ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY BLOG | INVENTIONS FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

This morning I had the opportunity to do a webinar on mind mapping, to the faculty at a college in Nairobi, Kenya. The session lasted an hour and a half and it was exciting to be able to introduce the faculty to the merits and features of several of the leading mind mapping applications. The faculty is in the process of developing a multi-disciplinary curriculum and wants a vehicle to be able to express their ideas and a way to communicate them. Having access to a mind mapping application would allow them to brainstorm and see the big picture with a high degree of clarity.

For those of you that are just jumping into using the web to do webinars and training, today I used several tools to enable me to do this work. I used Glance to share my screen- which continues to be a solid performer and very easy for my clients to use. I also used Skype for the audio which I would have to say was incredible today- the sound quality was crisp and clear on both ends. Likewise, I used Papershow with my PowerPoint presentation which allowed me to annotate right on my slides. I was also able to use Papershow as well as a digital whiteboard to jot down some ideas and information that my participants could see as I was speaking. Wow - what a collection of tools you are probably saying about now. Yes- but trying to keep the presentation interactive and novel, is important when doing webinars over and having these tools makes it that much easier to do. When you are planning your webinar here are some tips:

• Rehearse, Rehearse and Rehearse again
• Disconnect your computer from the WiFi network and hardwire your computer into the network
• Do a run through if you can
• Have a backup plan in case Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) does not work
• Use a headset if you are planning to use VOIP (ie. Skype)
  
• Use tools that have "just enough features" so that you can focus on the content and not the technology
• Confirm your meetings a couple days before to make sure everyone is on the same page

With a little planning you will find that hosting a webinar is a lot of fun and very rewarding, especially when you can span the globe without leaving your office. Yes- the "world is flat" and continues to get smaller through the power of the web! If you have any questions about the tools I used, please feel free to leave a comment. Likewise, if you are trying to figure out whats the best mind mapping tool for your situation please feel free to email me.