Online moments of 2011

Blogger: Tom Woolley, Curator of New Media

"Well, they say a year in the Internet business is like a dog year - equivalent to seven years in a regular person's life. In other words, it's evolving fast and faster."
- Vint Cerf, father of the internet and Chief Internet Evangelist at Google.

I think Vint Cerf's observation about the rapid development of internet technology can also be applied to our everyday lives on the net.

Personally, I feel that the stream of updates through social networks and constant connectivity has had a strange affect on my time. Days feel like they pass more quickly than ever but thinking back to this time 12 months ago, seems, to borrow Cerf's comparison, like a dog year. Perhaps it's due to the fact that I'm rarely ever bored - those moments of being at a loose end when waiting for a bus have evaporated thanks to my iPhone. Or that I feel more connected to breaking news and analysis than ever - I'm consuming so much information that maybe my brain is being tricked into thinking time is expanding.

2011 has certainly been a monumental year online and January 2011 feels like a long time ago. This was the start of the Arab Spring and the real power of social media was demonstrated by helping to unite civilians to rise up against their tyrannical governments.

It could be argued that civil revolutions would have happened anyway without the use of Twitter and Facebook but never before have groups been able to organise themselves so efficiently and attract the attention of the world. The Egyptian authorities' nervousness came to a head on January 27th when the government made the unprecedented move of cutting the nation's internet.


Credit: Khaled Desouki / AFP / Getty Images

#egypt was revealed as the number one trending hashtag on Twitter and #jan25 – the date the civil revolution started in Egypt - also appeared as the eighth most popular hashtag on Twitter's Year in Review.

In contrast, social media was held responsible for its role in August's London riots. A 7000-strong Facebook group mourning the death of Tottenham resident Mark Duggan quickly started to mention vows of revenge against the Metropolitan police, and the Blackberry Instant Messenger service proved a useful tool for the rioters to coordinate themselves without being traced.

British internet censorship was also considered by the government as a way to prevent future acts of violence and looting spreading. Conversely, the post-riot public cleanup was coordinated through the website www.riotcleanup.co.uk.

Another example of online people power was the high profile exploits of hacking collectives Anonymous and Lulzsec. Seemingly unstoppable and untraceable, Anonymous were successful in hacking Sony Playstation and the emails of Bank of America, whilst Lulzsec launched an attack on News International.

More anonymous behaviour on Twitter saw the release of the celebs behind the super injunctions and British Twitter users flocked to the site to read the gossip first.


Credit: Google Street View

The tragic Japanese earthquake and tsunami caused the #japan hashtag to be the fifth most used term of the year and Google's Street View cameras revisited the country's roads to reveal haunting images of the devastation.

Lieutenant John Pike became an internet target after a video of him casually spraying a group of protesting students at University of California Davis went viral. Hollywood actor Charlie Sheen also became a viral sensation after his appearance on Good Morning America and gave birth to new internet lingo such as 'tigerblood' and 'winning'.


Lieutenant John Pike became an internet meme in 2011

Rebecca Black became one of the net's fastest rising stars with the release of her 'Friday' music video in February, but one of the most truly shocking and uncomfortable watches for me was this video of a racist tirade on a London tram.

Other moments include the online public outpouring of grief for the death of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs and watching celebrities and footballers duke it out on Twitter.




And of course, I couldn't let 2011 pass without mentioning Nyan Cat – 57 million views and counting!

These moments are really just scratching the surface of what happened online in 2011. What other memorable moments have I missed?

Many of these stories will find their way into our new Life Online gallery - a permanent exhibition at the Museum that will track the evolution and impact of the internet. The gallery has been designed so it can be updated easily and capture new landmark moments. I wonder what moments will define the coming year? Life Online is set to launch on March 30th 2012.

Interviewing the Inventor of Email

Blogger: Anna Ward, Content Developer

In March 2012 our new gallery Life Online opens. Work starts later this month to transform the foyer area of the museum. Don't worry Games Lounge fans, a revamped lounge will appear upstairs.

The idea of the Life Online gallery has been around for several years. The core team, Joe Brook, Tom Woolley, and Sarah Crowther have been beavering away since 2007 collecting content, shaping ideas and trying to work out how on earth to capture something so formless in a museum setting.

The last year has seen the gallery really coming together and with the help of industry and academic experts, we have managed to pin down what we will say in the gallery and what it will look like.


Tom Woolley and Anna Ward

I came on board last April and have been helping the curators get their ideas down on paper, collect the images we'd like you to see, and capture on film some of the people who helped make the internet what it is today.

I was very excited last week to set up an interview with Ray Tomlinson.

Back in 1971, Ray invented something most of us use everyday without much thought. I for one would be lost without it – email. Ray sent the very first email.

He lives in Boston... our budgets don't stretch that far, so, very much in keeping with a gallery all about the internet, Tom, Emma Shaw (our media developer), and I piled into Emma's office – set up a laptop and interviewed Ray via Skype.

I didn't think I would be so excited, but it was a real thrill when the webcam panned around and focussed on Ray. He's a really lovely man who has obviously been interviewed many times before; very professional and succinct with his answers – it couldn't have gone better.


Ray Tomlinson and Tom Woolley

We received an email after the interview saying that Ray had very much enjoyed it and that the idea of using Skype was a great one. Sounds like we've done something no one has done before, yay team and yay for Ray!

Steve Jobs 1955 - 2011

Blogger: Tom Woolley, Curator of New Media

Saddened to wake up to the news of Steve Jobs' death this morning. After a long battle with cancer the CEO and co-founder of Apple passed away at the age of 56.



A true visionary, Jobs co-founded Apple in 1976 with Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne. From the Apple 1 to the iPod, iPhone and iPad, Jobs creativity, vision and ability to think ahead has led Apple to become the second most valuable company in the world today.

Simple, elegant design is at the heart of Apple's products and Jobs led a company that rose to the top by making technology easy and desirable. Long regarded as a niche, high-end computer company in the shadow of the giant Microsoft, the release of the first iPod in 2001 changed the way we listen to music and ushered Apple products into the mainstream.

Spearheaded by Jobs, Apple then targeted the mobile phone market and introduced the iPhone in 2007. So much more than just a device to make phone calls on, the iPhone was a powerful computer in your pocket that reshaped the technology and communications industry.

An inspirational leader and public speaker, Jobs transformed the way we use technology in every day life and will be remembered as an industry pioneer.

http://www.apple.com/uk/stevejobs