Method and device for audibly instructing a user to interact with a function

A method for automatically executing a function, said method comprising:

• associating a function with a user-written selectable item;
• recognizing said user-written selectable item on a surface;
• and
• in response to said recognizing said user-written selectable item, immediately executing said function without first requiring further interaction between a user and said surface.

A computer-usable medium having computer-readable program code embodied therein for causing a computer system to perform a method for audibly instructing a user to interact with a function, said method comprising:

• associating a function with a user-written selectable item;
• recognizing said user-written selectable item on a surface;
• and
• in response to said recognizing said user-written selectable item, audibly rendering a first instructional message related to the operation of said function without requiring further interaction from said user.

A computer-usable medium having computer-readable program code embodied therein for causing a computer system to perform a method for automatically executing a function, said method comprising:

• associating a function with a user-written selectable item;
• recognizing said user-written selectable item on a surface;
• and
• in response to said recognizing said user-written selectable item, immediately executing said function without first requiring further interaction between a user and said surface.

An interactive device comprising:

• a bus;
• an audio output device coupled to said bus;
• a writing element for allowing a user to write on a writable surface;
• an optical detector coupled to said bus for detecting positions of said writing element with respect to said writable surface;
• a processor coupled to said bus;
• and
• a memory unit coupled to said bus, said memory storing instructions that when executed cause said processor to implement a method for audibly instructing a user to interact with a function, said method comprising:
• associating a function with a user-written selectable item;
• recognizing said user-written selectable item on said writable surface;
• and
• in response to said recognizing said user-written selectable item, audibly rendering a first instructional message related to the operation of said function without requiring further interaction from said user.

An interactive device comprising:

• a bus;
• an audio output device coupled to said bus;
• a writing element for allowing a user to create a user-written selectable item on a writable surface;
• an optical detector coupled to said bus for detecting information on said writable surface;
• a processor coupled to said bus;
• a memory unit coupled to said bus, said memory storing instructions that when executed cause said processor to implement a method for automatically executing a function, said method comprising:
• associating a function with a user-written selectable item;
• recognizing said user-written selectable item on a surface;
• and
• in response to said recognizing said user-written selectable item, immediately executing said function without first requiring further interaction between a user and said surface.