Wacom has been an industry name for some time now, having first entered the tablet peripheral game in 1992 and capturing the lion’s share (over 80% in both Japan and abroad) of the market ever since.By using a resonance technology between pen stylus and receiving tablet, Wacom tablets allow a design which is lighter and lower-profile, meaning that since the pen does not have to accommodate batteries, it can actually have the free weight of the real deal. This can make a big difference during extended drawing sessions.What is the Wacom Bamboo series of tablet and how might it be useful to me?The Bamboo series of tablets from Wacom are the user-level or home-use level of products which can start under $99 for multiple versions -- more inexpensive versions with a simple pen and stylus set (the Connect or Splash models) and a few more expensive models which may feature multi-touch (that same nifty functionality your tablet PC has) as well as a pen-bound eraser (the Capture and Create models).By connecting the Wacom tablets to a standard PC via USB (or Bluetooth, if you opt to skip the Bamboo line completely and buy an Intuos model) and installing the drivers included, users will immediately open a great many functionalities to their computing experience.What can I do with a Wacom tablet?After the Bamboo successfully installs, there will often be a few introductory tutorials featuring the pack-in software, whether it be ArtRage Studio 3 or a simpler tool. Keep in mind that the pen style is pressure sensitive -- if you draw “harder†it will draw a thicker, less transparent line!It will get a bit of getting used to in order to control the stylus and the tablet surface. A few simple tips to offer might be:Remember that since the stylus uses a resonance feature, in order to track the pen the tip must be held slightly over the drawing surface. This will allow you to keep track of where your pen tip is as well as to use the pen to navigate (pan and scroll) the drawing area.In order to perform document markup or to provide signatures, you’ll need a word processor first. OpenOffice or Word should do the trick. After you’ve opened the document you’d like to edit, and you’ve placed the cursor in an area you’d like to mark up, make sure the tablet is active / online. By using the proprietary Bamboo software, activate the stylus through the system tray and review tab and draw away! This process is called “turning ink onâ€.Unless you bought the high-end Bamboo, remember, the pen doesn’t come with an eraser on the other end, so you’ll have to select an erasure tool!Of course, while document markup is a big part of the appeal of this product for architects, carpenters and other blueprint workers, researchers and academics, the primary appeal of this product is to visual artists. Drawing in Corel Paint Shop Pro, Adobe Photoshop, and other programs (such as the included software) is remarkably seamless in terms of integration.Inklinks, a proprietary software tool, facilitates this process. This means that artists can start commissioning work on oDesk and eLance within minutes of having installed the Wacom device and begin earning money as freelancers immediately. It might be as easy as it sounds, though it is entirely within the realm of possibility.Get sketching, start producing a portfolio, edit those documents for class, and annotate those PDFs with notes as well as a final signature just to make the whole thing official. For well under $99, the Wacom Bamboo tablet line is a deal that should be scrutinized by every visual artist and graphic designer out there as imagery and image creation moves into the 21st century, largely leaving paper behind.