Beginners Guide to Code Algorithms Experiments to Enhance Productivity and Solve Problems (Deepankar Maitra)

DOI: 10.1201/9781003214335-5

4 ^{Introduction to}

Multiplatform

Integration

Build Your Own Remote

Control

A lever is a simple machine that reduces the effort required to lift a heavy load. I find

levers fascinating because these were one of the first machines invented by humans

and have laid the foundation for all present-day machines that rely on a mechanical

principle. The discovery of the lever is largely credited to Archimedes in the third

century bc, who made this sentence famous “Give me a place to stand, and I will

move the world”.

Fast forward to the 21st century, human inventions have reached new heights.

Artificial intelligence is a reality. Electric cars are commercially available, and driver

less versions of these cars will be commonplace on our roads soon. With a smart

phone in our hand, a laptop on our desk, and Alexa playing our favorite tune, we

“facetime” our friends and family whenever we want. We have powerful tools readily

available in our hands! We have come a long way from the simple lever. Yet, there is

so much more to innovate—so much more power to be harnessed in order to utilize

these marvelous machines to their full potential.

During a meeting I recently attended, a speaker was presenting material through

slides, from the podium, facing the audience. The slides were presented on a big

screen for the audience to view. However, the slide show was being controlled by

another team member designated to manage the presentation for all speakers, fur

ther away in the audio control booth. This unavoidable situation is a result of shared

equipment and common slide decks. The speaker had to wait for the team member to

advance the slide. This delay caused awkward silences throughout the presentation.

It made me think about how to make this process more efficient. The team member

and the speaker had two different roles—one to coordinate the presentation files and

another to present the material that was pertinent for the speaker’s specific topic. How

could we design a technical solution that covered both requirements in a seamless way?

Could we solve this problem with a program that can be operated from the

speaker’s smartphone to move the slides?

While there are existing apps to control a presentation from a smartphone, it is

easy to build your own program to achieve the same results and more! To make this

magic happen you require one more piece of software—googledocs. It has the unique