers use fabrication techniques like 3D printing and commodity electronics to create the physical enclosures for digital interactives. They often work alongside Developers to integrate exhibit effects into interactive activities.

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Organizer

Organizers manage planning and provide a decisive cohesion to the project by defining audiences, categorizing activities and defining the flow of interactives alongside Facilitators.

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Visitor

Visitors use the interactives as part of their educational experience. They provide feedback to Facilitators and offer insights for future development.

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Community-Focused Development

Our Process

The modular nature of our frameworks allows research, design, development, and evaluation steps to happen asynchronously for different roles within the project.

Project planning was workshopped using the MuseTech model. We performed facilitator and visitor testing through surveys and interview. Throughout the process, we hosted demonstrations, critique sessions and web seminars centering open-source technologies for informal education.

History

These frameworks have been in active development since 2019 and the team has worked with museums, libraries, cultural centers, and public community college host sites for independent development cycles.