The other day we ordered a large whiteboard for our office. The board arrived some time later, complete with a bunch of whiteboard markers and whiteboard eraser. Gladly we put it up and started writing our plan for the world domination.
A few moments later, when we tried to do some corrections, we realized that we can’t really eraze much from the whiteboard. Hmmm.
Marker theory check. Are all of them marked as “whiteboard markers”? Yes.
Marker practice check. We tried to write something with each one of them and then tried to delete it. Only greek could have been erased easily. Turned out that four markers (black, blue, red, and green) were from a total of three different brands. Red and blue were from the same maker.
Because we were rather pressed on time, we covered the whole whiteboard with green text and diagrams. Then we called the bookshop and asked to bring us more markers of the same brand with green. People in the bookshop were rather puzzled by the request, but confirmed that we will receive more markers the next day.
The guy that brought the markers tested them on the board and saw that they could have been easily erased. Then he tried the other ones and saw that it was almost impossible to eraze them. Then he asked for a knife.
It was our turn to feel puzzled and confused, but we found a knife for him.
… five seconds later, it was our turn to feel really stupid. Apparently, the whiteboard was covered with transparent plastic film to protect its surface. It was absolutely invisible and looked and felt exactly like the whiteboard surface itself. Once the film was peeled off, the new shiny surface of the whiteboard was revealed. And, of course, all whiteboard markers – old and new – could be used normally. We tested them all and we could eraze everything easily. The magic moment!
I would like to take this opportunity and thank the guy from the bookshop, who solved a big problem of ours, and … didn’t laugh in our face, like many would do in a similar situation (tech support stories anyone?). As a matter of fact, he didn’t even smile. I bet he had a blast once he left our offices, but that doesn’t matter, because it was, indeed, funny.