Memex Trails

To understand what Mexmex Trails is, you need to decipher what it means: Memex or ‘Memory extender,’ was a theoretical proto-hypertext computer system that Vannevar Bush proposed in 1945 (wow, that sounded more geeky than I’d originally intended).

From Whackypedia:

“The MEMEX proposed by Bush would create TRAILS of links connecting sequences of microfilm frames, rather than links in the modern sense where a hyperlink connects a single word, phrase or picture within a document and a local or remote destination.”


There you have it, ‘Memex,’ memory extender and ‘trails,’ as in, links connecting media within a programme at a local and remote destination. Well, Microfilm did go out with the old spy movies after all.

What’s so cool about Memex Trails is that it lets you organise visually. My memory has always worked from a visual basis so it’s like having my grey goo on a screen staring back at me, a sort of cerebral mirror.


Memex Trails adjusts to how much stuff you’ve put into it, a bit like the difference between a mobile library and the British Library. You can zoom in or out to get a better perspective and no one’s trying to hand you pamphlets of any kind.

You can also drop stuff from way back to see where it fits. I put my first ever blog post and it was a strange site to see everything spread out with the relevant image and link components. Who knew I had so much spare time on my hands (help me).

It also doubles up as a calendar and schedule, with to-do lists and all the stuff you’d expect from a calendar that doesn’t want to be considered remedial.


But one of the most ingenious features is the ability to take your trails wherever you go. Via the Trails Network, you can carry a virtual suitcase and access your bits wherever you are, over the interweb. Syncing is the shit. I understand you can also use it as a collaboration tool but to be honest I have no friends so that doesn’t apply. But if I did, it’s visually a lot easier to navigate than trying to organise via BaseCamp or Outlook.

Don’t all rush over there as it’s still in puny Beta mode and that can be as fragile as premature parsnip but keep it in your memory extender for later.