The applications, such as PowerPoint®, NetMeeting®, MSN Messenger®, and every graphic related software have pen features already specified. You only need a pen device and may not need our WriteScreen® software. Microsoft Corp. provides the handwriting capability in its Windows XP operating system. Once you have setup the Regional and Language Options, Languages Settings for Handwriting Recognition, you may use the Writing Pad or Write Anywhere to almost all editable applications, such as Windows Word®, Notepad®, Outlook®, etc. You may chose ink or text mode when use this O.S. built-in tool. However, handwriting does not have to imply handwriting recognition. Many times, we do handwriting just for the purpose of commenting, annotation, sharing idea, signing paper and teaching, etc. An old saying that a picture is worth 1000 words. Hi-Tech Instruments has developed WriteScreen® software for all other applications lacking a writing capacity. We emphasize on finding the universal method and the solution to solve what the handwriting needs.

Our requirements of an universal handwriting software are:

• We shall be able to write on a read-only file; examples .PDF read-only file, Encyclopedia CD ROM files, etc.

• We shall be able to write on an image screen but not for editing purpose; example annotating a doctor's MRI image display or commenting a PCB layout screen.

• We shall be able to write on an edited window but not for editing purpose; example expressing performance trends on a chart in an Excel® file.

• We shall be able to write on a software screen for illustration purpose; example highlighting which icon/tool is talking about in a training/teaching class.

• We shall be able to write on any screen whatever is displayed, no matter whatever the application is running.

• We shall be able to save the image that we have written. This is better than PowerPoint presentation screen that you can write but you can not save the written discussions.

• The software shall provide basic tools for doing erase, undo, redo, change width, change color and pop-up whiteboards.

• The software shall be able to easily switch the application between native and writing mode.

• The software shall be simple enough for the handwriting purpose, not for the handwriting recognition.

We proudly introduce our Hi-Tech Annotation that is fulfill the requirements. The Hi-Tech Annotation (HtiAnno.exe) is classroom automation software (CAS). It provides two (2) special menu functions, Whiteboard and Write Screen, under the Windows environment. The menu can be popped up in any applications or anywhere on the screen by double-right-clicking. Because the electronic pen has a switch that emulates the mouse right-button, the double-right-clicks method is an unique and useful method for the pen tablet device to pop up a CAS menu selection. These two functions, along with Hi-Tech WriteScreen^® Tablet Monitor, make up the classroom automation.

Clicking the menu item Whiteboard brings up a Microsoft^® NetMeeting whiteboard application. It has multiple pages and allows the teacher to use pen, eraser, text editor, highlighter and graphic tools (circle, rectangle, line…); to set color and width; to import visual templates from other applications by selecting areas from the display. To overcome the usage of background images, we enhance and append within the File drop-down menu the commands Open Image, Save Image and Erase Image. Any graphic files of JPG, BMP, TIF or GIF can be used for background images via Open Image. A background image will automatically flow through all pages within the whiteboard. You can create your own background image easily using Save Image. The Save Image produces one-page-image per file. The saved image files are JPGs, BMPs, TIFs or GIFs, and can be used for later references, posted up onto web pages, or emailed out as attachments.

Clicking the menu item Write Screen brings up a virtual writable image that covers up the original application’s display. It provides handwriting tools such as pen, save, clear, white board, color, width, undo, and redo. The written/annotated image screen can be saved as a jpg, bmp, tif, or gif graphic format file. The original applications’ data/contents are not altered. The Write Screen can also be invoked by the combined shortcut keys Shift-Ctrl-Z in any application.

The software are not for sale alone. They are bundled with our WriteScreen® hardware products.