The Library of Congress and Microsoft have signed a cooperative agreement that will change the way visitors experience U.S. history. The joint technology innovation effort between the Library and Microsoft will electronically expose the Library's immense collection of historical artifacts to patrons visiting the Library's Thomas Jefferson Building in Washington, D.C., and will allow unparalleled and immersive interactive experiences that will bring the Library's vast historical collections and exhibits to life onsite and online through the upcoming myloc.gov Web site.
Through the Microsoft investment of funding, software, and technology expertise, training and support services, the Library will deliver its New Visitors Experience through a complex technology system with interactive kiosks in the Jefferson Building as well as Rich Internet Applications (RIA) delivered through a Web infrastructure.
New interactive galleries will bring to life the world's largest collection of knowledge, culture and creativity, with virtual hands-on interaction with items such as the rough draft of the Declaration of Independence, the Gutenberg Bible, the 1507 Waldseemuller world map that first used the word "America," and original volumes from Thomas Jefferson's library. Key to these experiences will be interactive presentation software for kiosks running on Windows Vista and its Web equivalent, built utilizing Silverlight.
A new "Passport to Knowledge," with a unique bar code linked to an online account, will allow visitors to bookmark areas of interest that can later be accessed and explored in depth at the upcoming myloc.gov Web site. "Knowledge Quest," a game-based learning activity, will send visitors onsite and online searching for clues in the art and artifacts of the Library. Teachers will also have access to new educational resources.
The agreement is part of a larger effort to transform the public spaces of the Library's Thomas Jefferson Building into an experience that combines unique artifacts with cutting-edge technology and invites visitors to explore the collections in engaging new ways, thanks to Silverlight. The Library's new "Exploring the Early Americas" exhibition offers a sampling of the new experience. More exhibits and enhancements, including personalized Web sites at myloc.gov, are scheduled to debut in spring 2008.