Interview With Our iPad Winners - Elgin Bolling and Bong Baylon

We know how much the authorSTREAM community enjoyed the contest. For a good part of August and September, everyone was busy uploading their awesome presentations. We had four weeks and four winners, who won an iPAD each for uploading outstanding presentations and tweeting about them.

We had a quick interview with two of our winners Elgin Bolling and Bong Baylon. They were amazingly insightful in their answers. Enjoy reading!

• How are you using authorSTREAM in your professional segment?

Elgin Bolling: For me, authorSTREAM is like an answer to prayer. I routinely use PowerPoint in the majority of my illustration projects when I'm doing any kind of sequential storytelling. I searched the web for a platform that would enable me to not only share my presentations with clients and friends, but also to covert those presentations into video that could be uploaded to YouTube. I feel confident that now I will be able to reach an even wider audience with my work on a global scales.

Bong Baylon: Basically I use authorSTREAM to upload the presentations that I use in my classes, seminars and sermons. People always ask me for copies of my PowerPoints but I tell them I cannot give them a copy. However, they can watch it again (or several times) through authorSTREAM. They like this very much. Many people do visit your site to look at my PowerPoints again and again. I'm encouraged by that.

• What was your reaction when you first came to know that you have won?

Elgin Bolling: My first reaction was disbelief! I have NEVER won ANYTHING before!! I took time to read it through, and immediately went on the website to view the videos of other past winners. It didn't quite sink in though until I had the hard PHYSICAL EVIDENCE in my hand when I opened the BOX!!!

Another reaction was in praise of how great authorSTREAM was to even HAVE a contest like this where they were giving away something of value, and not just some "little CD" which is the case for other "contests".

I always "secretly hated" my PC and longed for the chance to own one of the Apple products that are so user friendly and best suited for the work I want to do as an artist. Now, thanks to authorSTREAM, I can easily fulfill my dreams, and of course, make it easier to upload more great PowerPoint presentations!!!

Bong Baylon: When you confirmed that I actually won, I couldn't stop thanking God. You see, this news came at such a crucial time. I'm a pastor and our church is going through some financial difficulties. Before the confirmation, God was already doing some miracles in our church. Then finally we were able to overcome the problem. It was then that you confirmed your email that I won. So it was like a double blessing. I told my congregation about it and they all praise God for me.

• Anything that you would like to say about authorSTREAM and its features, and help us improve our product?

Bong Baylon: I really hope that I can use your site for uploading swf's or PowerPoints with narration but the cost is too much for me right now. I also wish that your site would allow SCORM so I can use it for teaching people online. I really think that it's a good idea and a logical addition to your current services. But your free service is already very useful. Thank you for providing people like me with a tool to do more with my PowerPoint files.

Thank you all for participating enthusiastically in the contest. We will be coming up with more such interesting contests in the near future that let you Do More with PowerPoint.