http://www.flickr.com/photos/23739734@N08/6197553025/sizes/l/in/photostream/ Making commons and the Michael Edson For Europeana’s European Cultural Commons workshop Warsaw, Poland October 12, 2011
May 14, 2015
http://www.flickr.com/photos/23739734@N08/6197553025/sizes/l/in/photostream/
Making
commonsand the
Michael EdsonFor Europeana’s European CulturalCommons workshop
Warsaw, PolandOctober 12, 2011
Making
commonsand the
Michael EdsonFor Europeana’s European CulturalCommons workshop
Warsaw, PolandOctober 12, 2011
Making
commonsand the
Michael Edson
Here todayas a private citizen
Making
commonsand the
Michael Edson
Here todayas a private citizen
Not a spokesperson,policy maker,
decision maker
Making
commonsand the
Michael Edson
@mpedson
Making
commonsand the
Michael Edson
@mpedson
slideshare.net/edsonm
Making
commonsand the
slideshare.net/edsonm
Making
commonsand the
slideshare.net/edsonm
[the written-out version of this talk]http://www.slideshare.net/edsonm/museums-and-the-commons-helping-makers-get-stuff-done-6779050
Making
commonsand the
slideshare.net/edsonm
[This is also relevant]http://www.slideshare.net/edsonm/michael-edson-prototyping-the-smithsonian-commons
Making
commonsand the
slideshare.net/edsonm
[As is this]http://www.slideshare.net/edsonm/cil-2009-michael-edson-text-version
http://www.flickr.com/photos/23739734@N08/6197553025/sizes/l/in/photostream/
There’s a certain energy around someone who is making something
http://www.flickr.com/photos/specialkrb/3253320581/sizes/l/in/photostream/
Learning something
http://http://www.flickr.com/photos/danmarksdesignskole/5534304473/sizes/l/in/photostream//
Or solving a problem
http://www.flickr.com/photos/danmarksdesignskole/5186252613/sizes/l/in/photostream/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tortipede/6107303370/
There’s an intensity of focus, a sense of urgency, a twinkle in the eye
“The risk-takers,the doers,the makers of things…”
We accord special status to those whom President Barack Obama called
These makers are important—the future of our species might quite literally depend on their success, and with great pride we fill our museums with evidence of the things they've figured out and accomplished.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/75905404@N00/669525192/sizes/l/in/photostream/
Museums, libraries, and archives are celebrations of human doing—but here we have a disconnect: while these institutions excel at celebrating things that makers have thought and done in the past, they can be surprisingly indifferent to the needs of people who want to get stuff done in the present and in the future.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/peteashton/177183362/sizes/l/in/photostream/
18,000 museums in USA$20.7 billion
18,000 museums in USA$20.7 billion/year budget
18,000 museums in USA$20.7 billion/year budget
That’s more than the GDP of
half the nations on earth
Museums have vast collections of rare and notable physical and intellectual property, they have people with expertise and know-how. They nurture curiosity and knowledge creation through research, publication, exhibition, and public programming. They hold positions of trust and respect in their communities and they're heralded as places that, as Roy Slade, the Director of the Cranbrook Art Academy said, "reflect creativity, history, culture, ideas, innovation, exploration, discovery, diversity, freedom of expression and the ideals of democracy."
Museums have vast collections of rare and notable physical and intellectual property, they have people with expertise and know-how. They nurture curiosity and knowledge creation through research, publication, exhibition, and public programming. They hold positions of trust and respect in their communities and they're heralded as places that as Roy Slade, the Director of the Cranbrook Art Academy said, "reflect creativity, history, culture, ideas, innovation, exploration, discovery, diversity, freedom of expression and the ideals of democracy."
Museums have vast collections of rare and notable physical and intellectual property, they have people with expertise and know-how. They nurture curiosity and knowledge creation through research, publication, exhibition, and public programming. They hold positions of trust and respect in their communities and they're heralded as places that "reflect creativity, history, culture, ideas, innovation, exploration, discovery, diversity, freedom of expression and the ideals of democracy."
Roy SladeWhy Museums Matter
But walk into any museum in the countryand ask these 3 questions…
Can I get access to all your collections and resources?
Are experts available to help me understand key ideas and concepts?
Can I incorporate your collections and resources into new products, ideas, or creative works?
Can I get access to all your collections and resources?
Are experts available to help me understand key ideas and concepts?
Can I incorporate your collections and resources into new products, ideas, or creative works?
access
Can I get the raw materials of creation and innovation?
Can I get access to all your collections and resources?
Are experts available to help me understand key ideas and concepts?
Can I incorporate your collections and resources into new products, ideas, or creative works?
Expertise
Can I get the help of guides, connectors, and problem-solvers, whether they work for you directly or are part of your broader networks?
Can I get access to all your collections and resources?
Are experts available to help me understand key ideas and concepts?
Can I incorporate your collections and resources into new products, ideas, or creative works?
Re-use
Once I get raw materials and expertise, can I do new things with them?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/trepelu/225518847/sizes/l/in/photostream/
Yes?
Yes?
Yes?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/trepelu/225518847/sizes/l/in/photostream/
Yes?
Yes?
yes
NO
More often than not, the answer is
http://www.flickr.com/photos/trepelu/225518847/sizes/l/in/photostream/
We received 1,200 public comments onSmithsonian Commons Prototype
“One of my biggest gripes doing presentations for the public on archaeology, is the number of museums that do not have their collections online. Much is kept hidden away for researchers only. We can read journal articles on valuable exhibits and sometimes a few drawings are available, but anything else requires either a visit or an application to do scholarly research.
“One of my biggest gripes doing presentations for the public on archaeology, is the number of museums that do not have their collections online. Much is kept hidden away for researchers only. We can read journal articles on valuable exhibits and sometimes a few drawings are available, but anything else requires either a visit or an application to do scholarly research.
“One of my biggest gripes doing presentations for the public on archaeology, is the number of museums that do not have their collections online. Much is kept hidden away for researchers only. We can read journal articles on valuable exhibits and sometimes a few drawings are available, but anything else requires either a visit or an application to do scholarly research.
“One of my biggest gripes doing presentations for the public on archaeology, is the number of museums that do not have their collections online. Much is kept hidden away for researchers only. We can read journal articles on valuable exhibits and sometimes a few drawings are available, but anything else requires either a visit or an application to do scholarly research.
“One of my biggest gripes doing presentations for the public on archaeology, is the number of museums that do not have their collections online. Much is kept hidden away for researchers only. We can read journal articles on valuable exhibits and sometimes a few drawings are available, but anything else requires either a visit or an application to do scholarly research.
“One of my biggest gripes doing presentations for the public on archaeology, is the number of museums that do not have their collections online. Much is kept hidden away for researchers only. We can read journal articles on valuable exhibits and sometimes a few drawings are available, but anything else requires either a visit or an application to do scholarly research.
“This is not fair to the public, since they pay either directly or indirectly for the valuable items kept for a limited number of people.
“This is not fair to the public, since they pay either directly or indirectly for the valuable items kept for a limited number of people.
"“Further, many people cannot travel or will never travel to see some more distant institutions. I am hoping for the day when all museums small and large put their collections online, for the benefit of schools, colleges and the general public.
“Further, many people cannot travel or will never travel to see some more distant institutions.
I am hoping for the day when all museums small and large put their collections online, for the benefit of schools, colleges and the general public.
“Further, many people cannot travel or will never travel to see some more distant institutions.
I am hoping for the day when all museums small and large put their collections online, for the benefit of schools, colleges and the general public.
“Further, many people cannot travel or will never travel to see some more distant institutions.
I am hoping for the day when all museums small and large put their collections online, for the benefit of schools, colleges and the general public.
Excerpt from comment #406Smithsonian Commons Prototypehttp://smithsonian-webstrategy.wikispaces.com/Public+Comments+on+Smithsonian+Commons+Prototype+401-600
I am hoping for the day when all museums small and large put their collections online, for the benefit of schools, colleges and the general public.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/46758972@N00/2442068480/sizes/l/in/photostream/
I am hoping for the day when all museums small and large put their collections online, for the benefit of schools, colleges and the general public.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/46758972@N00/2442068480/sizes/l/in/photostream/
Most museums, libraries, and archives aren’tfocused on people
like this…
http://www.flickr.com/photos/46758972@N00/2442068480/sizes/l/in/photostream/
Most museums, libraries, and archives aren’tfocused on people
like this…
People like this, with practical digital
requirements, didn't exist on planet Earth20 years ago!
The Long TailJoy’s LawCognitive surplusMoore’s Law & MobileEvery user a hero…
This is what we now know
The Long TailJoy’s LawCognitive surplusMoore’s Law & MobileEvery user a hero…
Global audiences formingaround niche interests
The Long TailJoy’s LawCognitive surplusMoore’s Law & MobileEvery user a hero…
“No matter what business you’re in, most of the smart
people work for someone else”
The Long TailJoy’s LawCognitive surplusMoore’s Law & MobileEvery user a hero…
A Trillion hours/year of time available for creation and
collaboration. (via Clay Shirky)
The Long TailJoy’s LawCognitive surplusMoore’s Law & MobileEvery user a hero…
In 12 years this device will be 1,706 X more powerful than my
desktop computer
The Long TailJoy’s LawCognitive surplusMoore’s Law & MobileEvery user a hero…
Billions of connected mobile users. Voice, data, cameras,
GPS, sensors…
The Long TailJoy’s LawCognitive surplusMoore’s Law & MobileEvery user a hero…
Your users are heroes in their own epic journeys. Your job is
to help them be great. [via Kathy Sierra]
The Long TailJoy’s LawCognitive surplusMoore’s Law & MobileEvery user a hero…
Put these together with an audacious mission and
something interesting is going to happen
Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Strategic PlanGrand Challenges
1. Unlocking the Mysteries of the Universe
2. Understanding and Sustaining a Biodiverse Planet
3. Valuing World Cultures4. Understanding the
American Experience
Smithsonian SecretaryG. Wayne Clough
What is a Commons?
1. Unlocking the Mysteries of the Universe
2. Understanding and Sustaining a Biodiverse Planet
3. Valuing World Cultures4. Understanding the
American Experience
What is a Commons?
1. Unlocking the Mysteries of the Universe
2. Understanding and Sustaining a Biodiverse Planet
3. Valuing World Cultures4. Understanding the
American Experience
It is, we think, a way of getting a lot of hard work done
What is a Commons?
A set of resources maintained in the public sphere for the use and benefit of everyone
What is a Commons?
What is a Commons?
Unnecessarily restricted content is like a virus that spreads through the internet, making the intellectual property provenance of each generation of new ideas less and less clear.
(from Imagining a Smithsonian Commons)
What is a Commons?
Unnecessarily restricted content is like a virus that spreads through the internet, making the intellectual property provenance of each generation of new ideas less and less clear.
(from Imagining a Smithsonian Commons)
What is a Commons?
What is a Commons?An organized workshop where the raw materials of
knowledge can be found and assembled into new things.
12 ingredients of a commons
12 ingredients of a commons
1. Federated (brings things together)Smithsonian Collections Search Center
http://collections.si.edu/search/
12 ingredients of a commons
2. Designed for YOU
Every user is a hero in their own epic journey
Via Kathy Sierra
12 ingredients of a commons
3. FindableiStockphoto
12 ingredients of a commons
4. ShareableBrooklyn Museum
http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/157722/Morris_Kantor
12 ingredients of a commons
5. Reusable Example: Flickr
12 ingredients of a commons
6. Free“Free resources are crucial to
innovation and creativity”
Lawrence Lessig
12 ingredients of a commons
6. FreeThe Internet Archive
http://www.archive.org
“we provide free access”
12 ingredients of a commons
7. Bulk downloadPowerhouse Museum
http://www.powerhousemuseum.com/collection/database/download.php
12 ingredients of a commons
8. Machine readable data.gov
12 ingredients of a commons
9. High resolution NASA
http://marsrover.nasa.gov/gallery/panoramas/spirit/
12 ingredients of a commons
10. Collaboration without control
12 ingredients of a commons
10. Collaboration without control
“we are living in the middle of a remarkable increase in our ability to share, to cooperate with one another, and
to take collective action, all outside the framework of traditional institutions and organization …Getting the
free and ready participation of a large, distributed group with a variety of skills has gone from impossible
to simple.” Clay Shirky
“we are living in the middle of a remarkable increase in our ability to share, to cooperate with one another, and
to take collective action, all outside the framework of traditional institutions and organization …Getting the
free and ready participation of a large, distributed group with a variety of skills has gone from impossible
to simple.” Clay Shirky
“we are living in the middle of a remarkable increase in our ability to share, to cooperate with one another, and
to take collective action, all outside the framework of traditional institutions and organization …Getting the
free and ready participation of a large, distributed group with a variety of skills has gone from impossible
to simple.” Clay Shirky
12 ingredients of a commons
10. Collaboration without controlMIT Open Courseware
http://ocw.mit.edu
12 ingredients of a commons
11. Network effectsOpenStreetMap
http://www.openstreetmap.org/
12 ingredients of a commons
12. The Public Domain
The Public Domain is not “some gummy residue left behind when all the good stuff has been covered by
property law. The public domain is the place where we quarry the building blocks of our culture.”
James Boyle
The Public Domain is not “some gummy residue left behind when all the good stuff has been covered by
property law. The public domain is the place where we quarry the building blocks of our culture.”
James Boyle
The Public Domain is not “some gummy residue left behind when all the good stuff has been covered by
property law. The public domain is the place where we quarry the building blocks of our culture.”
James Boyle
12 ingredients of a commons
… and a 13th?
http://www.weather.gov/disclaimer.php
12 ingredients of a commons
… and a 13th?
TRUST
12 ingredients of a commons
… and a 13th?
TRUST
Why don’t we just let the private sector do this?
We are in the forever business. By putting something online—be it a cultural treasure, a folk song, a fossil of a bug, a lecture, or a community—we are asking people to trust us. We're not going to scam you. We're not going to violate your privacy. We're going to be honest about what we do and don't know, we're going to be open to new ideas and points of view, we're going to help each other figure out the world, and these promises are good forever.
Museums are among the few organizations in our culture that enter into those kinds of promises, and we take that responsibility very seriously.
13 ingredients of a commons
• Federated • Designed for users• Findable• Shareable• Reusable• Free
• Bulk Download• Machine Readable• High Resolution• Collaboration w/o
control• Network effects• Public Domain• Trust
What is a Commons?
http://www.si.edu/commons/prototype
What is a Commons?
Text version of this talk: Museums and the Commons: Helping Makers Get Stuff Done
http://www.slideshare.net/edsonm/museums-and-the-commons-helping-makers-get-stuff-done-677905
Imagining a Smithsonian Commons• http://www.slideshare.net/edsonm/cil-2009-michael-edson-text-version
Prototyping the Smithsonian Commonshttp://www.slideshare.net/edsonm/michael-edson-prototyping-the-smithsonian-commons
What is a Commons?
Text version of this talk: Museums and the Commons: Helping Makers Get Stuff Done
http://www.slideshare.net/edsonm/museums-and-the-commons-helping-makers-get-stuff-done-677905
Imagining a Smithsonian Commons• http://www.slideshare.net/edsonm/cil-2009-michael-edson-text-version
Prototyping the Smithsonian Commonshttp://www.slideshare.net/edsonm/michael-edson-prototyping-the-smithsonian-commons
Also, a video
A 15-minute talk at the Walker Art CenterVideo (starts at minute 12): http://channel.walkerart.org/play/opening-the-field/
Updated 6/21/2010