After reading this issue, you should be ready, willing and able to use the Web in your meetings. But in order to be even more tech-savvy, you may want to look at integrating the Web with other meeting room tools.

For example, you may want to bring up a Web page during your meeting. If you’re using an interactive whiteboard (the SMART Board interactive whiteboard), or an interactive overlay for your plasma display panel (such as SMART Board for Plasma Displays interactive overlay), you can control software applications by touching the screen with your finger. This means that you can quickly and easily navigate through the Internet during a presentation, without losing your audience’s attention.

Another advantage is the ability to write over top of any software application. If you need to draw attention to an important point on a Web page, you pick up a pen from the SMART Pen Tray and write over top of the page. If you change your mind, just erase what you’ve written as you would on any whiteboard.

If you want to save your changes, you can save everything (including the notes) for future reference or distribution. You can even save notes as an HTML file and then post them on the Web. As an added feature, handwriting recognition software can convert your notes to text.

There are so many multimedia tools available today, that setting up your meeting room can often be more time consuming than the meeting itself. One way to save time and still use these tools is to employ a multimedia cabinet such as a SMART Expression cabinet. You can load up a SMART Expression cabinet with any peripherals you choose (PC, projector, video, DVD, etc.) and the cabinet is preconfigured with all necessary cables and wires. Once the initial setup is complete, you don’t need to worry about connecting your equipment each time you want to use it. Because SMART Expression cabinet is both lockable and moveable, any room can be instantly converted into a well-equipped meeting room with minimal effort on your part!

If you’re nervous about presenting, you might be hesitant about incorporating technology into your meeting or presentation. But keep in mind that the tools described above are as simple and intuitive to use as a word processor or a whiteboard. So feel free to enrich your presentations with Web pages, graphics, animation and audio effects. Your presentations will be more effective, and your audience will be able to focus on your content, rather than your equipment.