> This is one of the things that disappointed me most about the Computer > History Museum in Mountain View, CA. Sure you can’t let the public interact > with *everything*, but since so much of computing since its inception has > been about interaction with active systems, just displaying them is leaving > out a large amount of what really makes them interesting. The CHM does a lot > of great preservation, archival, and curatorial work, but this really feels > like a glaring omission.
The problem is that the public wrecks stuff. Big time. And they steal stuff. Just for the thrill. Even just the stupidest little thing, like a keycap. A long time ago, I volunteered on BB-59 (battleship MASSACHUSETTS), and dealt with the radars. I was warned about people stealing stuff. One night I was in the ET shack (radar technician compartment) - a small room maybe 15 by 5 feet. Normally locked with a USN padlock, I was at the bench with a radar scope, door unlocked so visitors could come in and ask questions. I left the padlock open and hanging from the latch. Yup, some kid stile the lock. So yes, every museum must weigh public interaction against artifact damage, and what is the mission of the museum. CHM is more conservative, LCM more liberal*. I think it is good to have both sides. -- Will * 100 percent not political, but in the more classic sense. If you bring this up politically, I will shit down your throat.
