"Docent In Your Pocket"

Another New York Times article, this time addressing how museums (in this case, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art) can attract "millennial generation multitaskers." The solution? "The event included handing out to museumgoers iPod touches loaded with a rich mix of pictures, interviews, video and graphics exploring 200 pieces in the institution’s permanent collection."

"Like almost every major art museum in the country, according to communications officers here and in other cities, the San Francisco institution is using mobile multimedia devices — iPods, iPhones, BlackBerrys and other smartphones — to tell the stories of its exhibits in new ways."

The article details how a variety of museums are re-inventing the "audio tour" by allowing guests to use hand-held devices to "go deeper" into the shows and exhibits. What's most interesting about this article is what's not stated -- that the battle to bring museums into the digital age is over, and now it's all about the best ways to integrate the analog and digital worlds.