Digital Guide at the BA Antiquities Museum
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Alexandria— The Bibliotheca Alexandrina has launched a new service for its Antiquities Museum visitors: the Digital Guide. This PDA-based device brings international prestige to the museum as it represents the latest generation of assistive technology. BA has contracted with IBM World Corporation to develop the software, under the supervision of the Center for Documentation of Cultural and Natural Heritage (CULTNAT) an affiliate of the BA and supported by the Ministry of Communications and Information technology. The BA Antiquities Museum is the second museum in Egypt to use the digital guide; the first was the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
The Digital Guide is a palm-size, user-friendly device offering audio-visual explanation of the exhibited artifacts in Arabic, English and French. Visitors may explore the museum artifacts in different modes; they have the option to follow the thematic and chronological tours established by the museum, including Treasures of the Pharaonic Civilization, Afterlife Beliefs, and BA Excavations (duration ranges between 30 and 90 minutes). They may also browse by artifact ID, room or picture. The device permits in-depth study of the artifacts on display through the Read More option. For a close examination of visual details of selected pieces, the visitor may choose to zoom in on, or view animated patterns of selected pieces that take them on a journey through history.
The Digital Guide keeps a log of the artifacts the museum visitor has selected or encountered. Upon completion of the tour, the visitor may have a printed personalized record of part of their tour, whereas the entire tour content is sent to them later via email.