15 Mar
2013
15 Mar
'13
2:58 a.m.
On Thu, Mar 14, 2013 at 7:43 PM, Earl Evans <earl at retrobits.com> wrote:
[...]
I need another project like I need a hole in the head.
However, I am
definitely on the prowl for a way to store and retrieve information in a
more physical fashion. Something like a tape punch/reader, or a mark-sense
card reader. (I'd have to find or print some mark-sense cards...)
[...]
All that said - I've looked for homebrew projects
of this type, and haven't
come up with any great candidates. I'm not the most skilled person at
mechanical stuff, so I do seek a starting point for ideas or plans. Anyone
have any comments/suggestions?
Goal would be a method to store (could be as simple as #2 pencil), a method
to read, and a serial RS232 interface (that part I can build).
Thanks!
- Earl
Hi Earl,
one method that I could think of would be like some 80's magazines:
print barcodes onto letter paper. Use an old CueCat (the
proprietary-but-much-hacked not-so-free giveaway from Radio Shack) to
read the data back in.
There is no hardware other than what you are likely to already have
for the output side. If you don't have a CueCat, I'm sure a small
amount of components can be hacked together to make a barcode reader
in the "pen-drag" fashion.
Or if you have a scanner, you could effectively do giant 8.5x11 QR codes.
Joe.
--
Joachim Thiemann :: http://jthiem.bitbucket.org ::
http://signalsprocessed.blogspot.com