Hi Scott,

We did something like this with the National Portrait Gallery, in a project in
2003 at Bodelwyddan Castle.  Based on the studio practice of a Victorian
photographer named Silvy, visitors dress up, pose in front of a blue screen,
and then use an interactive to create a virtual 'carte-de-visite' using the
backdrops and props from Silvy's portraits.

We'd originally intended there to be an option to print the carte-de-visite on
site, but in fact it ended that the output is only delivered via email.  (One
of the issues in that decision was the question you've raised that the output
would include images of children, and whether it was a problem that a stranger
might theoretically be able to swipe the print.  I don't think there was
actually considered to be a legal issue to this, but just a Daily Mail style
paranoia.)

Another thing we worried about was whether the image as an attachment would
make the message too heavy; for that and the obvious promotional aspects we
considered making the email contain a link to the website, where the recipient
would see the custom image, but also have been driven to the Bodelwyddan
Castle web site.  In the end this was also rejected, and so as it has ended up
it's an entirely 'virtual', and self-contained (no web server involved)
project: when they've worked through the interactive visitors can enter up to
three recipient addresses, and optionally their own address as sender, on a
touchscreen keyboard, and the carte-de-visite image is then sent with a canned
message as an email to these.

We tweaked the on-screen keyboard quite a lot to encourage correct email
addresses, so for example the '@' key is disabled once it's been used, and
also I think I remember correctly that the '.' key is disabled at certain
points, and the "OK" button only enables if the address looks plausible; but
inevitably we still see a fair amount of bounces.  But the system does
nonetheless deliver 2-3,000 emails a year; and from memory, a lot of people
enter two or three recipient addresses.  (Back in 2003, we were worried
whether many people would remember their own email address or anyone else's -
we were wrong.)

In another example, the interactive kiosk we developed with MoMA,
"MoMA.guide", allows visitors to send e-cards from objects in the collection.
   In this case however we don't include an image in the email that's sent,
just a link back to the website where the message and image are displayed (ie
it's a conventional e-card system that we'd already built for the website, we
just added a way to send e-cards from the kiosk); and these aren't images that
the visitors have constructed, just selected from the collection images.
Again, we put some thought into making the on-screen keyboard react
intelligently to help users avoid entering incorrect email addresses; and on
the server side, we have a more complex process to deal with the misaddresed
ecards that inevitably still get through.

Hope that's relevant (and encouraging) - happy to discuss in more detail.

kind regards,

Ben Rubinstein > Technical Director
email: [log in to unmask]    direct: +44 (0)1273 829972

Cogapp
address: Lees House, 21-33 Dyke Road, Brighton BN1 3FE, England
tel: +44 (0)1273 821600   fax: +44 (0)1273 829988
web:  http://www.cogapp.com
blog: http://blog.cogapp.com - "the art and science of engagement"

Scott Coyne wrote:
> Hi, 
> 
> My name is Scott Coyne.  I am one of the ICT Curators developing the new 
> interactives to accompany the displays for the new Riverside Museum of 
> Transport, due to open to the public in 2011.   I've just very recently joined 
> the group and I'm hoping for some advice.
> 
> We are currently developing all of the interactive and IT elements in relation to 
> our exhibits. 
> 
> I wanted to enquire as to whether anyone on the group has had any 
> expereince with interactives which require visitors to input there email address 
> in order to receive a finished product?  
> 
> We are currently developing our Photographers Studio display.  This takes the 
> form of a walk in Photographers Studio/Shop where visitors will be allowed to 
> have there Photograph taken by following the simple visitor interfaces and 
> interacting with an 'animated' photographer who will appear onscreen and give 
> guidance.  It is intended to help visitors gain a deeper understanding of what 
> was involved in early 20th Century Photography.  As part of this interactive, 
> we are considering asking visitors to enter there email address in order for 
> them to retrieve the final image. We're trying to find out if any other Museums 
> have utilised a system like this for any interactives and how successful it was? 
> 
> We also have the added consideration that the system will be storing these 
> finished Photographs, which will include images of children, as ithe interactive 
> is aimed at families and whether there are any legal implications with this?
> 
> I look forward to hearing from you, 
> 
> Regards,
> Scott
> 
> Scott Coyne,
> Project Learning and Access Curator ICT,
> Museum of Transport, Glasgow
> Telephone 0141 287 2653
> e-mail: [log in to unmask]

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