Stuff I've Seen

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This entry was published at least two years ago (originally posted on November 17, 2003). Since that time the information may have become outdated or my beliefs may have changed (in general, assume a more open and liberal current viewpoint). A fuller disclaimer is available.

Finally — I can talk about this!

Every so often during my time working on the Microsoft campus, I’d see something that really caught my interest. However, I couldn’t ever talk about it — NDAs and the like — so I’ve never mentioned any of them. However, the one that was always at the top of the “I really wish I had this” list was just announced at Comdex (and was apparently briefly mentioned back in April, too).

A prototype application called “Stuff I’ve Seen,” for instance, will store every screen that has popped up on a given computer monitor for a year. (from the April article)

The chairman also showed off a research project known as “Stuff I’ve Seen,” which catalogs any place a computer user has gone. As previously reported, Stuff I’ve Seen is designed to make it easier to find a previously visited Web site or an old e-mail, as well as other files that have become increasingly hard to find among the myriad folders on a typical PC’s hard drive. (from yesterday’s article)

Right now, it’s not uncommon for me to remember (or half-remember) reading something, somewhere, that I’d like to reference back to later on. Unfortunately, it can be a royal pain in the butt to track that down. Where did I see it? Was it in an e-mail someone sent me? An IM session? Something I stumbled across on the web? If it was on the web, how easy will it be for me to find it? As wonderful as Google is, when you’re a little iffy on the details of what you’re looking for, it can be almost impossible to find a specific reference or citation without being buried in false hits because your search terms are too vague.

SIS attempts to solve that problem by creating a database that stores the text of virtually any information displayed on your screen in the past year (I’d assume the default time period could be adjusted), along with references to the source of that information (URLs, files, etc.). Then, when searching for a phrase or subject, rather than limiting your search to whatever is stored on your drive, or expanding your search to everything on the Internet, you can confine the scope of your search to items that you have looked at, and likely increase the chances of finding the correct result by leaps and bounds.

I want this. And I want it on my Mac. ;)

Apple? Mac shareware programmers? You listening?

For more information on SIS, this Google search is turning up a lot of hits, including research papers and PowerPoint presentations directly from Microsoft Research (in fact, this Google search is the only reason I continued this post beyond the pull quotes — if I hadn’t turned up this amount of already freely-available information, I’d have stopped with what C|Net reported just to be on the safe side).

(via Scoble)

9 thoughts on “Stuff I've Seen”

  1. This is something I definitely don’t want on my computer – a central place where all information about you will be stored. All your interests, political views, any relationship with other people etc all in one place easy for anyone else to access if they get control over your machine.

    And spouses will definitely use this to check if you’ve been to any pornsites.

    Az Jim

  2. I agree with Jim. Ashcroft has made me paranoid, I know, but I’d rather not have a program on my machine that stores a list of every page I’ve been to. That’s what the ‘history’ button in your web browser is for.

    Not that that isn’t being sent out anyway, but at least I can control how many days it stores. :P

    As for the porn issue, spouses should share and share alike, baby. I know my boyfriend looks at porn, he knows I look at porn (well, my version of porn anyway) – as long as it isn’t excessive and replacing my ability to get nookie when I want it, he can look at all the porn he wants to look at.

  3. Well, speaking of the analogies to history, you could probably clear it. It would be incredibly useful, seriously. Especially if they combined it with a visual representation of browsing history (eg. which links you followed to get where–right now all it tells you is where you were on which day).

  5. You probably could clear it, but consider this: Windows XP stores URL history in at least four places; clearing that, unless you know where to look, the first time, tok me several hours, including two hours in a live chat with a Microsoft tech trying to remember where they hide it.

    Sounds like the worst idea on the planet, really

  7. I really like the idea of SIS. However, I’d also demand the right to say “now don’t include this” on rare occasion. Yes, it would make the right to privacy a sham. Employers could see where their employees have been. You were supposed to be working guy. Still, I’m a bit foregetful and I’ve spent many an hour trying to reclaim something I came accross once months ago. I hope it has an “off” button.

  8. Why Microsoft and Apple doesn’t take in consideration to enter in the hardware market for kids?

    Today kids want to do what their parents do: often pc.

    The lack of good pc toys for today’s kids is evident.

    I just found only few products on the net [but, I imagine, difficult to buy from Italy for example..].

    My Touch Screen

    http://www.onestepahead.com/product/85230/413755/117.html#readmore

    Clevy Keyboard

    http://www.clevy.nl/bedrijf/concept

    KidTRAC

    http://www.infogrip.com/product_view.asp?RecordNumber=569&sbcolor=%23CC9966&option=pointing&subcategory=9&CatTxt=Trackballs&optiontxt=Pointing

    BIGtrack

    http://www.infogrip.com/product_view.asp?RecordNumber=98&sbcolor=%23CC9966&option=pointing&subcategory=9&CatTxt=Trackballs&optiontxt=Pointing

    thank u

    Daniele

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