A real and virtual experience of Mainz's media history

The Media Center at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) and the Institute for Spatial Information and Measuring Technology (i3mainz) at Mainz University of Applied Sciences have developed a walking tour of the city dealing with media history. There will be seven real stations with virtual information and videos via an app for the Smartphone. The aim is to turn Mainz into a media experience.

"There are many places in Mainz that are closely related to media history and many scientists who deal with this subject. We want to bring them together," said Dr. Nicole Labitzke, head of the JGU Media Centre. Specialists at the University of Applied Sciences have linked the geo-coordinates of the stations to the content and have made them available to users. This makes the "Layar" augmented reality app possible.

"Augmented reality in this context means that the stations along the route are shown as a symbol on the Smartphone camera image," says Professor Klaus Böhm, who heads i3mainz. By clicking on the corresponding symbol, the user can start a route guide or obtain direct information about the station selected.

Where do media come from and in which direction are they developing? How have they influenced us and our communication over the past 2,500 years? These questions and many others will be answered chronologically concerning media such as theater, books, newspapers, or TV. The last point on the media route is linked to a recognition that the user him/herself is the station. The most outstanding mark of mobile Internet is that it is always available where the user happens to need it. Thus the mobile Internet is a starting point for the idea of a "Mainz media route," and its end point as well.

The Mainz media route is part of the "Time window - The past has a future" project. All interested visitors can then find the Mainz media route and other knowledge centers in Mainz on their mobiles and explore them as described at www.mobil.emz2.de. 

The project has been financed by funding provided by "Mainz - City of Science 2011" and the Media Convergence Department at JGU. The Mainz media route will be presented within the context of "Mainz interactive" at the stall of Mainz University of Applied Sciences in Tent 1 at the Science Market on the first weekend of June 2011.