The Pen is Mightier than PowerPoint

I have nothing against Microsoft or PowerPoint (or blind people), but it's often easier, faster, and more effective to explain things with a pen and paper.  Part of the reading for the University of Illinois' iFoundry class is Dan Roam's "the Back of the Napkin", which shows how to use pictures to solve problems.  After attending a lecture by none other than Dan Roam, I can say that a visual representation of a problem definitely helps to understand the problem.  All of us are visual thinkers.  Paraphrasing Mr. Roam, if you have the ability to walk into a room without running into something, you already have the ability to solve problems with pictures.  (For the rest of you, I'm not sure what to say.)

What's wrong with PowerPoint then?  Unless you have a tablet PC or are incredibly skilled with a mouse, programs like PowerPoint only serve to limit your creativity.  Actually, it isn't really PowerPoint's fault.  PowerPoint makes it simple to build bulleted lists, fancy charts, and pretty effects, but it is often so easy to focus on the presentation of an idea rather than the idea itself.  Presentations with nothing but text and bullet points aren't all that effective either.  Have you ever tried reading a book and listening to someone at the same time?  It's not so easy to focus your language facilities on two things at the same time.  On the other hand, if you can walk and talk to a friend without running into anything, you can listen and understand pictures at the same time.  In short, pictures can supplement a presentation without detracting from it.  For a great example, take a look at Mr. Roam's explanation of what went wrong with American health-care.

I'll end this with another interesting tidbit:  Take a look at these two pictures from hazardouspaste.com and XKCD, respectively.

 

Both flowcharts express similar ideas.  Which one draws your attention more?  The hand drawn one right?