Should A Museum Be Open 7 Days A Week?

I'm on the road right now in Bulgaria (although this particular "road" is very winding, narrow, and full of rocks ... ) but for this post I couldn't help but notice the announcement from The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York that they will now be opening 7 days a week.

So I'll ask the question: Should a museum be open 7 days a week?

I have really mixed feelings about this.  Certainly if you're a visitor or tourist, why shouldn't a museum be open as often as possible?  I'm sure part of MoMA's decision is a financial one, but aren't there different kinds of "costs" that come from being open every day?

I'm thinking specifically about exhibits and building operations.  Perhaps it's different in an Art Museum, but I know that in the hustle and bustle of interactive museums like science centers and children's museums, that it is very helpful, if not essential, to have a "non public" day to do building maintenance tasks and just put all the pieces back together again.

So what do you think?  Should museums be a 7 day a week operation, or is there value for staff (and visitors!) for at least one "day of rest"?   Tell us know your thoughts by clicking into the  "Comments" Section below this post.


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The Most Important Thing at the "New" Exploratorium

The Exploratorium, that Mecca of Museums, will be officially reopening at its new location on April 17th.

I'll bet that there are still lots of punch lists being completed at Pier 15 before that public opening, but I'll also bet that most of the people who work at the Exploratorium won't be thinking "Well, now we're done ..."  Because the "new era" is just beginning.

But there's one important thing that the media and the visitors (including many museum professionals) might miss when they're walking around all googly-eyed visiting the new digs.

It's not the (multi)million dollar location, or the zippy new restaurants, or the spacious well-lit halls filled with (old and new) exhibits that are the primary things that will make the "new" Exploratorium a success.  Instead, the most important thing at the Exploratorium is:

 each person who works or volunteers there.

Both in front of, and behind, the scenes.

Those "old timers" who carry some of the culture from The Palace of Fine Arts to the Piers, and those "new timers" and "future timers" who will be creating an evolving culture at the Exploratorium.

So I wish hearty and heartfelt congratulations to the many, many people who have worked so hard to make the move happen!  If all the rave pre-opening reviews on the InterWebs are any indication, the "new" Explo is going to be a smash hit!



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Another Case for the Exhibit Doctor: 3D Printers

When even my 8 year old daughter asks during Maker Faire, "When are we getting a 3D Printer, Dad?" you know something's up.

Museums and museum workers know this, too.  3D printers are cool, like "science fiction" cool, like "change the world" cool.  So naturally, museum folks want to share this shiny new technology with our visitors.

The question is: HOW?

(I've spoken with several museum folks recently who purchased 3D printing gear and still have the goodies sitting in a box in a storage closet because they can't sort out how to use them inside the museum, not just behind the scenes ...)

There is no denying that the end result of creating a digital file (either by laser scanning or through software programs) and producing an actual usable object with a 3D printer is super.  But the actual process of waiting for a 3D printer to produce that object is like watching paint (or plastic filament) dry. 

Which is perhaps fine for a museum program, or a multi-session museum class, but are their ways to leverage the inherent "coolness" and flexibility of 3D printers in the rapid-response, "show me something now!" context of many interactive exhibition galleries?

So in this edition of The Exhibit Doctor, I'm asking for examples of successful exhibit-centered ways of using 3D printers.

Please share your successes, failures, and bright ideas in the "Comments" section below this post and I'll round them up to share in a follow-up posting.


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What's New with NUI?

NUI is an acronym for Natural User Interface, and NUI designers are changing the world and the way people interact and experience things through projects and products (like exhibits!)

Recently I went to a great MeetUp program entitled "An Evening of Gesture" that focused on gesture-based aspects of NUI.

Besides gestures, NUI can use voice control, voice recognition, facial recognition, eye tracking, motion capture, emotional response, sensors, and artificial intelligence as the means to control apps, devices, and systems in cool new ways.

It was great to have a forum to knock ideas about NUI and HCI (Human Computer Interface) around with like-minded people.  If you live in the New York Metropolitan Area, you should definitely check out the free monthly NUI Central MeetUp group.

The two organizers of the NUI MeetUp, Debra Benkler and Ken Lonyai from ScreenPlay InterActive, were also kind enough to provide links to some cool videos that show some of the possibilities for gesture-based NUI projects: 

 
LG Finger Gesture control


Introducing the Leap Motion


Painter® Freestyle™ beta powered by Leap Motion


SpaceTop 


A World of 3D Sensing by PrimeSense

 
MYO - Wearable Gesture Control from Thalmic Labs



What do you think about the different possibilities for using NUI in your own designs?  Working on any new NUI projects?  Let us know your thoughts in the Comments Section below!



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Fun with Diagrams: draw.io

Draw.io  is a free online tool to create diagrams (like the simple one above.)

That's it.  Online tools (like exhibit components) are often at their best when they do just one thing well.

Draw.io is fun and easy to use, and a great way to create mockups for screen-based interfaces or other lable-y and prototype-y things.

Check it out at the draw.io website and start playing around with the varied and extensive tool sets.

Happy diagramming!



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Do you subscribe to ExhibiTricks with Google Reader?

As you may have heard, Google is killing off Google Reader on July 1, 2013.

Since over 700 of you subscribe to ExhibiTricks via Google Reader, I'd really like you to consider switching to another way of subscribing to my blog.

If you are a person who doesn't subscribe to ExhibiTricks using Google Reader, the rest of this post may not interest you much.  So check out these Cute Animal Pictures instead!

But here's a simple solution for Google Reader users who are loyal ExhibiTricks readers as well: Subscribe via your email address!  Just click the "Sign up for Free ExhibiTricks Blog Updates" link on the upper right side of the blog and you'll be presented with an option to subscribe via email.  It's just that simple. 

I guarantee you I will never use your email address for anything other than sending you your subscription to ExhibiTricks.  Basically, you'll get every new ExhibiTricks post direct to your email box approximately once a week.

But what if you subscribe to other blogs and websites using Google Reader?  There's lots of great information about your options for switching from Google Reader (including ways to grab all your Google Reader data before July 1st) in this post from the "copyblogger" blog.

So take some time to grab your Google Reader data, and switch your ExhibiTricks subscription before they disappear. 

Thanks for your continued interest and support of my blog!


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