Adobe creates a time machine for the Internet

Adobe has created a trial version of the Time Machine for the Internet, which allows you to scroll back in time of any of the thousands of sites selected for testing, the CNews website reports.

Access to fresh information on the Internet is easy to get, but it is more difficult to find material published several years ago. An article, blog or recording can be completely removed from the server. It is to search for such information that the Zoetrope program is intended - with its help you can see web pages as they were before.

There are other similar projects, but Adobe experts assure that their time machine is most convenient. Having opened a website in the program window, the user receives at his disposal of the slider at the bottom of the screen. By moving the mouse, you can consider the changes in the site "in accelerated rewinding" - see how the text and pictures are replaced.

The program interface is more like a graphic editor than a browser. The page is located on a black background, it can be brought closer or removed using a magnifying glass, open the second and third page nearby. If the user is only interested in a certain block of the site, it can be distinguished by a cursor and scrolled separately.

More complex operations are available. For example, you can distinguish the current exchange rate. Then the time machine will independently draw and display a schedule for changing this course in time. It is possible to compare the values ​​- even from different sites.

The function is applicable to geographical maps. For example, the user allocates part of the city scheme into the frame and watches road load over time.

The features of the program, however, are limited by the amount of saved information. In the test sample, the developers took data from thousands of the most often updated websites and retained their condition every hour for four months. “It is not possible to fix and remember data at each moment of their change,” admits Dr. Eitan Adar, who took part in development.? To cover the entire Internet, you will need to store data from incredible capacity. ”

Many met Adobe's development with enthusiasm. “This is a fantastic opportunity,” says Chris Carpenter, the director of the company offering sites archiving. “This can be either a separate application and plugin to the browser.”

Before Zoetrope will be launched on the market, the developers plan to add a number of opportunities to the program and make it simpler and more understandable. The interface also requires improvement, and it is not yet clear when the time machine can be seen on the market.