National Archives Records of Rights Table
The Records of Rights table can be found on the ground floor of the National Archives in Washington DC. It surfaces the documents in our history as a country that had dramatic impact to our rights as US citizens. The installation is a complex multi-computer OpenGL synced network of applications that communicate together to offer a seamless experience where the audience feels like it runs off one large computer. A unique combination of OpenGL, Chromium enabled web developers to create the text and image rich experience while OpenGL supported frame-perfect synchronization between screens and computers. From a low latency standpoint, this maybe the most complex project in my portfolio of work. It required the design and development of a OpenGL Chromium framework that was later used on other Second Story projects.
Project Quick Facts
Development Timeline
March 2013 - December 2013
Employer
Client
National Archives Washington DC
My Role
Developed all front end web templates
Developed C# content delivery server
Technology
HTML5 / CSS / JavaScript
Require / Backbone.js
NodeJS
Related Articles
Technical Approach of Table Wave
http://blog.secondstory.com/2014/04/08/passing-by-the-wave/
“‘Records of Rights’ at the National Archives traces the unfinished journey to liberty and justice for all,” Washington Post, January 2014
Press
New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/17/arts/design/records-of-rights-at-the-national-archives.html?_r=0
Washington Post
One innovative part of the exhibit is “A Place at the Table,” a 17-foot-long interactive touchscreen that’s essentially a giant iPad. Using it, visitors can examine the changing rights of groups not represented in the exhibit’s three main categories, such as the rights of schoolchildren and of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. The technology, in addition to allowing people to share their reactions, also enables the Archives to keep up with what’s going on outside its walls.
“A Work Still in Progress,” The New York Times, December 2013
The exhibit makes good use of technology, with a long, table-height touch-screen that permits people to dig deeper into the archives’ collections on the topics covered.
“National Archives opened gallery brilliantly illuminating struggles for equality,”Examiner.com, December 2013
The gallery and its fascinating interactive exhibit is extremely timely — the landmark immigration reform bill remains stuck in the House of Representatives, the U.S. Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act last June, and women still fight for equal pay and opportunities.
“U.S. Archives opens new gallery with Magna Carta,” The Chicago Tribune,December 2013
“US Archives showcases Magna Carta in new gallery,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch,December 2013
“Layers of meaning at National Archives’ ‘Records of Rights’,” The Washington Post,December 2013
“A First Look Inside the New Rubenstein Gallery at the National Archives,”Washingtonian, December 2013
“‘Rights’ Exhibit to Display Documents From the Mighty and the Modest,” The New York Times, October 2013