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How dark is your data shadow?
Every transaction we make creates a shadow about ourselves. When we use the ATM, we leave a small piece or ourselves behind in the means of a time stamp, a withdrawal in a database, a location. As capture and storage costs asymptotically approach zero, it is easier to just keep everything rather than selectively choose what to trash. The more we do in this electronic world, the larger and darker our shadow becomes and the more potential for data leakage and problems arising.
Cola Wars Redux
Is it really possible to tell the difference between Coke and Pepsi? If you are a life long Coke fan, will you succumb to the sip-test? Even though the Cola Wars are long behind us, has it made any difference? With New Coke, Crystal Pepsi and many others being casualties are we really that fickle about our soda or is it possible to be a life-long, die-hard fan and be able to pass a double blind taste test. I wanted to find out.
What are 2D Barcodes?
The world of barcodes is truly black and white. These tiny print-outs of lines and dots act as physical pointers to more digital information. In the past, they have pointed to UPC values in a database, but now their abilities have expanded to much more. The next generation of barcode, the 2D Barcodes could become as ubiquitous as blue hyperlinks as on the web—only time will tell.
Future predicting: What might happen in the next hundred years?
This is an article that ran in the December 1900 issue of Ladies Home Journal. It was predicting life 100 years into the future in the year 2001. The following is that article annotated with notes about how close or far off they really were with their predictions.
Read more about Future predicting: What might happen in the next hundred years?
Introducing: The PaperNet
The PaperNet is an attempt at surfing the web on paper rather than a computer. Connecting the digital world to the tactile world of paper is not only possible, but in many respects is a better experience than on a computer screen. The ability to print-on-demand, customized paperNet browsers to suit your needs demonstrates the flexibility of Internet data on a printed medium.
This article looks at some paperNet examples, how they are use, how they can be extended and how they can reshape existing attempts at information dissemination.