BRITAIN'S BBC has relaunched its online Domesday project, which began in 1986 to record everyday life in Britain.The demise of the ambitious project came about through digital obsolescence: the BBC chose Laserdisc to record the photographs and writings sent in by ordinary people. It became an example of the kind of obsolescence that kill digital records, one I have warned will occur to all those individuals and businesses that fail to regularly update the technologies on which they keep their data.It was a strange decision to put the records sent in by one million volunteers on two high-priced Laserdiscs, but perhaps only in hindsight. It was considered the cutting edge technology of its day. But the cost of the technology meant the Domesday project was for an elite only, rather than being aimed at a more egalitarian distribution. The cost alone should have killed the project. At a horrendous £5,000, which included a BBC Master computer running special software and the two discs, the compilation was out of the reach of the very people whose lives it documented. Only 1,000 copies were sold.Then, the technology went out of date and no one could access the records, a fate not suffered by William the Conqueror's original Domesday Book. That we note is still around, on paper and online here: www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/domesday.The BBC revived the project and took a year to extract the data stored on the discs. The images were stored in now unrecognisable file formats. The team then put it all online at www.bbc.co.uk/history/domesday. People are now being asked to contribute more images and writing to continue the project.A lot of UK schools participated in the original BBC's project, an exercise for students in documenting contemporary history. Some described the games they played, for example “Poison fingers”, leaving a record for posterity. The BBC went back to the school where this game was played and found none of the current students played it, but the teachers remembered.The BBC will close new contributions to its Domesday in November, and then donate it all to the National Archives.I wonder if Bermudians would be interested in creating a similar project for the community? This is a call for a group to start an online site collecting all the old and new images and writings documenting daily life.Server space is cheap. One gets unlimited space for less than $7 a month at providers such as Hostmonster. Throw in some free database software such as Drupal and Wordpress, find a way to get volunteers to screen entries and load them, and you are off to a good start. Anyone? If you wish, send me an e-mail and I will see how I can gather people around the campfire.eG8 and privacyThe digital version of the G8 meeting, the eG8, is being held this week in France. Arranged by the French president Nicolas Sarkozy, it involves tech executives, businesses and other leaders who will focus on the Internet.Lots of people believe it is Sarkozy's way of attempting to put restrictive brakes on the Internet. The French are really keen to protect intellectual property rights in what some see an overly restrictive way. However, the eG8 (www.eg8forum.com) bills itself as having a focus on the “economy and society”, then adds in privacy rights and intellectual property as among the topics.These are very important topics, but Sarkozy has not been known to be on the side of consumers. Perhaps his tone will be modified, since on May 25 the EU's new telecoms law takes effect. It gives consumers and business users a lot: the right to switch telecoms providers within one day and keep their phone numbers; improved online privacy and safety, and more consistent regulation across the EU.Contracts will be limited to a maximum of two years and all telecoms companies have to offer a one-year contract. Customers will have to be told about minimum levels of service, and any “throttling” of the Internet, including when using voice services such as Skype. Customers will be able to switch without penalty if service levels are not met.Let's see if the EU law works on the ground, especially in countries with only two or three providers.ThinkSpaceOne of the professors involved in Iowa State University's ThinkSpace, which I wrote about earlier this month, contacted me and asked if there were any teachers in Bermuda interested in trying the collaborative tool with their students. Just e-mail me and I can hook you up with him for more information.Send any comments to elamin.ahmed[AT]gmail.com