Is Geotagging
the New Tool in the
Documentary Toolbox?

Waag Society
Creative technology for social innovation

7scenes
Mobile and online platform for GPS games and tours

Places - more than geography
have histories, invoke behavior, are personal, physical & virtual

Mobile phone: “swiss army knife”
always on, always linked in, location & context-aware

How can we see & shape this new mobile space?
We need new tools!

It’s more than a collection of points-of-interest

“All the world is a stage and all men and women merely players”
create scenarios, design rules, direct interaction

Geotagging for visualisation
Making the invisible visible

Britain from Above
planes

Britain from Above
boats

Britain from Above
trains

Britain from Above
taxis

Britain from Above
planes

Britain from Above
children

Britain from Above
carbagetrucks

Amsterdam RealTime
A new collaborative map of Amsterdam

Amsterdam RealTime
A new collaborative map of Amsterdam

Amsterdam RealTime
A new collaborative map of Amsterdam

Amsterdam RealTime
A new collaborative map of Amsterdam

N8 game
Competing teams with creative drawing tools

N8 game
Competing teams with creative drawing tools

N8 game
Competing teams with creative drawing tools

Futuresonic Festival in Manchester
a geotagged reporting experiment

Sarai, Delhi
a new psychogeographic map

Sarai, Delhi
tracing the old Delhi city wall

Esther Polak
Milk & Nomadic Milk

Christian Nold
Biomapping & emotionmaps

Steph Thirion
Cascade on Wheels

Beatriz da Costa with Cina Hazegh and Kevin Ponto
Pigeonblog

Jeremy Wood
GPSdrawing

Stamen
Cabspotting

A new tool?
visualize flows for a new understanding
•
(re-)explore your surroundings
•
traces are very personal
•
discussion platform: collect feedback & stories
•
• active user participation: mapping is a collaborative process
live broadcasting
•
Geotagging for visualisation
Making the invisible visible

Geotagging for on-site publication
New city experiences

(Urban) landscape
Rich in content
Cultural meaning, historic events, demographics and more
Rich in physical landmarks
Buildings, squares, monuments, paths, structures, natural elements, etc
Personal
personal memories and associations, social connections
The (urban) landscape as your exhibition space

The recipe
locations & landmarks + rich media content +
themes + narrative + navigation +
(game)rules for (social) interaction
personal trigger (GPS), perception & input
=
new meaning
That magic moment...

Anne Frank
Exploring Anne Frank’s direct neighborhood

Frequency 1550
www.waag.org/frequency

An educational location-based game, blending medieval
history out on the streets of Amsterdam.

Frequency 1550
The right balance: gameplay, narrative & interaction on location

Fort Amsterdam - Discover New Yorks Dutch roots
www.fortamsterdam.org

Fort Amsterdam - Discover New Yorks Dutch roots
www.fortamsterdam.org

Fort Amsterdam - Hudson ’09 - 400 year anniversary
www.fortamsterdam.org

Timemachine

Timemachine
Time travel to Holland’s golden ages by car

Re-architect
www.re-architect.org

Re-architect
Photographic treasure hunt exploring Hong Kong’s architecture

Games Atelier
Learn about citizenship in Amsterdam’s Oosterpark

Blast Theory
Uncle Roy All Around You, Can You See Me Now & more

Yolande Harris
Sun Run Sun

Teri Rueb
Drift

Mushon Zer-Aviv & Kati London
You Are Not Here

Ricardo Dominguez et al @ UCSD
Transborder Immigrant Tool

<TAG> & Sander Veenhof
Second Life visits The Hague

A new tool?
the city is a stage: a new publication platform
•
blending the physical & virtual: create new meaning
•
new formats: different possibilities for interaction
•
make history come alive
•
the power of maps & navigation
•
make it personal
•
co-creation
•
Geotagging for on-site publication
New city experiences

Thanks! Questions?
ronald@7scenes.com
ronald@waag.org