History of my technology

Chalk boards were at first just small squares of slate, framed with wood to keep them from breaking, and marked on with other shards of slate. In the early 19th century America started using chalkboards because anything else was too expensive. The first chalk board to actually be on the wall was invented by a geography teacher in Scotland who decided to get the slates off the student’s laps and up onto the wall. The earliest record in America shows instructors using them in academic military schools, such as WestPoint, in 1801. (Wise GEEK) Teachers didn’t have to spend as long as time writing down individual problems and lessons could be taught on a single student’s slate, but could speak to an entire class where everyone had the benefit of seeing the board. The chalk board became a little more modernized by it having a steel sheet enameled with porcelain. Also some pieces of slate were replaced by chalk. And the rag erasers they had been using were no more and they started using block of felt that could erase chalk marks without creating as much airborne dust. But later in the 1990’s, concern over student’s allergies and other health risks created by chalk dust prompted the replacement of the chalk boards with white boards.

The History of the Smart Board is all thanks to 2 people and their brilliant company. In 1986 David Martin and Nancy Knowlton were driving through upstate New York when David had described an idea he’d been working on to Nancy. A year later, SMART was founded. The company originally was the Canadian distributor for a United States Projector company. The product David had first been talking about was the SMART Board interactive whiteboard. It was able to provide touch screen control of computer apps and the ability to write over standard Microsoft Windows applications. It’s connected to an LCD panel and a computer, which brought interactive whiteboards to life and put them in classrooms, meeting rooms, boardrooms, etc… Back when they were first being invented no one knew about interactive whiteboards. (Smart Technologies) It took no effort to inform people about the products and its’ benefits. Teachers who needed to give lectures at a distance were the first to “jump on” these products. Although, the early operating systems were often unstable, slow and offered few to no graphics capabilities. But they were able to progress through and over time educators around the world came to appreciate the new ways that they could teach by using the SMART board. At first David and Nancy were unsure on how their product would be able to work and develop. Luckily they made an intelligent move in 1992 as they formed an alliance with the Intel Corporation, which resulted in joined product development. With an alliance and many investments enabled SMART’s hardware and software to develop into something incredible. The combined forces were able to come up with and interactive whiteboard that you are able to touch and do a lot more in which we call a Smart Board.