TRON and the Digital Museum

TRON is a project aimed at realizing "computing everywhere" environments (K. Sakamura, 1993). In the process of carrying out this project, we have come to realize the wide range of issues involved in bringing such an environment into being. In the early stages of the TRON Project we initiated fundamental projects for solving such technological issues, as well as application projects for proving the technologies. Through these projects we have demonstrated "computing everywhere" technologies for living spaces and working spaces. There are some objectives of the "computing everywhere" environment, though that cannot readily be proven in applications of these kinds. One is to resolve the issues that arise when such an environment is used by the general public, on a temporary basis, as in a public facility. A second objective is study the "computing everywhere" environment used for conveying information. We are starting up an application program, in which we are putting together a Digital Museum as an application having both the aspect of a public institution and that of information conveyance. The paper gives an overview of the Digital Museum, while also looking at the directions now being taken in TRON Project research and development, One aim of this development is to resolve the technology issues that have come to light in the process of building the Digital Museum.