The Connection – The Serial Port: Part II

In our last blog, I discussed the world of the USB connection and a little bit of background on the various types of interfaces you may see. Moving forward, we take a look at one of the early types of connections but one still found commonly on printers and industrial computers, the Serial port. Disclaimer:…

The Connection – The USB: Part I

In the world of computers, printers, barcode scanners, and basically anything electronic, there exists a wide range and ever-changing environment of interfaces (connections) used to transmit power and information. In this kind of environment, it is easy to get lost between the various interfaces and makes selecting the right one challenging, to say the least….

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…

4 Things You Need to Know About Label Printers

I recently published a blog detailing how to select the right barcode label for your application, which you can read here. In this blog, I would like to help guide you in selecting the right Label Printer. I hope this will clear away some of the confusion regarding their features, usability, and durability. Features Direct Thermal vs. Thermal Transfer…

Do you know what these AIDC Terms REALLY mean?

In the world of AIDC (Automatic Identification and Data Capture), there are hundreds of terms, phrases and acronyms. It can be hard to keep up! There are several terms that some people mistakenly substitute for similar-sounding words, when in actuality, they are using the term in the completely wrong context. Below are 10 of the…

Dr. Jay Lee on IoT and the Driving Forces and Emerging Technologies in Big Data, Agent, Industry 4.0 and Cyber-Physical Systems – Part 3

This blog, Part 3 of a series inspired by an Advantech webinar I attended entitled Enabling Smart Factories – The Transformation of Manufacturing Systems & Factory Facilities. This post covers the second of Dr. Jay Lee’s topics, Driving Forces and Emerging Technologies (Big Data, Agent, Industry 4.0 and Cyber-Physical Systems). You can read Part 1…

Zebra Technologies Zatar: IoT Made Simple

In October 2013, Zebra Technologies announced Zatar, an open-platform, plug-and-play, cloud-based solution to connect and control your Internet of Things devices, wherever those devices might be. Zatar’s simple, intuitive interface also allows collaboration with all members of your extended team to, as Zebra puts it, “Share data. Take action.” Plus, the Zatar interface is optimized…

Do Consumer Devices Make the Grade in Law Enforcement?

In previous blogs we talked about the transition from a manual ticket-writing process to an automated (e-citation) process and the huge time and money savings that occurs when this task is automated.  We also touched briefly on the devices in the patrol car that are used to collect data.  I think it’s worth spending a…

Good Advice from Zebra for Securing IoT-Connected Card Printers

With more than 10 billion devices now connected to the Internet – up from a mere 200 million in the year 2000 – projected to exceed 50 billion “things” by 2020 as the Internet of Things transitions to the “Internet of Everything,” cyber-security challenges are increasing exponentially. For those who commit fully, the benefits of the…