Telling tales on the web
I’m going to the Telling tales: interpretation in the conservation and design process conference in Sydney.
Conference-goers are invited to bring posters on the theme of innovative concepts and media to communicate heritage meanings. This got me thinking about the ways I use this website to tell stories about people and places, and what makes it a good medium.
Eight reasons why a personal website is a good place for committing acts of interpretation:
It’s personal. Here I speak for myself, with my own voice — as when I describe The Ganges at Varanasi, or Hotel room, Chandi Chowk, Delhi.
It’s immediate. I can publish an account of an experience the same day it happens — see How I spend my days.
It’s interactive. My readers can engage in discussion through online comments — see the comment to How I spend my days. (People also initiate exchanges by email — I’ve had a couple of responses to Mugshot 4).
It’s findable. Search engines offer both power and serendipity — try a Google search for ironic order.
It’s editable. This website is not carved in stone, so I can add, subtract and polish the material — see the postscript to Russell Hall’s ironic column.
It’s locationless. It’s everywhere. People send me comments from California, and Caracas.
It’s hyperlinked. It’s the World Wide Web, a fabric of millions of documents — see my piece about the Museum of Jurassic Technology.
It’s cheap. Compared with other interpretation media it costs very little — see some hosting rates.