This is my first blog pencast. I hope you will take five minutes to view it and provide feedback. The Smartpen from Livescribe is a digital tool that synchronizes handwritten and audio records. It is a computer the size of a large pen, extremely portable. That means it can accompany me into the woods.
Click on the play arrow to see how it works. This is an interactive PDF that can be viewed with version 10 or higher of Adobe Reader. The window can be maximized and viewers may opt whether to show or hide the preview (outline).
This is a great tool for naturalists in the digital age. Here is where I sat while recording. I look forward to hearing comments about how the playback experience works, and suggestions about how readers would like to see pencasts used in this nature blog.
This looks pretty useful, Van. What were you writing on? Does it really write?
You have to buy special notebooks in which the paper is printed with a pattern of almost-invisible dots. They are not expensive. You can also print special paper. It uses real ink so you can make notes with or without the Smartpen turned on.