California First Lady Maria Shriver unveiled the California Legacy Trails, a new Adobe-software-based interactive feature of the California Museum Web site that brings the state’s history and culture to life online.SAN FRANCISCO -- California First Lady Maria Shriver and Adobe Chief
Technology Officer Kevin Lynch unveiled the California Legacy Trails, a
new interactive feature of the California Museum Web site that brings
the state’s history and culture to life online.
The California Legacy Trails use Adobe Flash and other Adobe
technologies to create engaging digital paths that highlight iconic
Californians and how their innovative achievements impacted the world
at large.
In a keynote at the Adobe MAX 2008 user conference, Shriver and
Lynch debuted the new interactive feature, created to appeal to a
global audience as a way to experience California’s living history.
The site, built and designed by Euro RSCG, enables visitors to
experience “Only in California” stories in a new format, Adobe said.
The inaugural trail, “Remarkable Women,” was envisioned and financed by
the Women’s Conference. This trail mirrors the “California Remarkable
Women” exhibit at The California Museum, which highlights women who
have made accomplishments that have shaped California’s culture and
history, the company said. Visitors can experience the new interactive
feature at www.californiamuseum.org.
"The idea for this came from the Freedom Trail in Boston, where I'm
from," Shriver said. She added that as she listened to Lynch and Adobe
CEO Shantanu Narayen speak she couldn't understand anything they were
saying. "I thought I was at a Star Trek convention and I thought I'd
leave, and then I looked around and saw that it was 99 percent men, so
I thought I'd stay," she said. "Maybe we could do a men's trail," she
quipped.
Meanwhile, in a private, invitation-only VIP event formally
launching the California Legacy Trails, Shriver said, "California is
known for its innovation and creativity. I think it's so exciting to
see all these young kids going on the trail and finding out about all
these great women." Adobe invited several young students from local
schools to attend the event, where Shriver engaged individually with
the students and signed autographs.
“California represents innovation, creativity, diversity and
pioneering trailblazers— and I’m proud to partner with The California
Museum to launch the first-ever California Legacy Trail to highlight
the best of California in an interactive, fun and engaging way,” said
Shriver. “The California Legacy Trails provide an incredible tool and a
practical way to learn about California no matter where you are. And
it’s my hope that now we will bring the inspiration of what’s ‘Only in
California’ into the homes and lives of not only the people of this
great state, but to the entire world.”
“The California Legacy Trails is to the California experience as the
MP3 player is to music and e-mail is to communication,” said California
Museum Executive Director Claudia French. “The Museum is proud to
partner with Adobe and the David and Lucille Packard Foundation to make
California’s vibrant stories and real places accessible to anyone
anywhere — in a captivating and innovative online destination.”
Built using Adobe Flex, Flash and Adobe Creative Suite, the
California Legacy Trails feature cutting-edge technologies and
interactive elements including: Customized e-postcards featuring iconic
images to share; an e-passport of landmarks throughout California;
audio and visual multimedia components; and areas with user-submitted
content and social networking features.
Interactive features of the California Legacy Trails enable site
visitors to post their own California stories, pictures and comments,
and share profiles with friends, creating a dynamic online community.
Shriver has posted her own “Remarkable Woman,” as has activist Dolores
Huerta.
"People can come on and make their own trails," Shriver said.
Plans for future development include a Learning Lab, a rich Internet
application based on Adobe AIR technology. Targeted at educators,
students, professionals and visitors to California, the Learning Lab
will be an automatically updated desktop application that can be used
both online and offline; future support for mobile devices is also
planned, Adobe said. The Lab will enable educators to log on and select
projects for students; students will be able to complete assignments
such as quizzes, essays and photography projects.
"The Learning Lab that Adobe has come up with can accelerate
learning," Shriver said. "The learning concept is endless. And the
possibilities for these trails are endless."
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