Virtual Ink Adds Handwriting Recognition and Plug-and-Play USB Connectivity to Its Award-Wining mimio Digital Meeting Assistant

mimio lets users share handwritten information
from an ordinary whiteboard over the Internet; new version 1.1 software adds:

• Microsoft NetMeeting Direct Interface
• Control Panel SDK Specification for Developers
• Flexible Capture Bar Mounting

BOSTON, Mass. — February 14, 2000 — Virtual Ink Corporation, creator of the award-winning mimio, the world's first Digital Meeting Assistant (DMA), today announced version 1.1 of its mimio software with available add-ons that enable handwriting recognition and USB connectivity. Available later this month, version 1.1 makes it easier for businesses and institutions to use any whiteboard to capture and share handwritten information with others within a single location or around the world via the Internet.

"There are more than 60 million whiteboards in the world, and mimio version 1.1 can turn each one into an electronic whiteboard," said Greg McHale, CEO of Virtual Ink. "This update makes mimio setup and sharing easier and more flexible, with optional features our customers have asked us for like handwriting recognition and USB connectivity. It advances our goal of making mimio the cornerstone of an entirely new versatile, extensible collaboration platform."

mimio enhances a meeting's efficiency and productivity by capturing and sharing handwritten text and sketches in real time and in color — information is recorded exactly as the ink appears on a whiteboard or flat surface, allowing local and remote users to share and store it without destroying the momentum of a meeting.

"Features like handwriting recognition and USB increase mimio's value to the enterprise," said Guy Creese, Senior Analyst, Aberdeen Group. "Although mimio's ability to store whiteboard jottings is a powerful feature in its own right, the ability to set it up more easily and transform whiteboard writing into text data will further shrink the time it takes to translate collaborative thinking into documented decisions."

Version 1.1
Version 1.1 is a free software upgrade that will be available for download at www.mimio.com later this month. The preview version of the software is available immediately at www.mimio.com. The new software extends the "sharability" of mimio with support for optional handwriting recognition and USB connectivity upgrades (each sold separately), enhanced Microsoft® NetMeeting® functionality (included), and a published control panel SDK specification for application developers. The free upgrade also allows users to mount the mimio capture bar vertically or horizontally across the top of a whiteboard, enabling a longer capture area for portrait-sized whiteboards.

Handwriting Recognition Upgrade
To eliminate the time consuming task of transcribing meeting notes, mimio version 1.1 users can now convert cursive and printed handwritten information on whiteboards into editable text characters in the PC, with the optional Handwriting Recognition Plug-in. Using CalliGrapher® software from ParaGraph® — a business unit of Vadem — the plug-in provides batch recognition of multiple handwritten whiteboards, spell checking with familiar red saw-toothed underlining, and a visual link between translated text and handwriting called text to ink correlation. Users simply highlight the portion of the whiteboard image containing the text they want to translate, drag it to the notes window and drop it in place. The text is instantly translated into text that can be used in any Windows® application. The software also goes beyond simple text recognition to distinguish between similar characters such as "O" and "D" based on the context they are used in. The Handwriting Recognition Plug-in will be sold separately and available for download at a suggested retail price of $99.99.

USB Support Upgrade
To enable fast "plug-and-play" installation on PCs and laptops, mimio version 1.1 supports both standard serial port and USB connectivity (USB connection requires an optional USB adapter and cable). USB support simplifies installation by eliminating the need to configure ports and select software drivers — it also frees up the PC's serial port for use with other devices. With USB installation, the mimio capture bar receives its power through the USB port, and a chip inside the adapter identifies the device and automatically installs the correct PC driver software. The optional USB cable and adapter require mimio version 1.1 software and a USB-equipped PC and will be available at a suggested retail price of $49.99.

Enhanced Microsoft NetMeeting Support
Expanded support for Microsoft NetMeeting 3.0 software is included in the standard mimio version 1.1 software upgrade, free of charge. NetMeeting is an Internet-based conferencing and collaboration tool that enables multi-point data, voice, video and whiteboard sharing. With mimio version 1.1, NetMeeting participants at remote locations can interact with mimio users directly through the NetMeeting whiteboard interface, instead of running their own separate copies of the mimio software. mimio functions as a direct input device to the NetMeeting whiteboard, allowing remote users to view and edit images in real time.

Control Panel SDK Specification for Developers
The availability of a published Control Panel SDK specification with version 1.1 lets users develop custom mimio controls for other Windows applications. Currently, the mimio control panel duplicates the features found on the mimio capture bar, including print, save and new board options and initiates a talking calculator function from anywhere on the whiteboard (using the mimio marker jacket and an electrostatic decal). With the Control Panel API, Virtual Ink has opened the architecture to allow customers and OEMs to design controls for their own applications, such as camera and microphone controls for videoconferencing applications. Custom controls can free users from PC keyboards, making the presenter and whiteboard the focus of attention.

About ParaGraph
ParaGraph, a division of Vadem, develops and markets pen and Internet software products and technologies including its award-winning CalliGrapher(r) handwriting recognition software, NetCalif(tm) client/server handwriting recognition, and NetWriter(tm) Instant Visual Messenger(tm) Internet service. For more information about ParaGraph products, please visit the web site at www.paragraph.com. For more information about Vadem, please visit the web site at www.vadem.com.

About mimio
Weighing less than two and a half pounds, mimio fits in a standard briefcase or computer bag, sets up in seconds, and requires no special training to operate. Users simply attach the 24-inch capture bar to the side or top of an existing whiteboard, plug it into a PC, and slip a mimio marker jacket over a common dry-erase market. Mimio has an estimated street price of $499 and includes unique software which allows users to review, edit and export images directly into popular PC applications like Microsoft Office®, eliminating time spent transcribing notes and producing handouts.

About Digital Meeting Assistants
A Digital Meeting Assistant (DMA) is a collaboration tool enabling organizations to capture, manage and share information and improve the productivity and creativity of any meeting. DMAs enable users to distribute information — from central and remote locations — accurately and in real-time. mimio is the first DMA and the first in a family of collaboration tools from Virtual Ink Corp. As a platform, mimio takes advantage of the way people work, making ink useful in any application and providing greater functionality to collaboration technology and solutions.

About Virtual Ink
Founded in 1997, Virtual Ink Corp. is the emerging leader in the development of collaboration technologies. Virtual Ink's first product is the award-winning mimio, the first completely portable DMA that turns any existing whiteboard or flat surface into a powerful medium for capturing managing and sharing information directly into PC applications. Virtual Ink received its initial round of funding from @Ventures (the affiliated venture capital arm of CMGI), an investor in and developer of Internet companies, and IDG Ventures, an $80 million early-stage venture capital firm that invests in privately held, start-up companies in specific Information Technology (IT) markets. Privately held, Virtual Ink is based in Boston, Mass., and can be reached at 617-623-8387 or via the Web at http://www.mimio.com.

Virtual Ink, mimio, and Digital Meeting Assistant are trademarks of Virtual Ink Corporation. All other product names mentioned herein are the trademarks of their respective owners.

CalliGrapher® Copyright (c) 1998, 1999 ParaGraph, a business unit of Vadem.