Mac Lab Report

Clever Product Idea for TiBooks

- 2003.07.03

This is one of those articles I write from time to time where I think I've invented this cool thing but someone else has already figured it out. So I'm once again going to post this idea just to find out who makes the thing so I can buy one. I did the usual searches, but you know how that goes.

Here's my idea. After six months of toting my TiBook back and forth to school, I decided to use an old printer stand to support the TiBook and get the screen up to something like a normal human viewing angle. So I set the laptop on the printer stand (it looks pretty good, actually, though I'm no judge of aesthetics) and plug in all these cables.

There's the problem. I have to twist the laptop around, drag the cables around the stand, plug them in, and then spin the thing back into place. It's inelegant.

What is needed is a sticker you can see from in front of the TiBook that would show where all the ports are on the back of the machine, either with words or symbols. All the ports could be labeled in the small space between the keyboard and the screen.

There are only two problems. One, it ruins the clean appearance of the laptop. If you saw my house or room, you'd know that I'm not in one of these House and Garden "minimalism is beauty" groups. I live in clutter. Don't like it, but you learn to cope.

The other problem is that this is the hottest part of the laptop when the battery is on full charging mode, so the sticker will curl up, turn yellow, catch on fire, or something. So I guess it can't just be paper stickers.

Anyway, I'd say you could sell a few thousand high quality stickers like this, and your cost would be zippo.

Asking price is a link back to the Mac Lab Report and a free sample for review.

Thanks!

Jeff Adkins is a science teacher who isn't afraid to state his preferences in computing platforms. In his classroom he has everything from a beige All-in-One to a a G4 XServe, and they all work together nicely. He calls himself the "poster child for technology integration" in the classroom. He was the 2006 Outstanding Educator of the Year for the California Computer Using Educators (CUE) organization. He also maintains a site for astronomy teachers at www.AstronomyTeacher.com.

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