Derek's Big Website of Walmart Purcase Receipts

**New: Read Exclusive iStuff.org Interview with Derek!

How many times have you been to Walmart this year? Can't remember? Well, Derek remembers. In fact, he can even tell you every single item he's purchased from Walmart since 1996! But why wait for Derek to run through the list when you can see it for yourself!

Derek, who's been shopping at Walmart store #1627 in Dilworth, MN, created his website out of a combination of sheer boredom and the desire to practice some CGI and javascript... Oh, and then there's the fact that he's kept every receipt he's ever had for the past three years! (That's over 133 receipts!)

What is so exciting about looking at someone's purchase receipts, you may ask? I'm not really sure, but the thousands, yes, thousands of people who visit his site may be able to provide some insight. With every receipt Derek displays, visitors can respond to and comment on the items purchased--things ranging from power tools to baby wipes to toothpaste and pet food.

Thus, Derek has turned his somewhat useless collection of receipts into something purposeful, something that can be taken out of the box and shared. Taking advantage of what the Internet seems to do best these days--build communities--Derek plays upon our "voyeuristic" tendencies to peer into the lives of strangers and then, by building a message board, encourages us to share our first impressions and engage in rather "enlightening" commentary about Walmart culture.

However, Derek is also utilizing the Internet for something even more notable--archiving. By placing his receipts on the world wide web for all to see, he is ultimately transforming his static collection into something greater, something that can be shared, stored, recorded and built upon all at the same time. It's no doubt that the Internet is transforming the way we communicate, conduct business, and share information, but it should also be noted that it is changing the nature of the archive! Derek's site is an excellent example of this. Way to go Derek!

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Related links and such:

Derek:The Wal-Mart Receipt man Interview! by c00kie.net: http://www.c00kie.net/interview1.html/

Article from Shift Magazine, September 2000 issue, pg. 30
http://lightning.prohosting.com/~receipts/shiftmag.shtmll

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