This paper focuses on the design and development of an authoring environment for the InStory project. InStory is a platform for mobile storytelling, gaming activities and information access. It focuses on the exploration of cultural and historical physical spaces, promoting interaction between users. During those explorations, users have access to contextual geo-referenced multimedia data, through the use of mobile devices, such as PDAs or mobile phones, either for knowledge acquisition regarding the surrounding environment and its cultural and historical aspects or for engaging in story/gaming activities together with other users.The authoring environment for such story/gaming activities and media content, allows users to create and personalize their own stories. It comprises two frameworks -- InAuthor, a graphical story/game editor, and InContent, a visual editor for creating screen areas through the placing of multimedia and interface elements and their export to InAuthor, in order to be associated with activity nodes.

InAuthoring environment: interfaces for creating spatial stories and gaming activities

Sustainability in Cultural Heritage (CH) is a complex question that needs to be addressed by a group of experts tackling the different issues. In this light, the present work wishes to provide a multi-level analysis of the sustainability in CH, using as an example a recent European H2020 project (CrossCult) and the lessons learnt from its design, implementation and evaluation. The sustainability of CH has qualitatively changed over the last few years, under the developments in digital technology that seems to affect the very nature of the cultural experience. We discuss sustainability in venues using digital technologies, covering a span of needs of small/unknown and large/popular venues, which try to enhance the visitor experience, attract visitors, form venue networks, etc. Moreover, we explore issues of sustainability of digital content and its re usability through holistic design. Aspects of technology, human networks and data sustainability are also presented, and we conclude with the arguments concerning the sustainability of visitor reflection, the interpretation of social and historical phenomena and the creation of meaning.

https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/12/4/1666/pdf

On how technology-powered storytelling can contribute to cultural heritage sustainability across multiple venues. Evidence from the CrossCult H2020 Project

/pdf/digital-storytelling-as-a-literacy-based-intervention-for-a-egdo9btrdr.pdf

Digital storytelling as a literacy-based intervention for a sixth grade student with Autism Spectrum Disorder: an exploratory case study

How to best perform a search over a dataset is a common field of research in the scientific community. Query engines are used when the information is handled by an ontology in order to obtain structured information semantically. A common issue that arises is when the same query is performed several times, as the query engine must check the domain every time in order to retrieve the information. In this paper, we propose an architecture that takes advantage of the concept of Reflexive Ontologies (RO) in order to achieve timely semantic retrieval. The proposed architecture is illustrated by a case study in the Film Heritage domain, showing a performance improvement and providing ground for further research and discussion.

An architecture for fast semantic retrieval in the film heritage domain

A didactic project based on computer technology and advanced computer graphics combined with an active classroom experience is presented. The final purpose is the creation and the test of a new authoring tool for building 3d interactive environments inside a narrative context.In the paper we will describe our didactic project, the current technology implementation and the final interactive application realized.

Building 3D interactive environments for the children's narrative: a didactic project

Stories that are read are usually linear and fixed in their form and structure. Stories that are told are often flexible in these respects: the storyteller can change order and content in response to the audience reaction and participation. Interactive multimedia and digital storytelling technologies now make the presentation of interactive stories possible, with non-linear narrative flow and dynamic character definitions and developments. Authoring such interactive stories has thus become a new challenge for authors and artists.We report on the development and initial tests of a prototype authoring support tool that is intended to support authors in the design, construction and specification of Digital Interactive Stories for multimedia presentation platforms. This Authoring Tool is part of the art-E-fact project- a collaborative project funded by the EU- in which it serves as an experimental platform for understanding how artists and authors want to create these new kinds of 'Digital Stories'.

C. Lamsfus

Papers

An authoring tool for interactive digital storytelling