Need tech help for presentation
January 29, 2019 12:33 PM Subscribe
Is there a modern (digital) version of a 1970s overhead projector?
In March I'll be giving a presentation from my MacBook Air. It will be hooked up to the projection system at the hotel where I'm presenting. I've done this in the past for PowerPoints and it works fine. This time I'm doing more of an interactive workshop than a straight lecture, and I'm wishing I had something like an overhead projector from the 1970s, where you would place an acetate overlay on it and then annotate it with dry-erase markers for all to see up on the screen. Is there anything like this, where I could use a pen/stylus to mark up a real document? I do have a small tablet and stylus, but I hate it because you can't see what you're marking up (that is, you're moving the stylus on a plain dark surface and just watching your marks show up on the monitor), and it's also a bit finicky for making small marks. (I'm a copyeditor, so small marks are my thing!) I also have a regular iPad (that is, not a Pro). Any ideas?
In March I'll be giving a presentation from my MacBook Air. It will be hooked up to the projection system at the hotel where I'm presenting. I've done this in the past for PowerPoints and it works fine. This time I'm doing more of an interactive workshop than a straight lecture, and I'm wishing I had something like an overhead projector from the 1970s, where you would place an acetate overlay on it and then annotate it with dry-erase markers for all to see up on the screen. Is there anything like this, where I could use a pen/stylus to mark up a real document? I do have a small tablet and stylus, but I hate it because you can't see what you're marking up (that is, you're moving the stylus on a plain dark surface and just watching your marks show up on the monitor), and it's also a bit finicky for making small marks. (I'm a copyeditor, so small marks are my thing!) I also have a regular iPad (that is, not a Pro). Any ideas?
If you had an Apple TV connected to the projector, you could mirror either of your devices' screens to it with Airplay.
posted by General Malaise at 12:42 PM on January 29, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by General Malaise at 12:42 PM on January 29, 2019 [1 favorite]
Keynote lets you markup slides live, so if you were presenting from it on an iPad, you could just draw on it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phN7pzRKzZw
posted by advicepig at 12:54 PM on January 29, 2019 [2 favorites]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phN7pzRKzZw
posted by advicepig at 12:54 PM on January 29, 2019 [2 favorites]
Seconding the Keynote comment above.
A smartboard aka interactive whiteboard, common in many schools, would do this but I doubt the hotel has one.
Depending on how scripted the annotation is can you create a series of animations and just click through it? I do this with annotating text in a slideshow.
posted by Wretch729 at 1:02 PM on January 29, 2019
A smartboard aka interactive whiteboard, common in many schools, would do this but I doubt the hotel has one.
Depending on how scripted the annotation is can you create a series of animations and just click through it? I do this with annotating text in a slideshow.
posted by Wretch729 at 1:02 PM on January 29, 2019
Where I work we use a document camera for this -- it lets you project a paper document rather than an acetate. It looks like they cost a couple of hundred, which may or may not be worth it to you. Or maybe you can rent one?
posted by irrelephant at 1:25 PM on January 29, 2019
posted by irrelephant at 1:25 PM on January 29, 2019
AirScanner for iphone and ipad, to use it as a document scanner. There are other apps as well, check around to see what your feature options are. You'll probably want a tabletop tripod that will let you point the phone straight down - many do this, a few don't, so check before you buy. All told you can probably do all this for less than $30.
posted by Lyn Never at 1:34 PM on January 29, 2019
posted by Lyn Never at 1:34 PM on January 29, 2019
I have the previous version of this IPEVO document camera, and it works quite well for this purpose. For another $100 you can get one that connects directly to an HDMI cable—no need for a computer.
posted by brianogilvie at 2:25 PM on January 29, 2019
posted by brianogilvie at 2:25 PM on January 29, 2019
An iPad/tablet on a suitable stand makes a great overhead projector if you hook it up to an AV system. I spent the day in sessions with assistive tech guru Therese Willkomm and she made great use of it as a document camera/table camera/overhead projector.
posted by scruss at 2:37 PM on January 29, 2019
posted by scruss at 2:37 PM on January 29, 2019
Response by poster: Perhaps a "document camera" is what I need! I didn't know what I was looking for, so I was googling "projector." I will check out these cameras. And I will look into the AirScanner app as well.
The Keynote option is cool! I am about to go research stylus options for the iPad, since I need to make smaller, more precise marks than I can do with my finger. I like that my hand wouldn't show up on the screen!
Many thanks for these two options!
posted by wisekaren at 4:58 AM on January 30, 2019
The Keynote option is cool! I am about to go research stylus options for the iPad, since I need to make smaller, more precise marks than I can do with my finger. I like that my hand wouldn't show up on the screen!
Many thanks for these two options!
posted by wisekaren at 4:58 AM on January 30, 2019
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by lostburner at 12:36 PM on January 29, 2019 [5 favorites]