The Playback Machine
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Here is a neat idea for a web project if ever there was one. This would be super cool and I guarantee that this will exist someday but is out of the reach of anyone short of Google today and even Google wouldn’t find it to be a trivial project by any stretch.
The idea is to build a “Playback Machine”, a chronological database that scours blogs, Facebook, online communities like this one, YouTube records, Twitter… basically every place that they can access that has some recording or your activities. Whether it is a record of what you watched (YouTube), what you listened to (Spotify), what you thought (blog), what you discussed (community), where you were (FourSquare), etc. it could put it into a timeline and allow you to “playback” your life.
From the data collected in 2002, it would be pretty boring. For today, it would be pretty interesting. The NSA undoubtedly has something like this but not user friendly (or available.) But as a consumer product, it could be really amazing. Imagine, with minimal effort, being able to go back and reply your life. There is tons of stuff that is not captured, but there is a ton that is. Way more than people realize because it isn’t accumulated anywhere. By putting existing data into a single timeline you could see where you were, minute by minute and reconstruct huge portions of your life.
Think of it as a form of digital anthropological archeology. Historians will be able to start in the early 2000s and using nothing but complex search algorithms start rebuilding our timelines giving them more insight into who we were, where we were and what we did than likely we have today.
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<shudders>
is it to late to clear my browser(s) history? -
I think that it would be pretty cool. Putting a person into chronological context.
You could have a "play" button and a speed control. Watch events unfold over time.
Pictures, videos, posts, audio.... All playing back at a relational rate to when they happened.
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@scottalanmiller said:
I think that it would be pretty cool. Putting a person into chronological context.
You could have a "play" button and a speed control. Watch events unfold over time.
Pictures, videos, posts, audio.... All playing back at a relational rate to when they happened.
I like this. gears turning
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you know this is probably possible at a lightweight level through node.js and the google search API. maybe.
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That would be awesome, especially for you young guys. It would provide "milestones" to relate to when trying to remember different events, even those that weren't recorded somewhere. Great idea.
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Be right back, putting up kickstarter.
@scottalanmiller -
All I have to say is...
http://i.imgur.com/Ht063XR.jpg -
@scottalanmiller At least the NSA should let us access our own files and history. I agree with @g.jacobse though. Some things are better left forgotten in the cleared history section of our lives. LOL
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@MattKing said:
Be right back, putting up kickstarter.
@scottalanmillerThat'll be my next move.
Any guess what that would cost? Lol
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@scottalanmiller said:
@MattKing said:
Be right back, putting up kickstarter.
@scottalanmillerThat'll be my next move.
Any guess what that would cost? Lol
We'd need to find a way to integrate with every website and community out there. Talk about work!
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@ajstringham yup. Not minor.
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@scottalanmiller said:
@MattKing said:
Be right back, putting up kickstarter.
@scottalanmillerThat'll be my next move.
Any guess what that would cost? Lol
Say 6mos startup window?
$150k for something presentable?
-$40k 6mo colo server rentals (need some horsies under the hood)
-$10k Google personnel bribes
-$90k for 4-6 peeps to take off work for 6mos
$10k misc hardware, pizza, and beer/soda -
Not cheap. But not out of reach.
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I feel the hardest part would be "Hey we just took $150k and ran into legal trouble, technical trouble, whatever-trouble"... which would not be a good place to be in.
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@MattKing said:
I feel the hardest part would be "Hey we just took $150k and ran into legal trouble, technical trouble, whatever-trouble"... which would not be a good place to be in.
ROFL! Yup...
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Am I missing something, or isn't this something like a supersized Facebook?
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@Dashrender said:
Am I missing something, or isn't this something like a supersized Facebook?
I think this would be a service that does it for you instead of the manual posting. It's like a meta-Facebook.
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@ajstringham said:
@Dashrender said:
Am I missing something, or isn't this something like a supersized Facebook?
I think this would be a service that does it for you instead of the manual posting. It's like a meta-Facebook.
With the entire internet; kind of like a windows explorer for your entire online life.
EDIT: not the entire internet, just forums, facebook, etc. haha
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@Dashrender said:
Am I missing something, or isn't this something like a supersized Facebook?
Sort of. But you can't post to it. It's an aggregator.
