Project: MapHub
submitted as a brainstorming session by Carbon Defense League
I apologize for the lateness of this submittal, you all know how schedules
get out of hand at times and right now is one such time for me. With that
said, I would like to now introduce a project called MapHub being developed
by 5 members a media arts collective called Carbon Defense League of which I
am a part. We are currently developing this project in Pittsburgh, PA USA.
MapHub proposes to research the introduction of a geographic and historical
data sharing application in an urban landscape. MapHub proposes to be a
peoples. map . a map of an urban geography determined not by traditional
methodology but instead by the members who participate and contribute
everyday in the experience of urban life. MapHub proposes to be both a tool
and a system that gives users pen and paper to record their unique and
situated perspectives and then deliver that documentation to others.
Combining culture, history, narrative, and caution, MapHub might tell the
tales that remain untold.
MapHub is a web-based application that enables the subjective documentation
of location based events, objects, histories, and people. This web software
facilitates individual spatial and temporal narratives managed and
distributed through a simple social network. Based on a Geographic
Information System (GIS) backend built on open source packages, MapHub
manages data as visual symbolic objects specific to Groups organized
thematically. Aside from having a personal group based on immediate to
distant social or participant networks, alternative Groups based on themes
such as health code violations, past job experiences, safe biking routes, or
corporate violations of local regulations are possible. These thematic
Groups will help to promote alternative and peripheral knowledge of the
cultural, historical, and current urban geographical landscape of localized
spaces.
Future iterations will include mobility tools. Using a cellphone, users will
be able to dial a local number to log into their account or a Group and
record voice annotations, send pictures or even SMS messages. This content
gets dropped into a media management pool either on the individuals page or
in a Group page. Using a palm pilot, users will be able to gather
information in the field (auto recognizing location if GPS enabled) and
synch that information with a Group or personal page. There is hope for
financial support to install kiosks at wireless access points around the
city of Pittsburgh that will feature synch stations, ID card readers, and
small printers.
Once developed in Pittsburgh, MapHub will be available for use in other
urban locations.

The beginning introduction to the project can be found here
http://hactivist.com/maphub/overview.html
I apologize again for the incompleteness but a design document we are
building from can be found here
http://hactivist.com/maphub/MH04_rev9_full.pdf
The collective bio and CV can be found here
http://hactivist.com/maphub/about.html
We would like to have a small brainstorming session where a few of the
developers and designers including myself present the project then discuss
possible turns in it's development. this is particularly interesting since
we will be in the middle of building an application and it presents a unique
opportunity for input from others that might eventually use MapHub. The
documents above and tests will all be available at http://www.maphub.com
and .org in the coming week
People coming include
Nate Martin
Hans Meyer
Dave Crimm
Scott Bircker
one MapHub developer, Carl DiSalvo, will not be able to attendNate Martin
Research Fellow
STUDIO for Creative Inquiry
Carnegie Mellon University
http://www.cmu.edu/studio
iEAR Studios
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
http://www.arts.rpi.edu
Carbon Defense League (CDL)
Hactivist Tactical Media Network
http://www.hactivist.com
__________________________________________________
Do you Re-Code!?
Re-Code! Shopping - Clip Barcodes, Not Coupons!
http://www.re-code.com