The Immortal Trend of Touch Tables

Many tech trends in the museum world disappear as fast as they came. (Come baaaaack, spin browser!) 

But there is one I swore was going to die an early death years ago … and it never did.

How did touch tables never die?

Upon reflection, there might be some good reasons:

1. When made huge, facing upwards, a beloved daily personal device (a touchscreen) becomes a group thing.

2. Touch tech constantly improves. Touch tables inherit that progress every time they debut. The format is perennially new.

3. They are curatorially forgiving. You can stuff lots of content types in there.

(I’m saying you can stuff lots of content types in there, not lots of content. Never use media interactives for leftover content that’s not good enough to be anywhere else.)

4. By lasting this long, touch tables are now expected. (Look, a touch table! Must be an exhibition.)

5. Despite massive past efforts by big tech (e.g., Microsoft), table-sized touch has never taken off with the general public like mobile has. Museums have them all to themselves.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve made my fair share of touch tables.

Here’s the thing:
Every so often, a trend survives and becomes a trope, a recurring motif. The interactive museum touch table just might have made that jump.

Warmly,
Jonathan

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MtM Word of the Day:
Benchmarking. The process of comparing one museum to others, or to industry standards, to ensure quality. When considering a major initiative, such as constructing a building or developing an exhibition, museums often visit similar recent projects, which serve as benchmarks.