Revealing Things: An Experiment in Museum Web Sites

Revealing Things, under development at the Smithsonian Institution, is a project to experiment with and learn about the Web as a museum-based communications medium. Created solely as a Web site, Revealing Things will combine object-based learning with new technologies the Web. The ultimate goal of the project is to experiment with and learn about the World Wide Web as a museum-based communication medium. Users will be active participants in determining the content and nature of their experience in Revealing Things. At the most fundamental level, users will be the designers of their personal exhibits as they decide how to navigate through the material and participate in mission-oriented use of the site. Revealing Things will also offer opportunities for users to leave their mark on the program, contributing objects and stories to the presentation. Most important, material in Revealing Things will change constantly. The choice of topics and themes will change often and unpredictably. Assembling data on the fly will allow many pages in the Web site to personalize the information. Users will interact with the program and provide information that will change the experience for themselves and others.