Back in June, we covered Johnny Chung Lee’s unique Wiimote Whiteboard, probably the most well-known and inexpensive do-it-yourself interactive whiteboard outside of the online whiteboard. The New York Times has an interesting article on Lee and how posting his ideas on YouTube made him a celebrity, resulting in heavy recruiting efforts from a number of tech companies, and ultimately culminating in a job offer from Microsoft. Lee says he picks his projects based on whether they have a low “work-to-wow” ratio. In other words, he wants to make as big an impact on his audience as possible with the least amount of work. It all goes to show how innovators need more than an idea to influence the world - they need to market their creations, and YouTube has become a metaphorical megaphone through which little-known entrepreneurs can make a name for themselves.
Interestingly enough, that’s part of the allure of the interactive whiteboard itself. Hatch an idea, put it on your computer, then show it to the world in an engaging, interactive presentation through your Internet connection. Traditional whiteboard advocates like Phil Beadle appear to fear the ongoing synergy of board technology and the World Wide Web, but they shouldn’t. In fact, it’s the Internet that enables someone like me to read the ideas of someone else in another country, like Beadle. And in the end, it validates the point that those little robotic dolls at Disney World were telling us all along - it is a small world after all.
(Photo via Morguefile)
Posted by Taeho Lim
