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Embodied and Oral
Meaning carried by bodies, voices, shared attention, performance and living memory.
Historical architecture
Seven eras in the history of information
The eras organise dominant constraints and system combinations. They overlap; they are not universal dates on which humanity collectively upgraded its firmware.
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External Symbols and Durable Records
Signs and durable media externalised language, number, image and structured records.
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Organised Records and Physical Distribution
Organisations, documents, copying systems and distribution networks scaled organised memory.
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Electrical and Mass Media
Electrical transmission, recording and broadcasting separated communication from transport and co-presence.
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Programmable and Networked Information
Programmable machines and networks made information computable, addressable, searchable and globally linkable.
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Ubiquitous Cloud Media
Mobile devices, cloud systems and on-demand media made networked information persistent and portable.
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Machine-Mediated Meaning
Machine systems increasingly classify, generate, retrieve, interpret, act upon and authenticate information.