Google Docs - Presentations

In April Google announced that they were working to bring presentations to Google Docs. (Astute readers may recall learning about this even earlier, which caused a bit of excitement around Google.) And ttis week they are unveiling the new Google Docs presentations feature and invite you to try it at documents.google.com. Maybe more than any other type of document, presentations are created to be shared. But assembling slide decks by emailing them around is as frustrating as it is time-consuming. The new presentations feature of Google Docs helps you to easily organize, share, present, and collaborate on presentations, using only a web browser.

Starting this week, presentations -- whether imported from existing files or created using the new slide editor -- are listed alongside documents and spreadsheets in the Google Docs document list. They can be edited, shared, and published using the familiar Google Docs interface, with several collaborators working on a slide deck simultaneously, in real time. When it's time to present, participants can simply click a link to follow along as the presenter takes the audience through the slideshow. Participants are connected through Google Talk and can chat about the presentation as they're watching. Not wanting anyone to feel left out, Google have made the presentation feature available in 25 languages; Google Apps customers can also access it as part of Google Docs.

Google hope the millions of people who already create and share documents and spreadsheets will find presentations a welcome addition to the Google Docs family, and they plan to add even more features and enhancements.

If you're new to Google Docs, watch this video to learn more about creating and collaborating on documents (and now presentations!).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRqUE6IHTEA

Metrologic Releases New Vertical Mini-slot Scanner – the MS7820 Solaris™

Blackwood, New Jersey – September 17, 2007

-- Metrologic Instruments, Inc. today announced the release of its new vertical mini-slot scanner engineered to increase productivity with an unmatched feature set. The MS7820 Solaris aggressively scans high-density codes (five mil) and fits easily into any existing enclosure found in small-item, high-volume retail environments. It is designed for a variety of retail environments, including convenience,liquor (off-license), specialty and grocery stores.

“We developed Solaris to increase system output and lower the total cost of ownership,” said Taylor Smith, product manager for Metrologic. “It scans the widest range of bar codes from high-density to poor quality codes, and its troubleshooting visual diagnostic indicator and optional protective window reduce on-site service costs and downtime.”

Solaris sets itself apart from other comparable devices with its unrivaled feature set and advanced decoding architecture which enable operators to scan all standard bar codes on the first pass with minimal concern for orientation or print quality.

Multiple on-board interfaces make Solaris compatible with most POS systems,while automatic detection of the interface cable expedites system configuration. For investment protection, all Solaris scanners come standard with an integrated RF antenna and interlock compatibility for both Checkpoint and Sensormatic EAS systems. The scanner’s multifunctional RS232 auxiliary port provides a single point of communication for either a hand-held scanner or external scale.

While the scanner’s innovative flat-screen design maximizes scanning effectiveness by preventing debris accumulation, touch-screen technology minimizes wear and tear associated with standard scanner switches.

Metrologic complements the design and engineering of Solaris with superior technical support and an industry-leading warranty. Solaris symbolizes Metrologic’s four-decade commitment to producing advanced and reliable bar code scanning technology.

About Metrologic

Metrologic Instruments, Inc. is a global supplier of choice for data capture and collection hardware and software. Metrologic has been delivering innovative products that are cost effective, reliable and supported by a superior level of personal service for nearly 40 years. Metrologic products are sold worldwide through sales, service and distribution offices located in North & South America, Europe, Australia and Asia. For more information, please visit Metrologic.com.

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Revenge of the Redundant

These photos highlight the problems that can be caused when you terminate someone's employment, then ask them to work their notice period!

There has to be a moral here somewhere, perhaps someone could supply it?

By the way, which photo do you like best? Please leave a comment......

Wireless in Stores: Savings, Efficiency, and an Open Nose

This report by Steve Rowen, Research Analyst from the Retail Systems Alert Group, makes interesting reading.

Wireless technology is everywhere. In fact, as I write this piece, I am currently using two wireless devices, and there's a good chance you may be utilizing one or two while reading it.

In stores, wireless technologies have become so pervasive that often times retailers take them for granted. They reduce costs. They increase efficiency. They make the customer's shopping experience more enjoyable. But without proper consideration to security, they are incredibly dangerous.

Take for instance the unfortunate souls over at TJX Corporation. As more is unearthed on the events of that company's breach, it appears that the entire affair began from a simple interception of an unsecured wireless signal from a single retail location.

The criminals allegedly sat outside of Marshall's store near St. Paul, MN, picking up the signal that bounced freely between employee handhelds, wireless POS devices, and the store's mainframe system. Once they had decrypted the signal's simple encryption, the perpetrators are then reported to have installed software on TJX's central database in Framingham, MA, siphoning (at least) 45.7 million credit cards, with projections that number may climb to as many as 200 million. And while issuing banks prepare their legal case, the Wall Street Journal reports that the total cost over five years could exceed $1 billion.

RSAG has had the opportunity to interview several individuals closely involved in the TJX case, and while we thoroughly believe the retailer's bill will not reach anywhere near the $1 billion mark, it is a fair to predict that the company's ultimate financial beating will be exponentially greater than the jab it would have taken to pre-emptively shore up wireless security.

Which brings me to this point: Today's technology vendors are racing to find better, more cost effective ways to secure the wireless signals of devices that retailers are already using both in the store and the distribution center: those which they simply cannot revert to living without. Legacy hardware: wireless payment systems, computers, POS systems, anti-theft systems, hand-held devices, phones, PDA's - even 900 MHz devices (yes, they're still out there) - each of these posts a real, viable threat to each and every retailer who has come to leverage their value.

This race ultimately benefits retailers who are already diligently working toward their PCI compliance mandate, and is being led by such players as Aruba Networks, Cisco Systems, AirDefense, Columbitech - the list goes on and on. And while it is only a short matter of time until the next high-profile data security breach resulting from wireless signaltheft, we strongly urge retailers to pay due dilligence: aligning the IT and corporate vision, researching the available solutions, and most importantly, transforming the security of customer data into a Board Room discussion.

If you would like further information about this subject, click on the link below and download the report: Retail Systems still vulnerable. Please leave your comments.......

http://www.esterlinavinyards.com/report-retail-systems-still-vulnerable_43162.html




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The Shopping Trolley

Is this the future for the shopping trolley?

Click on the link to watch a short video....Click Here

Remember to press the "back" button to return to this page.

What do you think? Will this technology be adopted in the UK?

The Walmart Shopping Experience

I am not sure of the origin of this article, but I came across it in a free publication called the Crab Line, which is available in the North Norfolk region. I enjoyed reading the article and thought that lots of others would too, so with suitable acknowledgement to the anonymous author, here goes......

Mr. & Mrs. Fenton are retired, and Mrs. Fenton insists her husband go with her to Walmart, but he gets bored, he prefers to get in and get out, but Mrs. Fenton loves to browse.

Here's a letter sent to Mrs. Fenton:

Dear Mrs. Fenton,

Over the past six months, your husband has been causing quite a commotion in our store. We cannot tolerate this behaviour and may ban both of you from our stores. We have documented all incidents on our video surveillance equipment. All complaints against Mr. Fenton are listed below.

Things Mr. Fenton has done while his spouse was shopping in Walmart:

June 15: Took 24 boxes of condoms and randomly put them in people's carts when they weren't looking.
July 2: Set all the alarm clocks in Housewares to go off at 5-minute intervals.
July 7: Made a trail of tomato juice on the floor leading to the restrooms.
August 4: Went to the Service Desk and asked to put a bag of M&M's on layaway.
September14: Moved a "CAUTION - WET FLOOR" sign to a carpeted area.
September 15: Set up a tent in the camping department and told other shoppers he'd invite them in if they'll bring pillows from the bedding department.
November 10: While handling guns in the hunting department, asked the clerk if he knows where the antidepressants are.
December 6: In the auto department practised his "Madonna look" using different size funnels.
December 18: Hid in a clothing rack and when people browse through, yelled "PICK ME!" "PICK ME!"
December 21: When an announcement came over the loud speaker, he assumes the foetal position and screams "NO! NO! It's those voices again!!"
And last, but not least.....
December 23: Went into a fitting room, shut the door, waited awhile, then yelled very loudly, "There is no toilet paper in here!"

Regards,

Walmart

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Welcome to Squidoo

A change of emphasis in the subject matter of "Technology for Retail" today. I would like to introduce the web site Squidoo.com. The following words are taken directly from Squidoo and they help to explain the purpose of the site:

WE BELIEVE THAT WHEN YOU GO ONLINE, you don't search. You don't even find. Instead, you are usually on a quest to make sense.

That's the goal of most visits to Google or Yahoo! or blogs or Wikipedia. How do you make sense of the noise that's coming at you from all directions?

You won't take action, you won't buy something, book something, hire someone, or take a position on a political issue until you've made sense of your options.

Searching online should really be called poking online. Because that's what you do. You poke around. You poke in Google and you poke at some ads. After looking at a bunch of links and pages, then, finally, you get it. You understand enough to take action—to buy something or make a decision. The thing is, this takes a long time.

The Web ought to accelerate and even replicate that word of mouth phenomenon that works so well in the real world.

There ought to be a way to leverage the power of personal recommendation online.

There ought to be a way for you to talk about what matters to you, what 10 things matter to you, without the pressure of keeping it up daily (like a blog); and you ought to be able to make some money if someone buys something because you recommended it.

There ought to be a way for us all to benefit from what everyone else knows.

And so we built Squidoo.

So Squidoo is a place for information - you can learn, you can inform, you can advertise, you might even be able to make some cash.

Have a look at the numerous "lenses" published on a multitude of different subjects. n.b. "lens" is the Squidoo term for a page of information.

Squidoo is a great resource for publishing information about your business, your products, your services and anything else you might consider relevant. Have a look at the Retail Solutions Lens - if you like it give it some stars or favourite it, the ratings help to rank the lens.

Squidoo lenses tend to be indexed very quickly by the major search engines and they provide great authority. If you have an internet presence already then Squidoo is a great way to enhance it. If you don't have an internet presence then Squidoo is a great place to start.

Anyone with basic computer knowledge should be able to develop a Squidoo lens, however you may not have the time or the inclination to do so. If you would like a quotation for developing your presence on Squidoo please leave a comment or send an email to me at Martyn.Lineker@In-TechSolutions.co.uk.

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