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Library's Project Room smartens up meetings
Imagine being able to take the chalkboard off the wall at the end of a presentation and bring it home with you. The Project Room in the Northwestern University Library Information Commons allows groups of students to do essentially that. Equipment installed in the room captures images of marked-up “smartboards.” These images can then be printed, emailed, or saved to a memory stick or floppy disk.
The Project Room is equipped with two white boards. A digital camera fixed to the end of an extended arm captures images on one of the boards. The other board acts as a screen for the projected image of a computer desktop. Special markers with reflective tips can then be used to draw on the projected image. These markers can also be used like a computer mouse to click on web pages, move cursors, or control software—anything a normal computer mouse would do. Images can be captured and saved as files at any time by pushing a button below the screen. Students can use their own laptops or the resident computer.
The room has seen heavy use by study groups and by students working on group projects and presentations. It is available during regular Library hours and can be reserved at the Information Commons Desk. Information Commons staff can instruct interested users on the functions and capabilities of the room.
Scott Garton