Microcomputer Peripheral, Softstrip System Reader
date: label: Date made
content: 1986
name: label: maker
content: Cauzin Systems Inc.
notes: label: Description
content: During the early years of personal computers, there was no standard way to distribute programs. Many PC magazines actually printed the full code for programs (usually in BASIC) on the pages in their issues. This required lots of space, and users were quite likely to make mistakes when they tried to enter the code into their own computers, particularly when the programs had hundreds of lines.
label: Description
content: One solution to this problem was to define a method for encoding computer programs or other data into barcodes and printing those in the magazine. Then computer users would need only a specialized barcode reader to transfer the code from the magazine pages into their own computers. Robert L. Brass and Richard K. Balaska, Jr. devised such a system, and in 1985, founded Cauzin Systems in Waterbury Connecticut to manufacture and market it. The system was called "Softstrip." This object is a Softstrip Reader. Data was transferred from it to a computer using a special cable that connected to the computer's serial port (not included with the object).
label: Description
content: Each barcode "strip" was about 8 inches long by about one inch wide. Abut 1 K of information fit into each strip as printed on a 24-pin dot matrix printer, but a laser printer could cram about 2K into each strip. About four strips could fit onto a single 8.5" X 11" page.
label: Description
content: Initially, the system attracted much attention, and even won a MacUser magazine "Eddy" award for "Most Innovative Concept" in 1986. But Cauzin failed to sell many readers, and by 1987, it was off the market. Floppy disks became the predominant way of distributing software and data.
label: Description
content: Eastman Kodak bought out Cauzin Systems. Although the datastrip techology had failed as a means for software distribution, it was later used for storing information on ID cards, medical records, and passports. The patented two-dimensional symbology was an extremely secure code, and a 3 inch area could store 2,100 bytes of data, including biometrics, photographs, and text.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
setName: label: See more items in
content: Medicine and Science: Computers
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Sam Pickens
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 2006.0002.02
label: accession number
content: 2006.0002
label: catalog number
content: 2006.0002.02
objectType: label: Object Name
content: Microcomputer Peripheral
physicalDescription: label: Measurements
content: overall: 3 1/2 in x 18 in x 9 in; 8.89 cm x 45.72 cm x 22.86 cm