The smarterboard

As we plan for our 5th location at University Park, lots of changes are happening all around us, most notably is the convergence of the Educational Gaming Commons and the Media Commons. The possibilities for innovation are endless and I am incredibly excited about the future.

For our facility, the Media Commons is partnering up with the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences in 20 Hosler Building. Its a smaller room, with cinder block walls and tall windows, not the most suitable environment for a full on video studio. But it did get me thinking...maybe it doesn't make sense to have a full video studio...maybe this is an opportunity to create something totally different and satisfy a need that otherwise would go unresolved.

My first thoughts were to investigate the types of projects being worked on in EMS and the technology that would inspire both faculty and students. Luckily for me, my husband happens to be in the College of EMS and had lots of ideas for me. Especially in the area of mapping (his option is GIS),....and that's when the light bulb went off.

Google Earth...interactivity....smartboards....video....editing...

Using Google Earth on a smartboard isn't a new idea, so I knew it could be done. I started researching how to implement it right away. When we finally found a company that would come and demo the hardware for us, I had no idea just how awesome it would be.
There are SO many cool things that can be done...think, video editing with your fingers....!!!

Paul from Smart Ed. Services drove all the way here from Indianapolis to let us play...and I gotta say...I feel smarter already.



 

Even smarter than a Smartboard is the new integration with a standard LCD screen.
 
I think this is pretty slick and will eliminate the shadows caused by standing in front of a projector while interactive with the board itself.
With this solution, you actually draw right on the screen. I think it looks pretty darn cool, and totally worth the extra money.

I am looking forward to talking to students and faculty within this college to see what types of projects we can design around this technology as well as integrate into existing projects.