WiiLearn

I’ve recently downloaded Goh Boon Jin’s Smoothboard 1.6 to drive my Wiimote interactive whiteboard. In my estimation, it seems to be the software that gets us closer than ever to primetime. Key IWB features like annotation, PowerPoint controls, and screen capture aim this software to compete directly with corporate players like Smart and Promethean. A floating toolbar with big, pen-clickable buttons makes it easy to change modes without running back to your PC to click a new setting.

In the settings panel, Smoothboard features some key enhancements that may prove to make the Wiimote-PC connection simple enough for average users. No more muddling around with the painfully slow Bluetooth Connection Wizard. Just press the 1 and 2 buttons on the Wiimote, and the software takes does the rest. I use a Kensington USB dongle to add bluetooth connectivity to my PC, so I’m stuck with the Wizard.

Smoothboard is shareware, and if you want to get rid of the nagging register window, you can buy a registration key for $29.99.

Smoothboard 1.6 Release | Smoothboard.net – The Wiimote Whiteboard.

Johnny Chung Lee is almost single-handedly obliterating the line between the Wii and the PC. Using the wiimote, Johnny has developed finger and head tracking, and my personal favorite: the wiimote whiteboard. Check out the video:

With more and more teachers jumping on the interactive whiteboard bandwagon, this affordable alternative is worth developing and testing in the classroom. Others have joined the cause in developing hardware and software solutions to bridge the gap between Wii and PC.

Wiimote project: a growing community of enthusiasts sharing their successes (and failures) with the wiimote and PC.
WiiBrew wiki: a site created to document do-it-yourself projects for the Wii.
WiiLi wiki: a site dedicated to connecting the Wii and Linux-based PCs