Wireless/Mobile /

Magnetic card reader for RIM devices

By Keith Shaw
Network World, 12/17/01

Imagine that you could add a magnetic card reader, a bar code scanner and a smart card reader to your Research In Motion two-way wireless device. You'd get Apriva's x57.

The device includes those features, plus an infrared port, a serial port and an internal lithium battery. If you only need a bar code scanner and a magnetic card reader, x57 can be configured to provide only those two options.

The magnetic card reader can read credit cards or any other standard magnetic stripe card. The bar code scanner can scan most 1D and 2D bar codes. The x57 is marketed to employees who need mobility when scanning magnetic cards or bar code scanners in inventory settings.

Because it's using a RIM 857 or 957 as its base unit, it can connect to Mobitex or DataTAC packet data networks to transmit transactions wirelessly.

Pricing and availability have not been announced. Go to www.apriva.com for more information.

Pendragon adds to its Internet Forms

Pendragon Software recently announced enhancements to its Pendragon Internet Forms software. The enhancements add data backup, new interface features, enhanced scripting and faster synchronization.

The Web-based development software can build database applications for Palm OS devices and Web-enabled terminals. It can be used to build custom applications, such as for surveys, work orders and healthcare.

The new data back-up feature lets handheld data entries be stored on Secure Digital, MultiMedia, Memory Stick and Compact Flash storage cards. The back-up feature lets you recover data in the field in the event of power loss or physical stress on the device. The synchronization upgrade claims to provide improved performance with larger data sets. The Internet Forms 1.1 server software costs $5,000 for a 100-user license. Go to www.pendragonsoftware.com for more information.

Rotate your flat-panel monitor

Planar Systems recently launched 15- and 17-inch flat-panel monitors that can rotate the display from landscape to portrait viewing. Planar aims to please the business and consumer markets, with high-contrast images, large format viewing areas, Universal Serial Bus hubs and built-in speakers.

The rotating screen lets users switch from landscape to portrait viewing with a twist of the display, eliminating the need to scroll down in some cases. Software allows for the automatic display switch. The 15-inch PV150 supports resolutions up to 1,024 by 768 pixels (extended graphic array [XGA]) and has a viewable area equivalent to a 17-inch CRT monitor. The 17.4-inch PV174 is capable of 1,280-by-1,024-pixel (XGA) resolution, and features analog and digital inputs. The PV150 costs $470 at zones.com, the PV174 $830.

Diskeeper boasts fast defrag speeds

Executive Software International has released Diskeeper Workstation 7.0 for Windows 9X/Millennium Edition/NT/2000/XP, with new features that include faster run times and sitewide push installation. The sitewide installation feature lets system administrators push the installation in a single operation from one location.

Executive Software says Diskeeper 7.0 has "blazingly fast" defragmentation speeds, with "beta testers report[ing] that what used to take hours to defragment now takes minutes."

A full-featured 30-day trial-ware version for all Windows platforms can be downloaded at www.diskeeper .com/downloads/menu.asp. Pricing for Diskeeper Workstation starts at $45 (electronic download) for one license; the Server version starts at $250 (electronic download).

Send news of cool stuff to kshaw@nww.com.