The Art (and Technology of) Cooking

As my family will attest, I love to cook. And eat. There is just something about food that is comforting. When I serve my family a delicious meal that I have made from scratch, with fresh, healthy ingredients (preferably from our garden), it makes me…happy! Years ago, my grandfather used to laugh at me when…

How to Select the Correct Printer Ribbon

Thermal printers and ribbon selection is a common topic I see come up when talking with customers. While it is easy to select one extreme or another in terms of the cost, an expensive ribbon does not always equal the best performance in this category. So how should you select the correct ribbon for your printer?…

Tracking Endangered Humpback Whales in Hawaii

My family just got back from a week-long vacation on Maui. People keep asking me how the trip was and I never know quite how to answer… Amazing. Wonderful. Perfect. Without-a-hitch. The problem is that I don’t really know how to put what we experienced into words. Between the beach, the pools, the views, the…

4 Things You Need to Know About Barcode Scanners

1. One Dimensional vs. Two Dimensional Barcode Scanners There are two main categories of barcode scanners, 1D and 2D. One dimensional barcode scanners, or linear barcode scanners, can only scan one dimensional barcodes, including: UPC Code ISBN Code 128 All barcodes consisting of only lines and spaces Barcode scanners that read two dimensional barcodes are…

Should Apple unlock its iOS for the FBI?

On February 9, 2016, the U.S. Department of Justice ordered Apple, Inc., to unlock the iPhone 5C used by one of the shooters in the attack that killed 14 people at the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, California, on December 2, 2015. Vital Information on an iPhone The FBI believes that Syed Farook’s phone—which…

Keeping your Business Ahead with a 2D Imager

Is customer satisfaction important to you? “Of course,” you say. If you are a member of the retail or hospitality sectors, it is likely that you’ve seen tremendous change over the past decade – both in the way companies are doing business and in the behaviors and expectations of the customer. For instance, a decade…

6 Reasons to use Brother PocketJet 7 in Law Enforcement

You may have heard the news. Brother® has developed an updated mobile printer: the PocketJet® 7. While the PJ7 is certainly great for business on-the-go, there is another application for which it surpasses expectations. You guessed it, Law Enforcement! In the short time they’ve been available, we’ve already shipped so many of these printers out…

Engineering in the Elementary Classroom

Back to Elementary School  Do you remember what it was like to be in elementary school? What did you learn? What were some projects you will never forget? I fondly recall building model rockets and launching them in the field by our school. I also remember dying rice with food coloring and making a mosaic….

Skiing with RFID

Getting Rid of the Traditional Ski Lift Ticket It’s cold outside, snowing like crazy, and here you are, at the base of a 13,000 foot mountain ready to be carried to the top by a little chair attached to a cable. The only thing standing in your way is a small piece of paper with a…

4 Barcode Apps that Will Scan that Weight Away

Raise your hand if you’re on some sort of diet or healthy eating regimen now that the holidays are over, like I am. It seems like everyone I know is trying to shed the extra bloat from too many cookies and egg nog. While types of diet vary, one thing remains constant: barcodes can help!…