click on any of the logos to go to that hall of famer!

criteria for selection

- sociocultural implications (e.g. affects how humans interact, therefore contributing to a long/short-ranging social & cultural shift)
​
- synthesizes technology and the humanities in a novel manner (e.g., combined current technology with past or current data to make it more accessible, helped facilitate data collection and further the study of human footprints, encouraged long-range human communication)

- broad impact (used by many around the world, well-known)

- changed common perceptions of (a field in) technology or humanities (e.g., showed how art could be created using computers, how recordings stored online could be utilized as a digital library, etc)

- current relevance (despite changes in the technology or humanities arenas brought on by the rapid advancement of both, hall of famers are still widely used today) 

​​author's note: if there was something i thought was relevant but didn't necessarily meet one or more of the criteria, i've included it below as an honorable mention. arguably, though, you could advocate for any of these to fit into a digital humanities hall of fame, which is good. ideal, even, because that reflects both the malleability of perception and the broad reach of digital humanities.

descriptions of each hall of famer

  1. archive.org: The Internet Archive, an initiative that began in 1996, is a comprehensive and continuously growing digital library, seeking not only to preserve the current contents of the Web for future generations, but to advocate for an open Internet. In serving as a historian for the Internet, it ensures the preservation of technology & cultural shifts.
  2. project gutenburg: Project Gutenberg, started on December 1, 1971, offers thousands of open-source, free, downloadable PDFs of books in the public domain, such as classics like Pride and Prejudice and Frankenstein. The project, which is completely volunteer-run, simulates the effect of the original Gutenberg press, harnessing the power of current technology to increase accessibility to works from a host of authors. 
  3. google books: Beginning in 2005, Google Books attempted to offer access to a large number of print texts. However, in 2017, an agreement that would enable the entire contents of Google's scanned books to go public on Google Books failed to pass through court on the grounds of copyright infringement. Its failure underlies a tenuous understanding between the humanities and technology: if the latter makes the entire accessible, how much jurisdiction do writers and artists have over the sharing of their work?
  4. librivox: Like Project Gutenburg, Librivox offers free access to public domain texts, albeit as volunteer-read audiobooks. Its founding in 2005 broadened the accessibility of texts for those who either couldn't or didn't want to read print materials, and its current move to expand to non-English languages reflects a growing reach of stories & of how said stories are presented and spread.
  5. wikipedia: Wikipedia, founded in 2001, represents increasing global connectivity and testifies to the power of the Internet to break geographical barriers. Based on the concept of a wiki -- a collaborative and free encyclopedia that anyone can edit -- it is often used to acquire information quickly or obtain sources for research on a topic. However, its use as a primary resource is frowned upon by educators. 
  6. youtube​: Youtube began in 2005 and launched as a video hosting site that allowed users to comment, like, and share videos, as well as subscribe to other users' "channels." It helped revolutionize education, filmmaking, and marketing, among other fields, through having videos go "viral". 
  7. reddit: A combination between forum and news site, Reddit -- founded in 2005 -- creates an interactive news and discussion experience that engages people across the globe in new combinations. Despite moderation, Reddit is often considered an untamed corner of the Internet, fostering subcultures through the creation of subreddits.
  8. facebook: After Facebook's inception in 2004, human relationships were redefined. With the ability to "friend" others, like their posts, and organize users into specific groups (e.g. "Friends from College"), Facebook, for better or worse, has fostered a "highlight reel" culture online, in which others curate versions of themselves; however, it has also come under fire for privacy concerns. Facebook's management of its users' information raises ethical questions about the reach of companies working intimately with sensitive data.  
  9. twitter: A social networking and news service website started in 2006, Twitter has become a mainstay for reporters, public figures, and anyone who wants to share their thoughts. The caveat: said sharing must be done in 280 characters. Consequently, Twitter functions as a blog via SMS: double texting the Internet. It's received flack for its comparative lack of moderation during heated debates. Because users generally only see tweets from those they "follow", and following is a voluntary choice, Twitter has also been credited for encouraging the development of "echo chambers", particularly regarding politics.

honorable mentions 
  1. porn websites (pornhub, xnxx, xvideos)
  2. myspace
  3. AARON​
  4. snapchat
  5. ​instagram
  6. google scholar
  7. photoshop
  8. tumblr
  9. video games (world of warcraft, league of legends, mario franchise, grand theft auto, pokemon, etc​)
  10. linkedin

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