iGuides from StreetAccess

Using a PDA

Development and evaluation of web-based museum trails, designed to be accessed on PDAs by design students in V&A galleries

Project leader: Rebecca Reynolds

Twenty web-based multimedia museum trails were developed, using software developed by a company called StreetAccess and held on the StreetAccess website.  These were designed to be accessed on PDAs by design students in V&A galleries.  Media used included audio, video, text and images. Students could input into the trails in the form of photos, voice recordings and text. Activities on the trails included:

  • Listening to different viewpoints about objects and galleries and adding one's own
  • Following the development of design styles (such as Classical and Gothic) as they were illustrated by objects in the galleries
  • Comparing the roles of objects and the way people responded to them in the museum shop and in a gallery

Innovative approaches to materials design were explored and the trails evaluated in a three-stage process.  Unfortunately, technical difficulties meant that the trails did not become part of the museum's educational provision.