May 16, 2010

Dr. Steven Lubar Albert Lees

Professor and Director Master’s Candidate
John Nicholas Brown Center Public Humanities
For the Public Humanities and and Cultural Heritage
Cultural Heritage Brown University
357 Benefit Street Providence, Rhode Island
Providence, Rhode Island

The mobileJNBC Project:

Connecting Mobile Communities

In the spring of 2008, two Brown University Master’s students, Al Lees and Leah
Nahmias wrote The Public Humanities Toolbox: Engaging Communities Online, an extensive
manual detailing how small cultural heritage organizations could successfully use simple and
readily available web tools to create exciting websites. During the ensuing year and one-half, we
have been privileged to present the results of this project in numerous venues including the
National Conference of Public History (2009), the Pioneer Valley Historical Network (2009) and
at the University of Massachusetts-Boston’s Graduate Public History Seminar (2010). Our
research, critical thought and practical application of new and innovative web-based tools
continues to develop along with our overall enthusiasm for this medium as a means for small
cultural organizations to effectively compete with others for the public’s ‘share of mind.” The
medium, however, is rapidly becoming more mobile. As ‘smartphones’ and other devises, like the
iPad, continue their exponential proliferation, reaching ‘on the go’ audiences can become
exponentially more difficult for organizations who may lack the expertise or the financial
wherewithal to implement a mobile strategy. With this in mind, and the desire to leverage the
information included in the Public Humanities Toolbox, we have extended this knowledge by
demonstrating a simple and effective means of public engagement within a mobile environment.
We assume that out readers have a working knowledge of Wordpress and the use of third
party plug-ins. If this is not the case, we suggest that you first download the Public Humanities
Toolbox from our website and review the instructional manual before you proceed. This
information forms the structure framework for what is to follow. It is also assumed that you are
currently using the full-featured Wordpress application, available free at Wordpress.org. For
those of you who are currently using another blogging application (Moveable Type, Blogger,
etc.,), we suggest converting your current blog into the Wordpress format. Although we are not
explicitly endorsing one particular application, we have found Wordpress, a platform supported
by hundreds of dedicated open source developers, to be the most robust tool of its kind.
This project investigates a framework, methodology, and implementation of Wordpress’
capabilities as a mobile interface. Our example centers on developing a mobile application that
allows visitors access to a multiplicity of information about the historic Burial Grounds and
Cemeteries in Little Compton, Rhode Island, particularly the Commons Burial Ground that
includes in excess of two hundred graves dating from 1698 to 1820. This website is by no means
fully articulated and will hopefully undergo continual modifications as the depth of information
expands within the site, and the breadth of new applications increases the site’s functionality.
Regardless, of these qualifiers and disclaimers, the mobileJNBC Project offers a new set of tools
that will enable small cultural institutions further abilities to connect with their audience in a new
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and exciting manner.

The mobileJNBC Project

The Basics:

Wordpress 2.9.2

This is the most recent full-featured Wordpress application.

Filezilla

A free, open source FTP (file transfer protocol) client that transfers files from a
computer’s hard drive to your remote server (and vice versa).

Blue Host

One of a number of third party web hosting services, Blue Host is a reliable hosting
service that provides full support for Wordpress.

WPtouch:

Our current choice as a mobile interface is Wptouch. We found it to be relatively simple

to install and intuitive to interact with. One cautionary note: Wptouch does recognize the
operating systems of a variety of mobile devises; however, do not be assume that the
appearance of a web-based blog will automatically translate well onto a mobile devise.
To assure that your audience can mobily view your blog properly, it is almost essential to
have constant access to one or more devises. We have chosen to test our mobile
application with an iPhone.

Installing Wptouch:

This application was developed by a third party developer and is not part of the basic
Wordpress software. Like any other plug-in, you must download and install it before it will
function within the Wordpress environment. Fortunately, this is accomplished in the same, simple
manner as all other plug-in tools. The following steps show you how to complete this operation.

Step 1: Download Wptouch:

Selecting this link will take you to the Brave New Code website. Click the
download button on the top of the screen. A Wptouch zip file will automatically be
downloaded to your computer’s hard drive.

Step 2: Unzipping the file:

Locate the .zip file you just downloaded (I prefer to direct these files to my
desktop … you can delete it later). Double click on the icon to unpack the file. A
folder named WPtouch will appear on your desktop. This is the folder that you will copy
to your remote server.

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Step 3: Placing Wptouch in Wordpress:
OK, now is the time for those of you who are not familiar with this process to
refer to the Public Humanities Toolbox instructions. We assume that you have an
established domain name and are connected to your domain site via an FTP client. It
should look something like this:

Find the folder named plugins and drag the Wptouch folder into it. You’re almost there…

Step 4: Final Installation:

Now that the plug-in has been placed in the plugin folder inside of your websites
file structure, you need to locate it and then install it so that it becomes integrated into
Wordpress.
A. Open your browser and type in the URL and path of your website. For
our project, this would be http://mobile.digitaljnbc.org. You must also
add the path to the admin dashboard, much as you would for any other
administrative operation. The URL and path looks like this:
http://mobile.digitaljnbc.org/wp-admin.
B. Half way down the left hand column, locate Plugins and click on the
Add New link. This will direct you to a page that looks like this:

C. To find Wptouch, type this in the Search Plugin box at the top (you will see
that this has been done) and click the Search Plugins button. Wptouch iPhone
Theme appears at the top of the search results. On the right hand side, click
the install button.

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 D. One more screen will appear to complete the installation:

Notice the orange box that reads Latest Version Installed. This would read
Install Now for first time installations, but because ours is already installed it
reads this way. Click the box and Wptouch will automatically in your
Wordpress application.

Now that these steps have been completed, and Wptouch has been successfully installed, we are
now ready to begin building the website.

Organization: The First and Most Critical Step

Throughout our study, it has become abundantly clear that organizing the structure of
one’s intended website/mobile app is far more critical than learning the tools necessary to
accomplish the task. This may seem counter-intuitive inasmuch as it would seem that a working
knowledge of the application would lead to the construction of a more robust site. We suggest
however, that while your goal may eventually be achieved, this “back door” methodology will
cause more aggravation and unnecessarily consume more time than it’s worth. The catch phrase
here is ‘Form Follows Function.’ Be committed to how your website should function for the end
user and then determine the form it should take.
This project is predicated on a web-based framework. This is an important consideration
for you to remember when developing your mobile site. Two advantages that natively embedded
apps have over its web-based cousin is greater speed and easier accessibility, in other words they
are easier to find on your mobile devise. The second point has an effective, although not
particularly elegant solution, which can be viewed by selecting this link, but speed is a real
consideration that must always be taken into account. Regardless of what we might wish for, our
site is currently at the mercy of upload and download speeds via a 3G or 4G connection; rarely is
a Wi-Fi connection available. Without accepting this as fact, it would be tempting to create a
website that was graphically stunning but impossible to view, potentially turning your best efforts
into a complete disappointment. Therefore, remember to always test you site as though you were
a user standing in the middle of ‘nowhere.’ There is no substitute for being the developer and the
end user. Until or unless the issue of acceptable connectivity is solved over a wide range of
geographies, the form of your website must take this functional deficiency into account.
Of equal importance is to fully reconcile how you would like your site to function. For
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some, a basic presence that includes a mission statement, hours and directions, and one or more
posts highlighting upcoming events is adequate. We have identified his type of functionality as
Web 1.0 and may well be the ideal place to begin. If however, you envision your website to
operate within the free wheeling third space of social interactivity, you and your organization
must develop a set of objectives and goals that creates a structural framework for achieving what
you have set out to accomplish. We believe that this process begins with properly framed
questions; examples of which may take the following form:

• To what extent does my organization desire to interact with our audience?

• What tools would we like to employ? Google maps, Facebook, Twitter, Flickr?
• What is the goal for using these social networking tools?
• How might they function in mobile space?
• How might you integrate these, or other tools, in a compelling, informative way?
• Are you trying to collect information (images, audio, etc.) as part of an intangible
heritage project?
• Are you interested in collecting information of a particular event(s)?
• Might you be interested in curating an online exhibition where the audiences are also
participants?

Clearly the list of questions that one might pose is almost endless. The point, however is that the
what and how of is vitally more important than the application’s visual appeal. This is not to say
that it should be stripped of a pleasing aesthetic, but it should not be so overloaded with glitz as to
take away from the functional purpose.
As we have mentioned, the concept for this project was to create a Web 2.0 interactive
mobile application that engages visitors with three exemplary graveyards in Little Compton,
Rhode Island. To accomplish this, we used Wordpress as the overarching web-blog software with
the added feature of Wptouch as our mobile interface. Thinking about how we wished for this
application to interact with our audience, we determined that that:

• The site should be easy to create and intuitive for the end user to navigate,
• It must be able to display information in a concise manner,
• To expand the audiences experience, audio and video components must be included,
• Mapping of historic and cultural sites is a key component, and
• The end user must be able to share their experience, in real time.

The interoperability, or the ability for these applications to work seamlessly together, will ideally
allow us to construct an integrated, holistic website that will be simple for the end user to
navigate and interact with.

Building the Site:

We believe that one of the great promises of mobile technology is the ability to physically
and emotionally connect person to place. With this in mind, our initial intention was to build the
following functionality into our website:

• An interactive map that highlights many of the cultural and historic sites within the town,
• A video presentation that welcomes the visitor and introduces them to the many cultural
opportunities the town offers,
• Audio casts that can be played by the visitor is they drive, ride, or walk through the burial
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 grounds,
• A descriptive tour of the Commons Burial Ground, which is possibly the town’s most
important historic place.

Once we established the parameters for the website, it was time to envision the form it would
take. It was at this stage of development that we decided which API’s (application programming
interfaces, programs designed to interact with one another) to use, including Google maps, Flickr,
and You Tube, all of which we hoped to incorporate within our site. Remember when we
cautioned about the importance of constantly testing your application on a “real world” mobile
devise to help ensure ultimate visitor satisfaction? Our own thwarted experiences attest to this.
Knowledge is often gained by what one learns he/she cannot do rather than what they
can. This was certainly true in the initial stages of this project. We began by mapping a selection
of the cultural and historic sites in Little Compton using Google Maps, a familiar application to
both developers and end users. Locations were identified by ‘drop pins’ and basic text was
entered in the pop-up box at which point the map was successfully tested on both a Mac and a PC
laptop. Everything was where it should be; locations were properly identified and the text was
legible. We were now ready to view our ‘extraordinary’ creation on the iPhone. The map of Little
Compton appeared as we had hoped, but that was all … no drop pins and no text. We were not
only disappointed; we were perplexed, and frustrated. Little did we realize that this was only one
of many similar experiences.
UMapper, an application that allows one to upload a map or image of their choice and
embed text, images, audio and video within it was our next attempt. The results were the same;
our test mapping project appeared on our website but not on the iPhone. We had similar results
with Sound Cloud, a streaming audio application that allows the end user to listen, comment and
share. At this stage, after our frustration subsided, we determined that the problem was not with
WordPress, WPtouch, or ourselves, but with Apple mobile devises (iPhone and iPad in
particular), both of which do not support Adobe Flash. It is not that they are incapable– they are
unwilling, and the collective ‘we’ are caught in the middle of competing corporate ideologies.
Regardless of the philosophical arguments, we were forced to rethink our mobile structure. Form
does follow function! With the goals for the project still very much intact, we sought to devise
ways to ‘work through’ the limitations of the iPhone/Adobe controversy by creating a site that
avoided the use of Flash.

Revised Project:

The development of a rich, interactive project is an organic process. One’s final,

deliverable product will, almost inevitably, vary from the initial ‘drawing board’ concept. The
amount of external stimuli that you will receive throughout this project will shape what you want
to say and how you want to say it. This was, and continues to be, the case with this project.
Valuable input from colleagues and the discovery of new software applications led to a re-
examination of the visitor experience and a new articulation of the web site. From our earlier
iteration, the project evolved to include and/or demonstrate:

• Audio and video presentations given by Carlton Brownell at the Old Commons Burial
Ground,
• An interactive mapping project using an iPhone app named uGuideme,
• An thematic historical scavenger hunt named LCHunt using the iPhone app SCVNGR,
• A four minute iMovie presentation of burial ground imagery set to the music of Clannad,
• An example of a self guided tour through the Old Commons Burial Ground using one’s
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 iPhone as an information delivery devise.

These revised goals are accomplishable within the iPhone framework and eminently achievable
by anyone with limited experience using the software tools.
We have discussed the trials and tribulations of developing mobile applications within
this evolving environment. At times it can be frustrating, but we assure you that the process of
discovering solutions and the final outcome is exhilarating. In this section, we describe which
applications were chosen to produce a deliverable mobile project. Although developed using
Apple software, similar software is available for either Windows or Linux based operating
systems. The key is that the processes are almost identical for any platform.

The mobile Toolbox:

Audio Presentation:

Audio Capture Devises – Many digital voice recorders that currently sell for less than
$100.00 produce high quality audio recordings. Our choice is an Olympus WS-311M Digital
Voice Recorder, although many other brands are readily available and will produce equal or
superior results. An important consideration is that, for simplified audio file transfer, your
recorder should easily connect to your computer. If you do not currently own a DVR that has a
USB connection built in - buy one that does. This one feature alone will save you hours of time.
We would also recommend the use of an external microphone to enhance the quality of your
recording.
You may find that your audio recording is in a format other than an .mp3, currently the
industry standard for streaming audio. We discovered, for example, that when we imported our
audio from the DVR to our computer, a .WMA extension was associated with it, and it could not
be read by Audacity, our free audio editing software. You will need to install an audio application
that will accept multiple audio formats and convert them to a readable file type. Our solution,
which we will now describe, was to install EasyWMA, an inexpensive tool that performed simply
and wonderfully.

Converting Your Audio Recording:

Step 1: Plug the Digital Voice Recorder’s USB connection into your computer’s USB
port and transfer the file to an appropriate folder (one that you previously created.) Most
recorders automatically name the audio file with something unrecognizable! Give the file
a name that makes sense to you.

Step 2: From your computer’s menu, open the EasyWMA software. A dialogue box will
pop-up. Choose the file extension you wish to convert to (in most instances this will be
mp3.)

Step 3: Choose File > Open > and select the name of the file you wish to convert. Once
you click that file name, it will automatically be brought into EasyWMA and converted
to an mp3 audio file.

Step 4: You should find a file with the same name but with the new extension – for
example audioname.mp3.

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Please note that the free demo download will only allow you to convert 15 seconds of audio. To
convert any sized file, you must purchase the full version at a cost of $10.00 U.S.

Editing Your Audio Recording:

No audio recording is perfect, or rarely is it suited for immediate uploading. Voices fade,
noises crackle, and subjects cough. It’s all part of the process. You may also find yourself in a
creative mood, adding introductory audio or background music, fading from one clip to another,
etc. All of this is very possible using any number of free or inexpensive audio editing software
packages. (We use Audacity for audio editing). While it is beyond the scope of this project to
create an editing tutorial, be aware that learning the basics of editing will more fully develop your
audio project, and add to the enjoyment of your audience(s).

Video Presentations:

Video presentations within a mobile environment can be a dramatic and compelling

method of engaging your audience; however for most of us the thought of creating a video can be
daunting and intimidating. With desire, a bit of practice, and the new software and technology
tools available, a video can be a rewarding addition to your web site. While few of us will ever
compete for an Academy Award with our presentations, they will nevertheless be important
documentary materials for your organization and for the community that you serve.
This project utilized two methods of video engagement; an edited piece featuring Carlton
Brownell, town historian and eighth generation resident of Little Compton and a photo essay set
to background music. The purpose of the first was to give visitors a feel for the history of the Old
Commons Burial Ground, ideally when they were physically there, and the second was to provide
an overview of three historic cemeteries through a visual and emotional appeal. We will now
describe the steps involved in each process.

Film Footage:

Step 1: Raw video footage of Carlton Brownell was shot using a Flip Video camera on
May 4, 2010 in front of the United Congregational Church in Little Compton, RI. He was
not provided with a script; instead a few directional statements were given to him prior to
the taping. Our goal was to film the actual reminiscences of a lifelong resident, not to
place ‘words in his mouth.’

Step 2: Import the actual footage from the video camera into your computer. With a Flip
Video camera, this process is the same as with the Digital Voice Recorder (USB to USB
connection.) Place the file in an appropriate folder.

Step 3: Make copies! We cannot stress enough the importance of making copies,
particularly if the video may never be reproducible. Working with copies will allow you
to experiment and/or make mistakes without destroying the original documentary
material.

Step 4: Converting your file … here we go again! Unfortunately, Flip Video saves the
file as an. AVI that is not particularly friendly to either iMovie or most third party sites,
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 for instance youTube. Currently the universal standard is an .mp4 format. To accomplish
this, we imported our raw .AVI copy into a tool called iSKYSoft and converted it to
an .mp4 file and place it in the appropriate folder.

Step 5: Most Mac users will be familiar with iMovie, part of Apple’s iLife suite of
applications, although more than likely you, like us, have avoided it. It takes a bit of
getting used to, but with patience and a will to learn, a competent video can be produced
within 2-3 hours depending upon its complexity. We encourage those of you who are
interested to view their online tutorial and take a stab at it.

Step 6: Upload to YouTube. Although it is very possible to embed a Wordpress plug-in

to allow video streaming directly from your server, we found that YouTube gives us the
display flexibility and the social networking possibilities that we were looking for. If you
do not currently have one, create a YouTube account for your organization and upload
your .mp4 movie per instructions. Once completed, you can then copy the embedding
code and place it into a page or post within your site (for reasons that will be clearer later,
we recommend placing the code in a page and not a post, making sure that it is pasted in
the HTML tab of the page.

Photo File Essay:

The process of creating a photo essay is similar in many respects to producing film
footage. The primary difference is that you will be working with individual still images rather
than running commentary and for this reason you will have to use some iMovie tools that you
may not employ with film. The following are some tips for you to consider:

• Make certain that your still images are formatted as .jpg or .jpeg’s. Most digital cameras
record the image in this format automatically, but if not bring them into some standard
photo-editing software, for example Photoshop, and save them as a .jpg. You may also
want to further edit the image while you’re there, enhancing, highlighting or cropping it
for later use.
• Inside iMovie, pay particular attention to the lower right hand box. This is where you
access music, photos, transitions, and title slides. Some or all of these will be used more
often in this format than with raw film footage.
• Length of time between transitions and viewing of the individual photos will need to be
adjusted to produce a smoother finished product. To do this click on any photo and click
on the clock face. A pop-up window will appear where you can adjust the number of
seconds. For transitions, place the cursor over it and either right click a two key mouse or
Control>Click. At the bottom of the pop-up dialogue box you will see Set Duration.
Click and set the time accordingly.
• Music will greatly enhance your finished product. Select music carefully as there might
be copyright issues with commercially produced pieces. One suggestion is to use
Creative Commons music.

There are a number of creative ways to produce video presentations for mobile viewers. The only
limit is your imagination.

Mapping

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 Mapping and displaying your project is currently a challenge using an iPhone; something
that we have previously addresses. Until or unless the Flash controversy is rectified, we
recommend the use of uGUIDEme, a third party developer. This application is an intuitive
mapping tool that will allow you to select any number points of interest with embedded text,
images, audio and video directly onto a map that can be viewed and searched via an iPhone.

Wptouch: The Engine that Drives This Mobile Application

Who ever suspected that a blog would someday become a tool in and of itself? Seemingly
improbable, that is what it has become for those of use who wish to have information viewed
with mobile devises. For those who do not have the programming skill-sets to develop an
application from a blank computer screen, it has become the interface between organizations and
the rapidly expanding mobile space of users who wish for ‘on the go’ connectivity. A variety of
bridging applications exist that convert WordPress blogs into mobile applications, and we
encourage you to explore the options available, as we did. In the end, we chose Wptouch, a robust
plug-in that easily delivers the power of Wordpress into the mobile space. Although not perfect,
the software is malleable and capable of delivering a fairly robust viewer experience with relative
ease.
Wptouch includes fairly robust intuitive group of settings that allow you to
customize your site. It is not our purpose at this juncture to describe each one to you, nor
is it necessary. Most will be obvious to you, while others may not be applicable. Through
experimentation, you will soon find the settings appropriate for your individual wants and
needs. Having said this, we offer you some universal tips that should help you maximize
the ‘look and feel’ of your site.
• Under the settings tab, you will find the Wptouch link to access the dashboard. It
is here that the customization takes place.
• The first drop down menu is titled Wptouch Home Page. We strongly suggest that
you set it to WordPress Settings. This ‘tells’ the software that you want the home
page, for example, to be the same as your Wordpress setting. When we attempted
to select another page, the mobile application would not process our request,
resulting in an error message. To set your Home Page in WordPress:
o Select the Reading Link in the Settings menu. Here you can set any page
as a static front page, meaning that it will always be your home page
unless you change it. Rather than select a static page, we recommend that
you choose your latest posts as the home page. While not as elegant
presented in your blog as another page might be, it delivers concise
navigation to you iPhone.
o When you are creating a post, we recommend that you do not clutter it
with images or embedded objects. Simplicity! Give the viewer a taste of
what to expect through carefully worded text. If the so choose, they can
select ‘Read this Post’ which will bring them to a more completely formed
page.
• Although this is a WordPress quirk, the only way to arrange posts in a particular
sequence is to change the date and time. Wordpress recognizes the most recent
post at the top, so you will have to ‘trick it’ into thinking your way! To do this, go
to the post page, and then Quick Edit. Once there, make sure that all of the post
are the same date (this can be any date of your choice, but they must all be the
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 same.) Choose the post that you want at the top and give it a time that is close to
the current time. For example, if it is now 3:00 PM (15:00hrs) type in 14:30
(2:30PM). Do the same for your second choice but instead set that time as 14:00
and so forth. You will now have the posts lined up in your sequence not
WordPress’.
• Wptouch only shows those pages that you select, which is located under the Menu
Items and Page Icons section near the bottom of the screen. Here you can select or
deselect the pages you would like to present, along with a selection of icons that
will be seen on your mobile devise next to the page name.

These tips will help you avoid many of the early pitfalls that we encountered throughout
our exploration of Wptouch. Undoubtedly you will encounter others that we have
inadvertently omitted. We will be happy to consult with you about any specific issue that
you may encounter via email. Conversely, please share and workarounds that you found
valuable either via email or on the Public Humanities Toolbox website.

Fun Application

If your organization is like most others who are trying to more actively engage audiences
with history, you should consider SCVNGR, an easy to create scavenger hunt. The basic premise
is to have your visitor embark on a predetermined scavenger hunt, going point to point by
responding to a series of questions provided by you. Our example is LCHunt and we encourage
you to play. All you need is a sense of adventure and an iPhone. One cautionary note: this can be
pricey. We encourage you to contact the developer beforehand – we have found them to be very
responsive.

Future Applications

In a digital world, where global development of applications never sleeps, the potential
current and future lists of possible applications for your mobile site are mind-boggling. One
currently available application is Look Back Maps. As their site describes,

There’s something in being human that wonders what was here before us—who occupied
this space, how did they live, what did they leave behind? By mapping the millions of
historical photos available through public libraries and private collections on the web, we
start to piece together the puzzle.

We have only conducted a cursory examination of its potential uses for local cultural
organizations; however, our plan is to do so in the near future. If you, or anyone that you know,
has had experience with this application, please drop us a line.

Is 2010 the year that ‘smartphones’ will dominate how information is distributed? This is
difficult to determine really, but one thing is certain, the proliferation of so called smart phones,
defined by Forrester Research as "a mobile phone or connected handheld device that uses a high-
level operating system, including iPhone OS, BlackBerry OS, Windows Mobile, PalmOS,

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WebOS, Symbian, and any flavor of Linux including Android"1 shows no signs of abating any
time soon. A report, also conducted in October and November by Forrester Research, found that
17 percent of US adults used smartphones, up from 11 percent in 2008 and 7 percent in 2007 and
that fully one in three Americans now own a smartphone or QMD (quick messaging device);
statistics that, by any measure, indicate a steepening growth curve that will continue to grow in
both depth of content and breadth of market saturation. Their relatively low cost, mobility, and
multi-functional attributes are contributing factors to an ever-expanding mobile culture. In a
world of "instant" access", where information, products, and services are no longer a novelty, but
an expectation, I suggest that mobile technology as an information gateway will fundamentally
alter how, when, and why individual’s experience and consume a vast array goods and services,
including culture and heritage. It is not a question of If your organization should pursue a mobile
strategy, it is when and how.

1 [http://blogs.forrester.com/consumer_product_strategy/2010/01/2009-year-of-the-smartphone-kinda.html]
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