Hardware: Printing On a Napkin

By | November 24, 2011
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 A printer the size of a mouse that can print on anything? Sounds too good to be true?  Well, er, it is — for now. But it could happen as soon as some manufacturers start putting together PrintDreams’ technology. This is what it should look like:
 
 
(Not the pen, silly.)
 
PrintBrush “has the length of a normal ballpoint pen while its width and height are more or less equivalent to the width of a modern mobile phone. The total volume is less than 300 c.c. and weights around 350 grams. This first version of PrintBrush? was designed to roughly fit into a shirt pocket while it still remains a clear potential for size and weight reduction in coming versions that will allow an even more comfortable fit. Internet content, SMS, pictures and other information is downloaded to the PrintBrush? from PDAs, mobile phones and laptop computers through a Bluetooth? wireless link. Then, by following the RMPT? principle, the device is hand operated by sweeping it across any type of print media, no matter its shape, size or thickness. The printout will then start to appear right behind the sweeps.”

Update: Banker’s Revenge

By | November 24, 2011
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Text
 
 The Citibank virus is now the Wells Fargo virus. This very weird, rather professional looking Trojan which Symantec calls the “Backdoor Berbew” (and I call Banker’s Revenge is becoming more sophisticated.). Here’s the text of the email, several copies of which I received this morning.
 
Dear Sir,
 
Thank you for your online application for a Business Account with Wells Fargo. We appreciate your interest in banking with us.
 
In order to open a Business Account, we must receive specific credit information that is verifiable. Because Wells Fargo has no locations in your state, we are unable to confirm the credit information in your application. Consequently, we regret to say that we cannot open an account for your business at this time.
 
Attached are your Wells Fargo Application and your Social Security File.
 
Sincerely,
 
Sherli Chin
Business Resource Center Services
Wells Fargo Bank
 
(There is at least one person called Sherli Chin out there. She graduated from Patterson High School, California, in 1968.)

 

 

Software: Acrobatics on the Cheap

By | November 24, 2011
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FinePrint, who do an excellent printing program that prints multiple pages on one sheet and saves paper, also do some great software for generating Adobe Acrobat (PDF) files (those documents that look the same whatever computer you view them on, or whatever printer you print them off). It’s a cheaper alternative to buying Acrobat itself, and as someone who spent much of the afternoon having to reinstall his copy of Acrobat, I have a feeling pdfFactory may be a better bet.

Anyway, the good news is that in its August 5, 2003 edition, PC Magazine named FinePrint Software’s pdfFactory Pro as its Editor’s Choice from the twelve applications it reviewed for its “PDFing Cheap”. Crack open the champagne.

News: Is It Me, Or Is SMS Levelling Off?

By | November 24, 2011
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Seems the UK is still sending lots of SMSs — text messages — to each other. The Mobile Data Association (MDA) today said the total number of chargeable person-to-person text messages sent in the UK in June 2003 averaged 55 million per day, compared to 45 million in June 2002 and 30 million in June 2001. This takes the cumulative total for 2003 to 10 billion, against a 12 month forecast for the year of 20 billion. “Text messaging is continuing to rise in popularity and diversity”, comments Mike Short, chairman of the MDA, not unsurprisingly. But if you look at the graph:

it looks to me as if the whole thing is levelling off. After all, how many text messages can folk send? After all, there are less than 59 million people living in the UK, which means at the moment nearly every person is sending one SMS a day. That can’t be right. My mother hates her cellphone and keeps trying to throw it on the compost. I’m no expert but it looks as if people haven’t really been sending more text messages since last October. If that’s the case, are they going to move to MMS?