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RE: Free CueCat Device uses Barcodes to launch web sites
Subject:RE: Free CueCat Device uses Barcodes to launch web sites From:Tom Johnson <johnsont -at- starcutter -dot- com> To:"'Barry Kieffer'" <bkieffer -at- ims -dot- com>, TECHWR-L <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Thu, 12 Oct 2000 12:32:20 -0400
On Thursday, October 12, 2000 12:10 PM, Barry Kieffer wrote:
> snip
> Now, how do we get those bar-code thingies into our manuals so our
customers can
> scan the manual and be delivered to a web page with up to date
information on
> our products?
>
They're tapping users to help them populate their database. You put a
barcode on your manual and scan it with your CueCat. It says,
"Congratulations, you found a barcode that isn't in our database..." and
asks you to submit information about it. I would guess it would ask you
things like brand name and kind of product, probably even a website if you
happen to know it.
The only reason I know this is because I tried it on my computer. There was
some kind of driver conflict and I never got it to work properly. It's a
neat idea if you don't mind the privacy implications.
Where might it go from here. You use the last bottle of baby food and you
scan the label with the Cue Cat tied to your smart refrigerator. The
refrigerator asks you how many you want to order and voila, you get a case
dropped off at your door by the www.e-grocery.com truck the next day. You
heard it here first. Well, I think you did, I just made it up. It wouldn't
work for bananas though, I like to pick out my own level of ripeness.
Tom Johnson
Technical Writer
Elk Rapids Engineering Div., Star Cutter Company
johnsont -at- starcutter -dot- com - work
thomasj -at- freeway -dot- net - personal
