The Discrete Dialogue Network
"The Discrete Dialogue Network" (2011) is an anonymous voice messaging system for public space by Birgit Bachler.
The Discrete Dialogue Network is a telephony-based communication network for leaving anonymous voice messages to strangers in public space.
This network proposes an alternative to the flatness of common online social networks. It is a medium that works outside the business of profile pictures, status updates and “Like”-buttons. People can connect by leaving anonymous voice messages in public space and listen to what has been previously recorded. A sticker showing a unique number serves as the link between a location and a voicemail box. When calling, a person has access to all previously left messages, and can record their own voice message.
Unheard poetry in a backyard, the secrets of an abandoned lot, gossip in the ladies room, wisdom from a park bench, threats of the red-light district, can now be shared with the people you do not want to meet, and would never add to your LinkedIn-profile. The system embraces exchange with people outside one’s known friends-list, capitalizes of the significance of place and draws invisible connections between strangers as they leave voice messages at the same location. All audio content is solely available through calling and is not accessible on the world wide web. The only way to access the network is to find a sticker-tag that has been left behind by someone. The network does not require any conventional registration procedure and does not ask for personal data. Since the project is based on the Open Source telephony software freeswitch, enthusiasts are encouraged to build their own Discrete Dialogue Network through an online toolkit.
