Team 2: collect/curate people's testimonies (Post 1)

To begin my analysis, I went to the information center in Boston Common at the beginning of the trail. My objective was to analyze the area and see what could be done to expand on peoples’ interests in the area. I approached ten groups of people who went to the information center, making the assumption that they were either unfamiliar with the area, or interested in following the Freedom Trail. The answers that I am providing below are derived from the answers of each group.

Questions:

Question 1: Have you come to this area to see the freedom trail, or are you interested in touring the freedom trail within the near future?
Answer: 6 groups – yes, 4 groups – no

Question 2: Have you been to the Freedom Trail before?
Answer: 4 groups – yes (2 from each group above), 6 groups – no

Question 3: Where are you from?
Answer: 3 groups – Greater Boston area, 5 groups – Out of state, in the United States, 2 groups – Out of state, outside of the United States

Question 4: If you have been to the Freedom Trail before, what was your reaction, what did you like and what did you dislike?
Answer: Composed of the 4 groups that have previously toured the trail: Likes included learning about the history of the city, seeing many of the famous sites in Boston, and having an alternative to a guided tour. Dislikes included where the trail ends, leaving you in a remote part of Boston with no easy way to travel back besides retracing your steps. Dislikes also included a narrow-minded approach to Boston’s history, only focusing on one period in time, the Revolutionary War era.

Question 5: If you have not been to the Freedom Trail before, what attracted you to follow the trail?
Answer: Composed of the 6 groups that have not been to the Freedom Trail: Expectations include learning about the city’s rich history, seeing why Boston is so unique, and seeing the sights that the city has to offer. 2 groups had no expectations but were told that the Freedom Trail is a must by friends and family.

Question 6: What types of sites do you hope to see/do you wish were along the trail that are not currently points of interest on the trail-map?
Answer: Places to stop and rest like cafes and restaurants, and areas to sit and “people-watch.” The exception to this is the Quincy Market area. Sites that show more about Boston’s more recent history. The Public Garden (mentioned by 2 groups in particular) and the waterfront (mentioned by a group that has not yet traveled along the trail).

Question 7: How far would you be willing to deviate from the trail to see a point of interest in Boston? 1/8 mile, ¼ mile, ½ mile, ¾ mile, 1 mile? Please answer this as if you were planning to walk the entire trail, from the starting point to the USS Constitution, in one day.
Answer: 5 groups: ¼ mile, 4 groups: ½ mile, 1 group: ¾ mile

Question 8: In order for you to see an important site off the trail, would you want to return to the same point that you left the trail from, or would you rather return further along the trail, possibly missing one of the current 16 points of interest?
Answer: 2 groups: We’d rather return to the point that we left the trail from, 4 groups: as long as we get back to the trail, we can always backtrack to a missed point of interest, 2 groups: we’d be willing to miss a point of interest as long as we get back on the trail. We’d treat is as an alternative route. 2 groups: not sure.

Question 9: What brought you to Boston, especially with the cold weather right now?
Answer: 3 groups: day trip/just out and about, we already live in the area. 1 group: business trip, taking an extra day because it’s our first time to really see the city. 2 groups: pleasure trip, beating the school breaks. 1 group: we let the kids choose where they wanted to go, and they had been learning about the Revolutionary War in school (both kids in 4th grade). 1 group: we couldn’t afford a honeymoon to Mexico. 2 groups: we love the city and come often.

Question 10: What is your favorite point of interest on the Freedom Trail? If you haven’t walked the freedom trail before, which point are you most interested in seeing?
Answer: 1 group: Paul Revere House, 3 groups: Quincy Market area, 2 groups: USS Constitution, 1 group: the State House, 1 group: the Old State House, 1 group: the Old South Meeting House, 1 group: Old North Church

Quick Note: I was very surprised at the diversity of people’s interests for points on the site. I expected to get many more answers for Quincy Market, and fewer for other areas.

Incorporating the barcode technology: I believe that we must focus on the interests of the people before we can figure out exactly how to incorporate our technology. We should focus on the answers to questions 6, 7, and 8, and question 10 may be especially relevant to analyze which sites we might be able to bypass. I believe that if we develop the barcode so that it can be placed on the ground, on the red line itself, it could be an effective way to catch people’s attention. Those who are following the trail will be looking down at the line often to be sure that they are going in the right direction. Children often attempt to walk exactly on the line, balancing themselves as if they’re walking on a balance beam. Although I’m unsure of the durability of our barcodes, this would also eliminate the issue of defacing the sites by placing stickers on the gates of cemeteries and on the sides of buildings.

Using the technology to our advantage: I propose that we treat the “trail extension” that we are creating as a scavenger hunt of sorts. I believe that we should put a sticker on the trail that directs the to a hypertext asking them if they’re interested in, for example, a restaurant. If they say yes, we ask them what kind of restaurants, and when they choose, we ask them how far they would like to walk. We then give them directions, without actually telling them what the name of the restaurants is. This is ultimately expandable (the blogging idea that we’ve touched on in class) as people can add new restaurants with new directions, creating a web of information available on the phone. We can do the same type of thing to direct people to the public garden, or the Charles River, and any other sites that people may be interested in. At this particular site, I would also like to consider Downtown Crossing, the Hatch Shell, and possibly Commonwealth Avenue as far as the Prudential Center’s observation deck (perhaps even by the Green Line which is the oldest subway system in the United States). We would probably need a durable material to make these out of since they are on the ground. 3M makes vinyl wraps for use on surfaces like this. I used to coordinate installations for them at Massport, and they can withstand foot traffic for up to a year. They would probably be removed during the winter by shovels, etc. but are relatively cheap to replace.