Additional BB QR readers - VII

Previous QR reader reviews:
Additional BB QR readers - VI - Code Muncher
Additional BB QR readers - V - Mobiletag
Further ScanLife - ScanLife
Additional BB QR readers - IV - i-nigma
Additional BB QR readers - III - Barcode Assistant
Additional BB QR readers - II - Deco, CertainTeed
Additional BB QR readers - BeeTagg, AT&T Code Scanner
BB QR Code Scanner Pro - BB QR Code Scanner Pro
Barcode Happiness - I - barcoo
No luck - Upcode
Misc update (BB/2D barcodes) - Mobiletag (also updated above)
BB & 2D barcodes - NeoReader, Microsoft Tag, ScanLife

Yet another QR code reader is Lynkee, which may be downloaded here... From the web site" "... Lynkee can read 2D codes (QR Code, Datamatrix), as well as linear barcodes (1D) such as EAN/UPC and ISBN..." (note: multiple attempts to read ISBN codes were unsuccessful)...

Settings:

On start up it immediately launches your camera. you take a picture of the QR code, and it 'reads' the picture. Trying it out on several QR codes it read them all, except a free-text QR code required multiple attempts... The software provides you choices depending on the type of QR code scanned. For example, for a QR code with a url you can navigate to the url, bookmark it, or send it (either via SMS or e-mail); with a SMS QR code you can send or bookmark, etc. See below for some example screen shots:

The "Enter Code" functionality did not appear to work on my Torch, and I was unable to key in an ISBN code (no keystrokes had any effect, unfortunate that the manual entry option did not seem to work given that I could not scan the ISBN codes, and thus needed to enter them...). Clicking the 'Go to web' button also did nothing....

The bottom line? A very solid, basic QR code reader. However, it doesn't make it into my top three "keepers", which remain Barcode Assistant, ScanLife, and MobileTag, along with TagReader f(or proprietary Microsoft Tags).

Additional BB QR readers - VI

Previous QR reader reviews:
Additional BB QR readers V - Mobiletag
Further ScanLife - ScanLife
Additional BB QR readers - IV - i-nigma
Additional BB QR readers - III - Barcode Assistant
Additional BB QR readers - II - Deco, CertainTeed
Additional BB QR readers - BeeTagg, AT&T Code Scanner
BB QR Code Scanner Pro - BB QR Code Scanner Pro
Barcode Happiness - I - barcoo
No luck - Upcode
Misc update (BB/2D barcodes) - Mobiletag (also updated above)
BB & 2D barcodes - NeoReader, Microsoft Tag, ScanLife

Code Muncher is a new QR reader for the BB... It comes as a free version, but you may also pay to be able to get a "full version", that allows you to customize color, sound, etc. The first time you run Code Muncher it runs through a quick overview, on subsequent uses it usually immediately fires up the camera looking to scan a QR code (it does not take a picture to 'read'). Occasionally it might ask you for some information, or invite you to "upgrade" to the "full version."

On testing with a variety of QR codes, Code Muncher did well at 'reading' them in a reasonable time frame, e.g. see below. Although the "muncher" feature is apparently part of the selling proposition (and used in other applications by the company), this blogger was not fully aware, and when using this for the first time got a small scare (the volume was way up)!

Options include the ability to "upgrade' to the full version, e-mail a link re Code Muncher to a friend, send feedback on the application, and a variety of ways to interact further with the company if you so desire... (Get more, My Profile, and Rewards)

Change Color/Sound/Get Full Version:

Get More:

My Profile:

Rewards:

The bottom line? A very solid QR code reader but probably not versatile enough to stay on my BB, which has Barcode Assistant, ScanLife, and MobileTag as "keepers", along with (Microsoft) TagReader...

Other reviews:
QR Code Readers: Getting Better One App at a Time
Review: QR Code Reader Code Muncher by Motek
Code Muncher for BlackBerry easily scans QR codes

Of bulls-eyes and cross-hairs

Sarah Palin targets Giffords (amongst others):

DailyKos put a bulls-eye on Gifford (on a "target list", amongst others):

A DailyKos diarist labels Gifford "dead to me now":

The DLC put a bulls-eye on a number of states/districts (Not including Arizona/Giffords):

Gary Hart gets it right (if one sided): "... Gradually, over time, political rhetoric used by politicians and the media has become more inflammatory. The degree to which violent words and phrases are considered commonplace is striking. Candidates are "targeted". An opponent is "in the cross-hairs". Liberals have to be
"eliminated". Opponents are "enemies". This kind of language emanates largely from those who claim to defend American democracy against those who would destroy it, who are evil, and who want to "take away our freedoms..."

If you agree that the way issues are framed, the language and rhetoric used by the various parties, and that the tone and framework of the national discourse all contribute to what happens, this blogger believes its not a big stretch to believe that the oft touted "we're at war" mindset and and the wont of some to militarize issues is equally to blame (and that this is something most politicians of both parties, Republicans and Democrats, are guilty of).

Note 1: Grammar corrections made to hart quote from HuffPo, viz. "inflamatory" corrected to "inflammatory", "eminates" corrected to "emanates"

Note 2: some of these web sites have now been "scrubbed."

Minimalist approach?

Looks like the scammers are running out of enticing tall tales:

Energy™ Multimedia Color Book IV

Previous blog entries:
Energy™ Multimedia Color Book I
Energy™ Multimedia Color Book II
Energy™ Multimedia Color Book III

OK, plug into your USB and you can can access the filesystem, transfer files, etc. The EnergySistem does not have wireless connectivity or depend on accompanying reader software. This blogger prefers it this way, others may not...

The accompanying CD-ROM comes with a number of e-books in Spanish, English, French, and Portuguese... First impressions - although made of plastic, and therefore fairly light (weighing in at 181 grams - 6 ounces), the reader feels very nice and "solid" in your hand. Liked the size and 5-inch, 800 x 480, TFT, color LCD screen. However, this promising start is badly let down by the buttons, which feel very cheap and also make a cheap clicking sound when pressed. All of the expected 'normal' functionality is present i.e. various zoom levels; the ability to switch between portrait and landscape (though it would have been nice if the orientation change cycled through the entire 360-degrees, so that the reader could be used equally well by the left- and right-handed); the ability to bookmark pages; etc., etc. The menus, navigation, controls, etc. are all pretty intuitive, and it was easy enough to use all the features without having to consult the instruction booklet provided.

The 'Picture" and 'Video' functionality works reasonably well, albeit that the pictures don't look that 'crisp.' 'Music" quality was not bad, but not particularly outstanding either. The external speaker also was adequate.

Cycling through the zoom levels:

The bottom line? A nice, middle-end e-reader which performs as advertised.... This blogger hasn't used it long enough to comment yet on battery life, but the built-in 1,800 mAh lithium polymer battery is rated at 7-9 hours for e-book mode, or 7 hours in audio mode when using the earphones, or 4 hours in video mode.

The specifications:

• 5" (12.7cm) TFT LCD screen, 800 x 480 resolution
• 1800mAh rechargeable Lithium battery.
• Supported formats: TXT, HTML, PDF, EPUB, FB2, RTF, MOBI, CHM, DOC, WMA, MP3, JPEG, BMP, PNG, GIF, MP4, WMV, AVI, RMVB, FLV, ASF, 3GP, MOV
• Functions: page-marking, zoom level adjusting, 5 different types of fonts, text margin adjustable, screen rotation, image viewer, etc.
• Charge through USB connection or DC jack. USB and USB-DC cables included
• Internal memory: 8GB (Dark Iron)