Interactive Whiteboards in Education -- great tool or just cool?

Our school received an interactive whiteboard (or IWB) at the end of last year. One of our 5th grade teachers spearheaded the use of this new technology (new to our school, anyway), and I was very thankful she did, because that is one less thing I needed to worry about this summer. However, as I would like to use this tool occasionally in my computer lab, and teachers are bound to come to me when they have questions or problems, I figured that I still need to broaden my knowledge of IWBs and how they can be used in the classroom. Therefore, I have put together a short list of websites to use as resources as we embark on this new adventure. I will add to the list as I find new sites that are useful.

• SMART Technology
• Scholastic.com's SMART lessons
• Interactive Whiteboards in the Classroom (this site has an extensive list of links to resources)
• Interactive Whiteboard Resources (another list of links)

These are a starting point. But will the IWB be used often enough and be effective enough to justify the expense? Starting out with one IWB was probably a good idea, so we can get a feel for how well teachers will take to using this new tool in their classroom. Some teachers, like the one I mentioned earlier, are comfortable using technology in the classroom, and will use it a lot. Other teachers are not as comfortable, and I predict will probably not use the IWB at all. And after the novelty wears off, will the IWB still be used regularly, or will it end up in a closet somewhere? I hope that the IWB will be a positive addition to our collection of technology tools, for a number of reasons. First, I don't like to see money wasted (even if it is PTO funds), and IWBs are not cheap (nor are the projectors needed to use with them). Second, I hope it gets teachers more interested in integrating technology into their curriculum, albeit in a superficial way, so that it might open the door for use of other technology as well. Finally, if it gets students more engaged in the lessons, they are more likely to be more successful in school - and isn't that the most important reason of all?