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News Archive |
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Monday, 21 September 2009
Medical Check In Systems Inc. has announced the deployment of its Customer Service Check In kiosks in court and probation offices across the state of Virginia. In a news release, Medical Check In Systems says the deployment is part of Virginia' efforts to reduce overhead costs, meet budget cuts, improve customer service and track visitor statistics.
In the release, Medical Check In Systems describes how the kiosks will simplify the process of obtaining government services for the public:
The touchscreens now in place at some Virginia offices take a visitor name and ask the reason for their visit. The information is then posted on the computers of the office, where each department can respond with the proper person to handle the request. Using the system, the visitor can directly notify the right person for the job from the minute they walk in.
The company says its Customer Check In solution also has been deployed in state offices in Rock Hill, S.C., Michigan City, Ind., and Tulsa, Okla.
Tuesday, 26 May 2009
ITnews.com: Centrelink, an Australian government agency that delivers a range of social services to citizens, has deployed a biometric voice-verification system to authenticate users’ access to welfare services. The system was built by KAZ, an Australian I.T. services company, and is based on technology developed by both the Queensland University of Technology and U.S. voice-recognition vendor Nuance.
Customers using the service will have their voice signature recorded and will choose from a range of security questions. The system then uses pattern-recognition software to match any future calls and verify the speaker’s identity. Centrelink project manager Ross Summerfield said the technology, which cost $2 million to build, is the first government deployment of voice biometrics in Australia.
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Tuesday, 21 April 2009
ARLINGTON, Va. — Information security has become an increasing concern in the military. Hackers attempt to crack into the Department of Defense global information grid daily.
While the active-duty military responds with new security measures, such as the requirement to log in to government computers with a common access card, traditional Guardmembers with no CAC reader find themselves locked out and unable to do their jobs.
Army National Guard officials began rectifying this situation last year by installing thousands of CAC-enabled kiosks at armories and reserve centers in all 54 states and territories.
More than $3.5 million has been allocated for about 8,400 kiosks around the country.
"These (kiosks) are spread across units in an armory that may only have one computer," said Lt. Col. Rodney Swann, chief of network engineering operations for the Army National Guard. "When you have units that are drilling in that armory, they have no capability to do their work."
As Internet access and e-mail become more important to the job specialties of more Guardmembers, these kiosks will serve a vital role.
The National Guard Bureau provides an integrated CAC reader and keyboard, Swann said. It also provides monitors for 75 percent of the kiosks fielded, and the states have extra monitors for the remaining 25 percent.
"Generally, it’s been received very positively by the (traditional) force that before didn’t have anything," said Col. Bret Slater, chief of information technology plans, programs and policy for the Army National Guard.
The kiosks also will be helpful during Soldier Readiness Processing drills. Guardmembers will be able to access Army and Guard Knowledge Online, as well as other Web sites to identify personnel issues before jumping into line. They can fill out periodic health assessments online to expedite the process of seeing a health provider.
"They know what issues they have and know what they need to do to get things working," Swann said.
The kiosks complement, not replace, the Distance Learning classrooms available in many armories.
"The Distance Learning computers are all personal computers that are put into a specific area that serves a different purpose," Swann said.
The main difference between the two, he says, is that the kiosks will not be equipped with word processing or spreadsheet programs. They are intended for use as an Internet portal.
Monday, 09 March 2009
GreaterGreaterWashington.org: Can stimulus dollars be used to fund a national program for bike sharing kiosks across the U.S.? David Alpert, a blogger for GreaterGreaterWashington.org believes they can, and that the program would yield "a lot of sexy headlines and ribbon-cuttings across the nation," as well as jobs surrounding the construction, management and maintenance of the bike kiosks.
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Tuesday, 17 February 2009
The Economic Times: Bartronics India, a provider of end-to-end identification technology services, has been tapped by the Delhi Municipal Corporation in India to deploy 2,000 government to citizen kiosks. The kiosks will provide Delhi citizens with information such as directories, yellow pages and download services. They'll also be able to pay their taxes and utility bills at the kiosks. Additionally, the kiosks will be equipped with ticketing functionality, so residents can purchase air, train, bus and movie tickets.
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Tuesday, 10 February 2009
Oregon Public Broadcasting: Washington Governor Chris Gregoire wants to close 25 Department of Licensing offices and eliminate more than 150 boards and commissions. The announcement Monday was part of her broader proposal to "re-boot" state government. Department of Licensing offices that don't see much traffic will be closed and replaced with ATM-style kiosks.
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Monday, 29 December 2008
The Paypers: The State Bank of India has deployed its first Internet banking kiosk. Located in the Mumbai Central Railway station, the kiosk provides railway travelers with a portal to access their Internet banking accounts. Users can also purchase railway tickets at the self-service device. It's the first in a network of 383 similar kiosks to be unveiled at railway stations across the country.
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Wednesday, 17 December 2008
Montgomery (Alabama) Advertiser: Alabama's top election official is looking for a better system for military members stationed overseas to vote, and she may have just found one. Alabama Secretary of State Beth Chapman recently heard a presentation by Pat Hollarn, supervisor of elections for Okaloosa County in Florida, on an Internet voting pilot program she ran earlier this year. The program involved the use of secure Internet voting kiosks deployed in England, Germany and Japan. Chapman says she's eyeing the results of that program closely and may adopt something similar for her state.
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Tuesday, 16 December 2008
(Devon, England) Herald Express: Brixham Library, located in Devon, England, is prepping for a two-week shutdown. During the downtime, the library will not only be getting more books, more computers and a new inquiry counter, but also brand-new self-service kiosks. The library will be the first in its area to enable its patrons to issue and return their own books and DVDs, as well as make reservations and pay overdue charges.
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Tuesday, 16 December 2008
The (Riverside, Calif.) Press-Enterprise: Recently, Candice Brown of Hemet, Calif., was waiting painfully in line at the local post office, when her eyes fell upon one of the U.S. Postal Service's blue Automated Postal Center kiosks. "I just had major surgery. Waiting in line while holding that box was killing me," said Candice Brown. She tried it. She liked it. Now she says she'll never wait in line again.
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Tuesday, 16 December 2008
The Denver Post: As Dec. 25 nears, so does the mailing deadline to guarantee that Christmas presents will arrive on time. Lines are backing up at the Montclair Post Office in Denver. One person waiting in the queue was Mary Anne Sine, a teacher at nearby Bishop Machebeuf Catholic High School. Find out how Sine felt about using one of the USPS's Automated Postal Center kiosks.
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Monday, 17 November 2008
(Springfield, Mo.) News-Leader: "If only I would have had this service 30 years ago," said a retired patron as he watched manager Jim Miller show a young job-seeker how to navigate JobView, a new touchscreen kiosk housed in the reading room on the main floor of the Midtown Carnegie Branch Library. Certainly there are plenty of area men and women who will make good use of JobView now, said Kathy Shatto of the Missouri Career Center. This project, the first JobView kiosk in a Missouri library, was funded through a Community Block Development grant using federal, state and local money.
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Thursday, 13 November 2008
(Zambia, Africa) ITWeb.com: The Sandton Central Management District in Sandton, Zambia, plans to install electronic touchscreen directory systems throughout the city. The Scout Project, developed by outdoor advertising company Smile Media, comprises a wireless network of public information kiosks that are expected to be rolled out early next year. The prototype will be placed outside the Sandton Convention Centre. The devices will feature an 18-inch screen with an electronic map and will provide information about Sandton central hotels, shops, restaurants, banks and places of interest, as well as community news. In addition, each kiosk will be programmed with a list of emergency contact numbers, as well as a panic button.
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Tuesday, 11 November 2008
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - In the aftermath of the Wall Street meltdown and global economic crisis, the nation's universities are facing the new realities of donor belt tightening and are ratcheting up efforts to maintain fundraising rates. To help educational institutions appeal to benefactors during these uncertain times, Vital-Signz, a solutions provider in the interactive-touchscreen-kiosk industry, has introduced a high-tech approach to memorializing major gifts with the Virtual Visitor Center, a flat-panel monitor installed permanently at universities to provide campus maps and points of interest, along with photo and biographical information about major donors.
The first installation of the system is now in operation at Point Loma Nazarene University, a Christian school with 3,500 students located on San Diego Bay Point. Housed in a custom granite kiosk at the entrance of newly constructed Smee Hall, the Vital-Signz Virtual Visitor Center(TM) features a photo and video history of the university, an interactive map highlighting the campus's principle buildings and profiles of the donors that contributed to the development fund.
Founder and chief executive of Vital-Signz, Richard Corwin, an Emmy Award-winning supervising sound editor, said the system's PC-based controller and video-streaming technologies were developed entirely in-house and are among the most advanced in the industry. Currently in use at half a dozen museums and other attractions in the Santa Barbara, Calif., area, Vital-Signz has set its sights on the massive but often overlooked educational market.
"We view universities and colleges as ideally suited to benefit from our system's ability to present interesting and update-able information with touchscreen ease of use," Corwin commented. "The installation at Point Loma Nazarene University is the culmination of our years of experience creating dynamic and crowd-pleasing information kiosks at museums and cultural attractions."
According to Eric Groves, director of Development, PLNU, the idea of using the Vital-Signz system grew out of the school's desire to recognize the efforts and contributions of the benefactors that made construction of the facility possible.
"We were thrilled when it was suggested to us that we could profile each Smee Hall honoree with a photo and biography, complete with scrolling names and rotating photos," Groves recalled. "The dynamic screen and layout draws the attention of students and visitors and invites them to interact and discover what the university offers."
Monday, 10 November 2008
The (New York City) Ticker: The Talking Kiosk, a device designed to aid the visually impaired, was unveiled in the Whitehall Ferry Terminal in lower Manhattan. The kiosk is the second of its kind and Karen Gourney, head of Baruch College's Computer Center for Visually Impaired People, was instrumental in its development. Gourney described the Talking Kiosk as "basically a talking tactile map with some buttons that give the user access to various menus that allow him or her to glean particular types of information. The user explores the map with his hands, and when he presses a particular point, the system speaks and announces what has been touched."
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Friday, 07 November 2008
The Muskegon (Mich.) Chronicle: Two years after a lawsuit was filed after a child was taken from a school by a noncustodial parent, a local charter school has clamped down on security. LobbyGuard, a computerized visitor management system, was implemented at Timberland Charter Academy in Muskegon Township last spring. Prior to the system, visitors were required to sign in, which is the routine in many schools. With LobbyGuard, parents and visitors are not allowed access beyond the main office without visiting the security kiosk.
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Thursday, 06 November 2008
(Lubbock, Texas) Avalanche-Journal: A proposal to position kiosks around Lubbock, Texas, instead of constructing a visitor center will be tested by the City Council today. Councilman Todd Klein will ask for $40,000 for an automated machine at Lubbock Preston Smith International Airport, where visitors could get information about the city, tickets to entertainment venues or bus passes. It's the first time Klein has brought his kiosk idea to a vote.
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Monday, 03 November 2008
The Cullman (Ala.) Times: Post office customers in Cullman, Ala., have noticed a change at the main branch. The convenience kiosk, where customers could use credit cards to purchase stamps and mail packages, has been removed. Lynn Rives, postmaster, said the kiosk was not producing enough money.
"It just wasn’t utilized enough and didn't draw in enough revenue," Rives said. "The company came and took it."
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Friday, 31 October 2008
Phoenix Business Journal: The Chandler Chamber of Commerce is launching a new business center at its headquarters in Phoenix, where the business center, a resource for potential entrepreneurs, includes an informational kiosk. The interactive kiosk is designed to virtually walk a person through the process of starting a business.
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Monday, 27 October 2008
Air Force Times: About 400 military and other overseas voters who are registered in Okaloosa County, Fla., can now vote at electronic kiosks in Mildenhall, England, and Ramstein, Germany, in a pilot project. The kiosks opened Friday, said Carol Paquette, project manager for the Okaloosa Distance Balloting Pilot Project.
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Monday, 27 October 2008
(United Arab Emirates) Business 24/7: Zakat Fund, an entity created by the UAE government to collect charity and zakat funds, will set up a chain of kiosks with ATMs across the UAE to facilitate zakat payments. Ahmed Al Zaabi, a senior officer of Zakat Fund UAE, told Emirates Business the first machine is expected to be installed at the Marina Mall in Abu Dhabi.
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Monday, 27 October 2008
ComputerWorld: As the 2008 Presidential Election looms ever closer, voters are casting a wary eye toward the electronic voting machine kiosks that have caused so much division in the past. ComputerWorld has compiled a list of bloggers who have weighed in on the possibility of malfunction or voter fraud this election.
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Wednesday, 22 October 2008
(Johnstown, Pa.) WJAC-TV, Channel 6: After coming home from war many members of our armed forces experience post-traumatic stress. A local research team is reaching out to the community and health care professionals to make sure they know how to treat the illness. Memorial Medical Center announced they are installing kiosks in the Johnstown area. They give advice to family and community members with loved ones who are having a rough time dealing with stress.
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Tuesday, 21 October 2008
ST. DENIS, France — Pitney Bowes announced that it has signed a contract to provide 50 stand-alone postal kiosks to La Poste, France's national postal operator, so that La Poste can enhance its retail network in large urban areas.
According to a news release, the contract is one of the largest Pitney Bowes has ever signed for postal kiosks, and includes the design, installation and servicing of postal kiosks that will be located in post offices in some of France's largest cities, beginning in 2009.
"We are extremely pleased with the vote of confidence that La Poste has made with this contract," said Yves Coué, vice president of Southern Europe, and managing director of Pitney Bowes in France. "We believe that this technology will help La Poste achieve its goals of superior service for a wide variety of customers and locations."
The value of the transaction was not disclosed, but Coué said he hopes that the number of kiosks will expand over time.
Monday, 20 October 2008
itp.net: The Dubai Naturalization and Residency Department has unveiled a series of automated services for its customers. DNRD will now be able to receive inquiries and requests through new media platforms, including chatting online through the amer.ae website and video calling through 3G-enabled mobile phones. Customers can also follow up on their transactions through self-service kiosks that will be set in various locations to simplify procedures. The kiosks allow customers to perform different operations such as applying for and inquiring about visa status, and printing residence visas without having to visit DNRD offices.
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Friday, 17 October 2008
TMCnet.com: The Philippines' Government Service Insurance System has included pension loans among the services that can be applied for via the eCard Plus on the GSIS Wireless Automated Processing System kiosks installed in all GSIS offices and select government offices nationwide. The loan offer at the kiosks is among other programs the Arroyo administration is putting forth to aid the needs of government pensioners.
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Wednesday, 15 October 2008
(Arlington, Va.) WJLA-TV, Channel 7: Washington, D.C., building permit officials announced Tuesday that the city is allowing permit-seekers to skip the DCRA office and apply online or at the Virtual Permit Center, located at The Home Depot on Rhode Island Avenue NE. The two self-service kiosks, located inside the store, offer permit applicants a chance to pick up DCRA's "Postcard Permit" for home improvements. Applicants enter information on the kiosks, pay the associated fees with a credit card, and print out a paper permit.
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Monday, 13 October 2008
CIOL.com: Soon there will be more reasons to walk into a public call office in Bangalore, India, than just to make a phone call. Hundreds of PCOs in the city and elsewhere in Karnataka are now set to be upgraded into e-kiosks that provide multiple utility services, including the ability to book travel tickets, pay a variety of taxes, chat, browse and much more. The state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. has partnered with Intel and the Karnataka PCO Owners Association to enable PCO operators to upgrade into electronic information and transaction kiosks.
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Thursday, 09 October 2008
Nazret.com: The Ethiopia Commodity Exchange is soliciting to raise U.S. $26 million to create information affluence and enable prosperity by establishing an information kiosk for the inhabitants of every Ethiopian village, as part of its Commitment to Action. Over the next five years, ECX commits to establishing 5,000 information kiosks, networked into a national system, where farmers can receive up-to-date information on ECX market prices, national market and production trends, global commodity outlook and weather forecasts, as well as cropping technologies, fertilizer and seed prices and other key information.
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Wednesday, 08 October 2008
Newsday.com: A talking kiosk resembling an ATM will help blind or low-vision passengers get around a ferry terminal in lower Manhattan. The kiosk is scheduled to be unveiled Wednesday at Whitehall Ferry terminal by a host of city and small business agencies. A similar kiosk was installed last year at Staten Island's St. George Ferry terminal.
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Monday, 06 October 2008
FRESNO, Calif. — Continental Prison Systems Inc., provider of technology that streamlines the inmate release process and reduces the cost of loading funds to an inmate's account over the Internet or through a kiosk, has signed a new deal with a 485-bed Colorado prison.
"Two booking-room kiosks and two visiting-room kiosks have been installed at this facility," said said Ron Hodge, president and chief executive of Continental Prison Systems. "These kiosks have experienced significantly greater-than-expected volumes in the first two weeks. The money loaded onto the inmates' accounts and the bail/fines being paid by both cash and credit card have far exceeded all previous projections. We continue to work with the facility on a daily basis and we will soon bring on our proprietary 'remote' Internet-based money-transfer service. These services include loading funds onto an inmate's trust account and also the ability to pay fines and bail through CPSZ's online site."
The EZ exit debit card will follow these services in early November. The facility has expressed the desire to be 100 percent cashless by the end of this year.
Friday, 03 October 2008
Gizmodo: Conspiracy theorists who believe Elvis Presley is still alive and well might be excited to learn that an e-passport containing his photograph and vital statistics was verified and accepted by a self-service terminal at an Amsterdam Airport. The problem is, the passenger was not the king of rock and roll, but a hacker who was making the case that some e-passport verification platforms still lack the basic software infrastructure necessary to spot fraudulent documentation.
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Friday, 03 October 2008
PC World: This week, California became the second state to pass a law making it illegal to steal data from radio frequency identification cards. The law sets a penalty that includes a maximum fine of U.S. $1,500 and up to a year in prison for someone convicted of surreptitiously reading information from an RFID card. RFID chips, used in a growing variety of applications worldwide, store small amounts of information that a nearby device can read. Among other things, the chips can be used to store customer data on a credit card or allow authorized people to open locked office doors or car doors in "keyless" entry systems.
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Thursday, 02 October 2008
Government Technology: In April, the Library of Congress unveiled the "Library of Congress Experience," computer kiosks in selected locations that let users virtually flip through and examine artifacts that are too delicate for handling, such as Jefferson's Declaration of Independence draft, George Washington's copy of the U.S. Constitution, John Beckley's Bill of Rights, the Gutenberg Bible, the Giant Bible of Mainz, Martin Waldeseemüller's 16th-century world maps and more.
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Thursday, 02 October 2008
The (Villanova University) Villanovan: When the official student newspaper of Villanova University ranked new technologies available at the university, No. 2 on the list was the "Dorm Competition Kiosks" that have been deployed in four residence halls on campus. The devices are equipped with touchscreen technology and display energy monitoring statistics in categories such as hot water, cold water, hot water energy and electricity. Students are encouraged to do their part to conserve energy and "beat" the other dorms.
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Wednesday, 01 October 2008
NEW YORK — Innovative Office Products, Inc., will feature its space-saving 9190 and 9189 model LCD mounting arms at the 2008 KioskCom Self Services Expo, October 15-16 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. Innovative will display its products at Booth 238.
Both mounting arm models "float" flat-screen monitors to offer flexible, space-saving solutions for point-of-sale systems. Many kiosks use space inefficiently by locking a screen in one position, making it more an obstacle or uncomfortable experience than a convenient service. Innovative's 9190 model and 9189 model LCD arms reduce a kiosk's footprint and provide a great range of motion for consumers.
"These POS solutions provide necessary functionality without consuming excess space," said Bud Oddsen, president of Innovative Office Products. "These mounts float POS devices in the air, allowing the user to effortlessly raise and lower the screen and enabling users of all sizes to achieve an optimal viewing angle."
The 9190 is an ergonomic, compact countertop mount for kiosks, signature capture screens and other POS devices. Securing a monitor safely to a counter, the mount is durable enough for retail environments, yet users can effortlessly pivot and turn it for easier viewing. The 9190 model also features:
- Quick set-up.
- Cable management system that allows cables to pass through the counter or behind the mount.
- Lock-in option.
- Support for monitors up to 25 pounds.
- Compatibility with VESA monitors.
Like the 9190 model, the 9189 is an ergonomic, compact countertop solution that reduces a kiosk or monitor's footprint. However, it also allows users to adjust the height of a monitor. It is available in three different ranges of height: 7-12 inches, 7-24 inches and 7-36 inches. This mount is secured by passing through a hole in the counter, allowing a retailer to bundle cables beneath the surface and out of view. The 9189 model also features:
- Quick set-up.
- Support for monitors up to 25 pounds.
- Smooth pivoting and turning.
- Lock-in option.
- Durable, retail-ready construction.
- Compatibility with VESA monitors
At KioskCom, Innovative will also be displaying its 7500 model flat panel radial arm and its EVO line of ergonomic LCD arms.
The 7500 Radial Arm weightlessly suspends a flat screen monitor about a desk or counter, freeing up valuable space and reducing clutter. Its range and flexibility features:
- 27-inch horizontal reach, and 18 inches of vertical range.
- Folds back to occupy just three inches of space.
- Can tilt a monitor up to 200 degrees.
- Manages cables and keeps them out of sight.
- Includes, FLEXmount, a mounting kit that provides users with six different mounting options.
- Compatible with VESA monitors.
The EVO line of ergonomic LCD arms are available in a variety of lengths, heights and mounting solutions, including slat-rail designs and desktop options. EVO's combination of attractive and intuitive design has made it an award-winning product. Like the 7500, EVO floats a monitor or laptop above a desk for an ergonomic set-up that can reduce workplace injuries. With EVO, you can adjust a screen with one hand and tuck it out of the way while not in use. These arms are also available in Any Color You Like to match a variety of color schemes.
Tuesday, 30 September 2008
PADERBORN, Germany — Wincor Nixdorf has expanded its software-solutions portfolio for postal-services providers. The PC/E Postal Solution Suite covers primary postal processes, ensuring effective processing of classic postal services and financial services, as well as those of sales processes that resemble retail sales.
According to a news release, PC/E Postal Solution Suite's four modules — Channel Delivery, Security, Management & Optimization and Banking Business Enabling — may be used to create customized solutions. PC/E Postal Solution Suite makes use of all relevant customer delivery channels, from the counter to the self-service system, as well as to mobile devices and the Internet. The solution enables postal-service providers to map their service offers with a single software.
The Product Management module represents the development of a rule-based, service-oriented software component for the universal administration of postal products and services. It maps all the information pertinent to a postal service and makes it centrally available.
The software bundles typical sales and service functionalities for all types of branches and POS systems. And automated teller safes or self-service systems also can be integrated. Classic postal services, such as parcel and letter-acceptance and distribution, are optimally supported.
This software suite is expected to be available during the fourth quarter of 2008 and will be presented for the first time at PostExpo2.
Thursday, 25 September 2008
The Chronicle of Higher Education: Soon students will be able to buy electronic textbooks at the college bookstore, using kiosks that will download files and burn them to CDs. The kiosks will also offer the latest Hollywood movies, which the machines will be able to burn onto DVDs on demand. The National Association of College Stores announced today that it has formed a spinoff company, NACS Media Solutions, to broker the deals with publishers to support the new, on-demand service.
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Thursday, 25 September 2008
The Denver Post: Fair warning: What looks like an ATM might not be an ATM at all. It could be one of the Denver Scholarship Foundation's "giving kiosks," and instead of spitting out Benjamins, it will accept your donation toward a child's college education. The kiosks, brainchild of DSF development director Myles Mendoza, were introduced when 150 Friends of Ed gathered for a sunset "friend-raiser," planned by Kasia Iwaniczko, in the rooftop garden at the Museum Residences.
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Tuesday, 23 September 2008
ContactlessNews.com: Motorola has been chosen to supply the enrollment kiosks to the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Police Computing and Material Service for Norway's biometric passport and visa program, according to The Financial. The kiosks from Motorola, called Bio-Enrol Stations, will enable Norway's agencies to enroll the 500,000 passport applicants and 150,000 visa applicants they receive annually.
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Tuesday, 23 September 2008
The Canadian Press: Montreal on Sunday unveiled its new self-service bicycle system. The program, named Bixi, allows residents to borrow bicycles from one station and drop them off at another. "You grab it, you ride it, you bring it back," said Montreal's mayor Gerald Tremblay. "It will become an emblem for Montreal."
An expected 2,400 bikes will be available at 300 stations in six Montreal boroughs.
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Monday, 22 September 2008
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: The Pennsylvania Commission for Women and the Highmark Foundation have unveiled a Women's Wellness Guide kiosk at the Allegheny County Jail. The two organizations say the kiosk will be a critical health-information resource for women who tend to be underserved by health agencies. The first of its kind in Pennsylvania, the kiosk has an ATM-sized touchscreen portal that provides women with answers to questions about a wide range of health topics, ranging from heart disease to obesity. It will also provide information about health-insurance options.
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Thursday, 18 September 2008
ZDNet Asia: Nokia has introduced automated kiosks across the central Klang Valley in a bid to encourage people to recycle their mobile phones. In a recent study conducted by the mobile phone maker, only 3 percent of respondents recycled their cell phones and 50 percent were unaware that their devices could be reused. Nokia is hoping to improve the statistics with the introduction of kiosks specially designed to ease the recycling process.
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Thursday, 18 September 2008
Times West Virginian: The newest addition to Pricketts Fort, a historical and recreational park located just north of Fairmont, W.Va., is an interactive kiosk that concentrates on three different aspects of life in the 18th century. The kiosk, set up in the upstairs portion of the visitors’ center that is known as the Orientation Gallery, allows the fort’s patrons to see how people worked on different trades, such as blacksmithing and pottery. The kiosk illustrates how those living in the 18th century spent their leisure time as well. It also concentrates on the domestic arts, such as spinning, weaving and making baskets.
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Thursday, 18 September 2008
DENVER — Nevada drivers can now pay for vehicle registrations and other fees at the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles using debit cards.
According to a news release, payment through the STAR Network is now featured on the DMV's self-service kiosks as well as at DMV counters. Twenty-six kiosks are available for drivers who use their debit cards to pay registration fees, driver history records and other fees. And the addition of PIN pads at counter POS terminals is making it possible for DMV customers to pay at more than 300 DMV payment windows across the state.
According to a recent study by First Data on consumer payments, nearly 87 percent of survey respondents used a debit card in the last 30 days, indicating a trend toward more debit card use.
"The addition of the online bill payment option in 2006 and now the ability to accept debit cards at the payment counters and in the self-service kiosks gives drivers more convenience and more choices in how they pay," said Dennis Colling, chief of administration at the DMV.
Thursday, 18 September 2008
The Virginian-Pilot: It used to be much harder to keep track of visitors who came into and out of B.M. Williams Primary School. No more. Now, every visitor who walks into B.M. Williams must produce identification for a machine that will record the information, compare it with the national sex-offender registry, then record how long the visitor is in the building. A small camera mounted on the kiosk snaps a photo of the person's face.
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Tuesday, 16 September 2008
The (Pittsfield, Mass.) Berkshire Eagle: The visitor's bureau in Berkshire County in Massachusetts has unveiled the first of five interactive kiosks that will provide visitors with an interactive portal to goods and services available on the bureau's Web site. The Visitors' Bureau unveiled the first kiosk at the Prime Outlets of Lee on Friday. The kiosk is in the food court of the outlet mall. The kiosks, which feature touchscreen technology, are powered by the Berkshire Visitors' Bureau Web site. According to Ray Smith, vice president of marketing and operations at the Visitors' Bureau, the kiosk gives a visitor access to all 800 of the businesses and organizations that are members of the Visitors' Bureau.
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Tuesday, 16 September 2008
(Florence, S.C.) Morning News Reporter: A new kiosk at the Drs. Bruce & Lee Foundation Library features snapshots and video that detail the genesis of the Florence Veterans Park, which will open in two months. "We just believe (the kiosk) will serve to let the patrons who visit the library become more aware of the park and the beauty of the park," said Florence County library system director Ray McBride, a U.S. Army veteran.
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Wednesday, 10 September 2008
WalesOnline: Libraries owned by Cardiff, the capital of Wales, are to become self-service in the biggest revolution in their 150-year history. The project, which will cost up to £1 million (U.S. 1.76 million) and see all branch libraries close for a week at a time over the coming months, is designed to free up staff and improve the service to library users. Council officials today confirmed that it would not lead to any job cuts.
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Wednesday, 10 September 2008
The (Wellington, New Zealand) Dominion Post: New Zealand Internal Affairs representatives say the exploits of a group of academics who "cracked" a British electronic passport and created a fake electronic travel document in the name of Osama bin Laden will not derail plans to introduce automated immigration checks using biometric passports and self-service kiosks. The first of these will be installed at Auckland airport by Australian Customs next month. Microchips have been embedded in passports issued in many countries, including New Zealand, which introduced them in 2006, at the behest of the U.S. Government. The chips contain the details and photographs of the passport holder in an electronic form.
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Monday, 08 September 2008
RFID Journal: Summertime and air travel is anything but easy. Instead, it's more likely to be marked by numerous delays and queues at airports — that is, unless you're heading to Portugal with an electronic passport in hand. The country is leveraging the use of e-passports, which have embedded RFID chips, to speed travelers through border-control lines.
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Friday, 29 August 2008
Philly.com: The bicycles were red, shiny and inviting, lined up along a rack near a bustling farmers market. Max Menna, 37, noted the chain cover to protect clothing. He used his hands to measure the front rack — good for securing briefcases or backpacks. He stepped back to inspect the vehicle's construction. "I was just in Paris, and I was thrilled to see their program and all the bikes on the street," Menna said. "If we can approximate that, we'll achieve something."
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Thursday, 28 August 2008
FRESNO, Calif. — Continental Prison Systems Inc., a provider of prison kiosk technology that streamlines the inmate release process and a growing provider of the cost-reducing process for loading funds onto an inmate's account over the Internet or through a kiosk, has announced that the EZ Kiosk and EZ Card divisions of Continental Prison Systems Inc. have successfully completed and signed a service agreement with a 550-bed Colorado prison facility.
"This agreement will allow our EZ divisions to begin installing EZ Card and EZ kiosks that include a booking kiosk which will handle bookings and bail, a trust funds kiosk that will handle all monies deposited to inmate accounts, as well as online bail trust fund loads and EZ Cards debit release card," said Ron Hodge, president and chief executive of Continental Prison Systems. "CPSZ expects financial services revenues during the initial three-year term to exceed $400,000."
Monday, 25 August 2008
The Times of India: By 2010, all train passengers would have instant access to unreserved tickets from even the remotest corner in the country. What is more, they would be able to buy a ticket not just from the stations but several public kiosks as well, according to India's Centre for Railway Information System.
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Friday, 22 August 2008
Eastbourne Herald Gazette: Hailsham, England, now has an improved tourist information service. An electronic touchscreen kiosk, incorporating the latest technological features, allows residents and visitors to access a wealth of tourist and community information, health advice and local education and employment opportunities. Other features include the ability to print digital photographs and an e-mail service for those with or without an e-mail address.
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Friday, 22 August 2008
(New Delhi, India) Business Standard: State-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. is converting the public call offices in Karnataka, India, into information and transaction kiosks with multiple service offerings like Web browsing, easy recharge of mobile phones amd ticket bookings. BSNL has entered into an understanding with chip maker Intel, multipurpose prepaid card firm ItzCash Card and Karnataka PC Owners' Association to launch the initiative.
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Monday, 18 August 2008
(Palm Beach, Fla.) WPBF-TV, Channel 25: A new postage system in West Palm Beach got a stamp of approval on Thursday. The main post office in West Palm Beach debuted its automated postal center. The self-service system allows customers to weigh and mail packages at any time.
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Wednesday, 13 August 2008
Examiner.com (Denver, Colo.): Washington D.C. is set to officially roll out its SmartBike D.C. bicycle-sharing program after months of delays. Starting today, 120 bikes will be available to registered subscribers at 10 docking stations throughout the city. About 150 people have subscribed, said Jim Sebastian, manager for bicycle, pedestrian and transportation demand-management programs for the District Department of Transportation.
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Wednesday, 13 August 2008
(Salt Lake City, Utah) KSTU-TV, Channel 13: Tourists visiting the Cache Valley in Utah will be able to learn about the area from new touchscreen kiosks. The kiosks are filled with information about 31 places to stop in Logan Canyon.
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Wednesday, 13 August 2008
BBC: Dundee is set to join Barcelona, Paris and Stockholm by introducing self-service bike rental kiosks. People would be able to pick up a bike at places like the train or bus station, and then drop it off at certain points across the city. Riders could use the bike for free for half an hour, then rent it for longer.
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Thursday, 07 August 2008
FRESNO, Calif. — Continental Prison Systems Inc., a provider of prison kiosk technology, has reported that its exhibit at the Texas Sheriff Association Conference show in San Antonio, July 19-21, received strong interest from show attendants.
Sheriffs visiting CPSI's booth showed enormous interest in its prison financial products and services, according to a news release. The Sheriffs were primarily impressed with the booking kiosk that takes all the cash handling away from the facility when an inmate is booked, as well as the EZ Exit Card program that gives the inmate a debit card upon release instead of a check.
The work release kiosk, which allows inmates to pay their work release fees, either through CPSI's kiosk or from the online Web site, also raised eyebrows, according to the release.
"The Texas Sheriff's Conference was a huge success for us," said Ron Hodge, president and chief executive of CPSI. "Word of mouth advertising of both the EZ Card system and the EZ Kiosk system caused a real buzz around the floor of the show.''
Thursday, 07 August 2008
Gizmodo: Tests conducted for the U.K.'s Times Online have concluded that the new high-tech e-passports being distributed around the world can be hacked and cloned within minutes. A computer researcher proved it by cloning the chips in two British passports and then implanting digital images of Osama bin Laden and a suicide bomber. Both passports passed as genuine by U.N.-approved passport reader software. The entire process took less than an hour.
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Wednesday, 06 August 2008
BusinessWeek: On Monday, the Cleveland County Memorial Library in Shelby, N.C., launched its first self-checkout kiosk. The simple touchscreen technology should be familiar to those who have used the self-checkout at stores like Wal-Mart. If patrons should also need to pay fines and fees there is a coin box attached. There are just two restrictions to using the self-checkout kiosk.
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Tuesday, 05 August 2008
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Visitor management solutions provider STOPware Inc. has selected North Carolina-based Meridian Kiosks to produce security kiosks for its PassagePoint global visitor management solutions.
According to a press release, PassagePoint is used worldwide by the U.S. government, many Fortune 500 companies and smaller organizations to provide a visitor self-registration solution. The kiosk guides visitors through the sign-in process by scanning a driver's license, business card, visitor e-pass or after a user enters his name and the name of his company. Seconds later the kiosk generates a visitor badge.
"PassagePoint's power and convenience lets users tailor the registration process to meet their needs," said Terschuren, STOPware vice president of sales and marketing. "Using the PassagePoint Kiosk can help ensure that only the right visitors are allowed into a facility, improving guard productivity and service, enhancing company image and making a facility more secure."
Friday, 01 August 2008
Foster's Daily Democrat (Dover, N.H.): The city of Dover is on track to become the second Seacoast city to test the waters of a "pay-and-display" metered parking system. Transportation Planner Bruce Woodruff said the city is looking to participate in a pilot program that would add the pay-and-display meters to street parking spots along Henry Law Avenue. The meters work by allowing motorists to insert nickels, dimes, quarters, dollar coins or a credit card into one central meter, which serves several parking spaces.
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Friday, 01 August 2008
(Las Vegas) KTNV-TV, Channel 13: Obtaining driving records soon will be easier for Nevada residents, thanks to some new kiosks at local DMV offices. For $7 the kiosk can give you a 3-, 9- or 10-year driving history.
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Thursday, 31 July 2008
LAS VEGAS — AmeriResource Technologies Inc., a diversified holding company, has announced that its subsidiary, RoboServer Systems Corp., has expanded into new markets in response to growing demand for self-service payment processing systems, according to a news release.
"These are exciting times in the self-service industry because cities, counties, utilities and corporations are looking to self-ordering and payment processing systems to cut their operating costs, increase their revenues and improve customer service," said Delmar Janovec, chief executive of RoboServer. "RoboServer Systems Corp. has been approached by several prospective clients due to RoboServer's proprietary software platform that can be customized to meet exacting specifications for performance and security. Potential applications include touchscreen kiosks that consumers, for example, can use 24/7 to pay their electric bills, water bills, property taxes, city-county licensing fees, franchise taxes, parking tickets, library fines, court fines and other payments. RoboServer's proprietary software can be configured to work on virtually any kiosk or countertop platform, with easy-to-use step-by-step onscreen instructions that make the payment process convenient, quick and safe."
Wednesday, 30 July 2008
Gulf News: Dubai Municipality's Umm Suqeim Centre has launched special e-kiosks and an electronic inquiry service for customers, the municipality announced. Customers will be able to get complete and quick responses on various queries about the services of the center.
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Tuesday, 29 July 2008
ALTOONA, Pa. — Imagine a prison handling upwards of $100,000 of phone and commissary deposits a month while hundreds of visitors come in and out of the facility in a maze of confusion. That is exactly what one correctional facility encountered before the recent implementation of a self-service option for friends and family members to deposit inmate funds.
The Montgomery County Correctional Facility, located in the Lower Providence Township of Pennsylvania houses approximately 1,800 male and female sentenced offenders and individuals awaiting trial. They receive approximately 165 visitors per day — which equates to more than 28,000 visitors since the beginning of 2008. Visitors to Montgomery County come either to spend time with a loved one or to drop off additional funds into a loved one's commissary or phone account so that they may buy necessary goods or make phone calls out of the facility.
In order to facilitate the deposit process, Montgomery County implemented two self-service kiosks from Inmate Telephone Inc., their inmate phone provider, in late February. The eZ Deposit Kiosk accepts cash or credit card deposits from an inmate's family and friends and places it automatically into either the inmate's commissary or phone account.
The kiosks have reduced the need for expensive labor hours spent counting and balancing funds to ensure the absence of theft. The eZ Deposit Kiosk includes an advanced locking mechanism that will track who has accessed the cash deposit bin in order to eliminate the security risks and hassles associated with handling money.
Warden Julio Algarin boasts that the addition of these kiosks has reduced visitation lines by at least 65 percent in his facility.
"On visitor days, I used to watch numerous family members backed up in lines stretching out the door," Algarin said. "Now, those wanting to make a quick deposit simply use the kiosks in the lobby — they don't have to wait in those long visitor lines. Our visitation officers are no longer distracted. They are now focused on providing top-notch security and clear instructions to our visitors."
Since February, Montgomery County is averaging 2,923 kiosk transactions per month.
Thursday, 24 July 2008
HEIDELBERG, Germany — Camp Victory in Iraq is nearly 2,000 miles from the nearest Army Library in Europe. But soldiers deployed at the sprawling base near Baghdad International Airport soon will have access to a broad spectrum of such resources via an e-Branch kiosk, according to a news release issued by the U.S. Army.
A team of movers packed and loaded the kiosk July 14 at the European Regional Library Support Center in Heidelberg, Germany, for shipment to Camp Victory, where it will be installed at the Victory Education Center.
"The kiosk will have a wonderful home here," said Staff Sgt. Jimmy Labas, education programs director at Victory Education Center.
Labas noted that the kiosk "offers a wonderful array of knowledge and research capabilities" for all servicemembers assigned to the camp.
"It truly is a key to success of Soldiers, Marines, (airmen) and (sailors) alike," he said. "We are becoming the leading education center in Iraq and are grateful to have such a useful tool."
Army Europe Libraries also have kiosks at the USO Pat Tillman Center, Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan; the Warrior Transition Unit at Kleber Kaserne near U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern, Germany; and the ERLSC in Heidelberg.
The e-Branch kiosks are designed to support educational opportunities for troops and deliver electronic library services and information to customers who can't get to a brick-and-mortar library.
The freestanding kiosks are quick and simple to use with touchscreen technology and pre-programmed buttons. The pre-programmed buttons mean that soldiers don't have to remember Web site addresses or search for information. They simply touch the buttons on the screen to go to news, sports, scholarly articles or 24/7 virtual reference services from military librarians.
Richard Hanusey, a former Europe Region Librarian who died in 2004, earned the Army Morale, Welfare and Recreation's White Plume award in part for initiating the e-Branch Kiosk project. The White Plume recognizes outstanding service and contribution to MWR and family programs. It is the Army's highest medal for achievement in support of Army MWR endeavors.
Thursday, 24 July 2008
The Times of India: The first of the Delhi government's multipurpose kiosks designed for a range of services, from dispensing ration cards to scheduling hospital appointments, will be in place by Aug. 15. The state IT department entered into an agreement with an infotech company on July 22 to deploy 50 kiosks in the first phase and 500 in all, to bring 104 government services to the citizens' doorsteps.
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Monday, 21 July 2008
Erie (Pa.) Times-News: Erie residents wanting a closer glimpse into the lives of famous figures from the city's past soon will have their chance. The first Erie Hall of Fame kiosk will be unveiled Tuesday. It will be located on the second floor of the Blasco Library at 160 E. Front St. The kiosk, which is about eight feet tall, houses a high-definition display screen and a touchscreen control device, provides access to video clips, photographs and documents about the first five members of the city's "Hall of Fame."
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Monday, 21 July 2008
The New Zealand Herald: The self-service, Parisian bike-for-hire — the velib' — was intended mostly for short rides when it was introduced 12 months ago. More than 3,000 of the sturdy grey bicycles have gone missing since then. Some have turned up as far away as Romania and, according to one report, Australia. Another 3,000 have been deliberately destroyed or damaged. But the 16,000 bikes in circulation have proved extremely popular.
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SEE ALSO: 'SmartBike' rental kiosks to be deployed in Alburquerque
Friday, 18 July 2008
The Albuquerque (N.M.) Journal: At a time when gas prices are reaching record highs, the city of Albuquerque, N.M., is negotiating a contract that would make a fleet of hundreds of "SmartBike" bicycles available for rent via self-service kiosks provided by Clear Channel Outdoor. The proposal would make the Albuquerque deployment the largest SmartBike program in the country. Mayor Martin Chávez estimates the project will make between 420 and 600 bicycles available throughout the city, starting next year.
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Tuesday, 08 July 2008
Washington Post: While Brill's Verified Identity Pass is the dominant player in the new registered traveler industry, with kiosks in many major airports to register new members, new startup Fast Lane Option (FLO), is targeting itinerant businessmen for its kiosk-lined, fast-pass airport security service. While the two companies are quick to point out each other’s faults, the market will determine the winner.
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Tuesday, 08 July 2008
Infolink.com: Americans lose up to one hour per day waiting in line, which increases the pressure to boost productivity through multitasking. Students at colleges and universities are experiencing the same phenomenon, leading campuses to seek applications that increase convenience — including a more efficient check-in process, since check-in is often an exhausting task that can overwhelm staff and students alike.
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Monday, 30 June 2008
DAYTON, Ohio — NCR Corp. has announced a partnership with Integrated Technology Group to offer a library self-checkout solution in North America.
ITG, an NCR RealPartner, will offer its Apex XpressCheck library self-checkout software on NCR EasyPoint kiosk hardware equipped with an integrated barcode scanner and printer. ITG selected NCR EasyPoint kiosk hardware for its reliability, serviceability and versatile mounting options.
The solution will be demonstrated at ITG’s booth #1872 at the 2008 American Library Association show, being held June 26 through July 2 in Anaheim, Calif.
"Ever expanding their services to include Internet access, DVDs and other interactive options, libraries are increasingly looking toward technology solutions to help make simpler tasks — like checking out books and other materials — an automated process," said Shai Robkin, president and chief executive of Integrated Technology Group. "By offering a self-checkout experience to help accomplish basic transactions, library employees can be readily available to assist visitors with more personalized customer service."
In a typical transaction using the library self-checkout solution, patrons first scan their library card to pull up account information on the kiosk screen. Patrons then scan the items for check out using the kiosk barcode scanner. A receipt prints from the kiosk to complete the transaction.
Future plans include integrating the NCR EasyPoint kiosks with ITG's radio frequency identification-enabled self-checkout software.
"NCR is pleased to partner with ITG to offer this best-in-class library self-checkout solution," said Richard Arnold, NCR vice president, Retail Industry Marketing. "As a company driven toward self-service innovation and growth, we look forward to working together to explore how technology can empower librarians to improve operational efficiencies and better serve their patrons."
Friday, 20 June 2008
Arlington Business Journal: The Arlington Convention and Visitors Service released rolling concierges and a stand-alone informational kiosk to bump up tourism in Arlington neighborhoods. Segways just hit the streets of Crystal City, and an interactive touchscreen kiosk will be at Rossyln's new Waterview development in early July. The kiosk, supplied by Comark Corp., will let people print walking directions and coupons from participating Arlington retailers.
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Friday, 20 June 2008
Centre Daily Times: Crandall Public Library's expansion project will offer patrons more than additional space. The expanded library will include radio frequency identification (RFID) technology from Polaris and Integrated Technology Group, a division of Vernon Library Supplies Inc. The new RFID system, which is designed to improve customer service for patrons and increase the amount of time staff members spend assisting patrons, also will include the deployment of self-service kiosks.
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Friday, 20 June 2008
The Baltimore Sun: Baltimore residents who pay cash for water, sewer and other municipal bills could avoid a trip downtown — and the line at the Municipal Building — if the city adopts a plan to install neighborhood-based self-service kiosks. The city council held a hearing yesterday on a resolution to study the feasibility of installing ATM-like machines around Baltimore that would accept payments for municipal bills.
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Thursday, 19 June 2008
(HONOLULU) KITV, Channel 4: The city on Monday unveiled a revamped information center at its newly renovated Ala Moana Center Satellite City Hall. Located where the old city store used to be, the center features a computer kiosk where customers can complete and print city forms while checking out free bus and boat route information.
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Monday, 16 June 2008
The Indianapolis (Ind.) Star: Nancy VanMeter is just the type of person U.S. Postal Service officials hope to attract to their new self-service facility in Fishers. VanMeter likes the convenience of the small brick postal building inside the Saxony development, and she has little trouble using its automated mailing gadgets — officially called Automated Postal Centers.
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Wednesday, 11 June 2008
CHANTILLY, Virginia — GAMUT Systems has announced that TRAVELER has been selected and implemented by the Bolivian Ministry of Tourism to provide real-time information for travelers using interactive informational kiosks installed throughout the 3 largest cities in Bolivia; La Paz, Santa Cruz and Cochabamba.
TRAVELER is an interactive and scalable composite application solution from GAMUT which integrates data from disparate sources into a single-view touchscreen user interface, whereby users can quickly gain access to information on various points of interest within a specified locale.
TRAVELER operates online via the Internet as well as on a desktop or personal data computer (PDA). TRAVELER is also available in several languages such as English, Spanish, French, and German. In addition, TRAVELER deploys a built-in advertising screen-saver which constantly scrolls through local ads and events and even exhibits a virtual keyboard for custom ad hoc searches.
Tuesday, 10 June 2008
The (Cleveland, Ohio) Plain Dealer: Premier Election Solutions, the voting machine company Cuyahoga County might sue for selling equipment that had been discarded, has struck first, filing its own lawsuit. Premier, part of Diebold Inc., is asking Franklin County Common Pleas Court to rule that the company fulfilled its contracts with Cuyahoga and the state.
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Tuesday, 03 June 2008
The Louisville (Ky.) Examiner: In a city where motorists complain of too few parking spaces and too many parking tickets, a bright spot has emerged. Solar-powered electronic parking kiosks, introduced four years ago at parking hot spots throughout the city of Baltimore, have nearly doubled revenues from meters and reduced the number of tickets issued to motorists who overstay their welcome, new statistics show.
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Monday, 02 June 2008
ABC7 (San Francisco, Calif.): A first-of-its kind service for BART public transport riders started recently. You can not only enjoy the ride, you can enjoy a book from the BART library, available right at an automated book lending system. There are 400 fiction and non-fiction books inside the kiosk and all you need is your Contra Costa County library card to access it. You can check out up to three books at a time. You can keep the books for three weeks and then you have to return the books to the kiosk.
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Tuesday, 27 May 2008
MoreRFID: Intellident, a U.K.-based company, has announced the launch of the new smartServe kiosk, a library self-service device. smartServe offers patrons the ability to issue, renew and return items, check account status and even pay fees.
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Tuesday, 27 May 2008
The Milwaukee (Wis.) Journal Sentinel: Just as banks and pharmacies have opened branches in supermarkets, the Milwaukee Public Library is studying the idea of creating three "express libraries" that would give residents access to library materials and services at convenient places and times, Library Director Paula Kiely said. Library officials are considering the express libraries and self-service checkout technology as they search for ways to maintain service while cutting costs.
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Wednesday, 21 May 2008
The Associated Press: The Declaration of Independence looked a bit different before Benjamin Franklin got his hands on it, using a pen to scratch out the words "sacred and undeniable." He thought it would be better to make truths such as "All men are created equal" be "self-evident." Edits such as this are captured in a new interactive exhibit at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., that allows visitors to zoom in on the specific words and phrases that formed the basis of the American republic. The curious can see different versions of historic documents and examine them line by line, using touchscreens that show the library's first high-definition scanned images of the drafts.
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Thursday, 15 May 2008
Washington Post: Travelers who love going abroad — but hate the tedious customs process — soon might be able to avoid customs altogether. Dulles International Airport has been selected for a pilot program that will let U.S. citizens and others who qualify to check themselves through customs at a self-service kiosk. Enrollees would pay a yearly fee of $100, go through a background check and then take a biometrics test to get through the process.
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Thursday, 15 May 2008
Buffalo (N.Y.) Business First: YRC Logistics has set up seven kiosks along the border between the United States and Canada — including two in Western New York — to help expedite clearance of cross-border shipments for its clients. Each kiosk has a camera and telephone, enabling communication with drivers as they present paperwork needed for customs clearance. Once a driver arrives at the kiosk, he is connected to the Buffalo office. The driver scans any required documents based on the client and the type of goods being shipped. The Buffalo office reviews the documents and returns required information to the driver for immediate customs processing and border crossing.
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Tuesday, 13 May 2008
MEQUON, Wis. — D2 Sales LLC announced that the University of Medicine & Dentistry of New Jersey in Newark, N.J., has chosen the My Patient Passport Express kiosk for its patient check-in program.
The My Patient Passport Express kiosk allows patients to check-in, make future appointments and update their medical history, all through a user-friendly touchscreen. Patients can use their credit cards to make co-pay payments, and sign documents using the integrated electronic signature pad.
Monday, 12 May 2008
The (Drexel U.) Triangle: InfoNET screens and kiosks will be added around campus as part of Drexel University’s Division of Student Life and Administrative Service's Power of Ten initiative, according to Rita LaRue, senior associate vice president for Business Services. The kiosks are primarily for students to know what is happening on and around campus.
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Friday, 25 April 2008
The (Edinburgh, Scotland) Evening News: Libraries across the Capital are set to adopt self-service as part of a range of measures to encourage more people to borrow books. The overhaul is designed to help free up time for the city's librarians, allowing them to provide better service for those using the libraries.
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Wednesday, 09 April 2008
Winston-Salem (N.C.) Journal: Entrepreneur Don Brock combines nonprofit giving with fast-paced technology and has made it a mission and an occupation. Brock, a native of Reidsville, founded SecurePointe Technologies to help nonprofit organizations streamline the receipt of donations and allow easier transactions using debit and credit cards.
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Monday, 07 April 2008
LONDON — Ryanair has said it will submit a High Court appeal against the Irish aviation regulator's recent decision to allow a Dublin airport to increase charges to airlines.
The low-cost carrier claims the Dublin Airport Authority has allowed a 50-percent hike in check-in desk charges and a doubling of charges for check-in kiosks at Dublin airport.
“Airport costs at most UK and European airports are falling thanks to lower cost facilities and competition. But in Ireland this regulator is allowing ... price increases at the DAA monopoly,” said Michael O'Leary, Ryanair's chief executive.
For more coverage, click here.
Thursday, 03 April 2008
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — At the upcoming KioskCom Self Service Expo, Source Technologies, a provider of transactional and interactive kiosks and secure MICR technologies, is demonstrating its full line of self-service solutions including products currently used by Alltel and Swanson Services Corp. Both of these organizations are finalists for KioskCom Awards.
Among the kiosks highlighted, Source Technologies will feature the following award-nominated solutions:
1) Alltel’s BillPay Kiosk: Alltel implemented Source Technologies’ concourse BillPay application to allow customers to pay bills without waiting in line for a customer service or sales representative. Alltel’s staff now focuses on better customer service and additional sales. The application runs on Source Technologies’ concourse 5-Series transactional self-service kiosks.
2) Swanson Services Corp.’s Cobra Kiosk: Swanson Services partnered with Source Technologies to develop the Cobra Kiosk, a unique self-service solution to implement into correctional facilities. The kiosk is a self-contained, wall-mountable device with a 12.1-inch shatter proof, armored touchscreen, liquid and tamper-proof casing, wireless capabilities and a highly secure lock. This kiosk is reliable and specifically designed to withstand the rigors of possible abuse by inmates.
Source Technologies has been recognized by KioskCom for three consecutive years. The company was awarded for Best Financial Services Deployment for Purchase, NY-based Quorum Federal Credit Union’s deployment of its concourse kiosks, and for Swanson Service’s kiosk installations at state and local correctional facilities.
Tuesday, 25 March 2008
Stuff.co.nz (New Zealand): Kiwis flying across the region could soon be getting through airports more quickly with the help of automatic passport-reading machines. New Zealand and Australian travelers with electronic passports will be able to put themselves through passport control without having to queue. Passengers put their passports into a kiosk that downloads details, including an electronic image of the passport holder's face. Passengers are then given a coupon for a gate, at which cameras and computers use facial recognition technology to do the checks now done by customs officers.
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Friday, 21 March 2008
The Associated Press: State lawmakers killed a proposal on Thursday that would have forced counties to conduct paper ballot elections this year, freeing them to use their controversial electronic voting kiosks. Colorado was one of five states considering moving to paper because of questions about electronic equipment. The reversal essentially puts the state back to where it was in December, before Coffman decertified most of the computerized voting equipment and optical scanners used in the state because of security and accuracy concerns. U.S. Election Assistance Commission Chairwoman Rosemary Rodriguez of Denver said the measure lets states use money to equip electronic machines with paper receipt printers and doesn't endorse any voting system over another.
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Tuesday, 18 March 2008
The Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch: When Jennifer Brunner cast her vote last fall, she is certain she saw something so odd on her touchscreen voting machine that it prompted a state criminal investigation into the Franklin County Board of Elections. Brunner isn't the average voter. As secretary of state, she is in charge of making sure Ohio's elections are properly conducted. At least 15 of the county's electronic machines are under double-lock at a warehouse. It is being treated as a crime scene. County elections officials asked the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation to seize the machines during the investigation by Attorney General Marc Dann and forensics consultants. Investigators already have found that many of the county's voting machines weren't tested before the November election, and a function that tracked changes to the machines was purposely turned off.
Friday, 14 March 2008
CINCINNATI, Ohio —Electronic Art, an interactive agency specializing in custom kiosk software, kiosk hardware and integrated Web sites, has announced it is providing kiosks and custom-designed software to support the “Passage to Freedom” program, a series of kiosks to be placed at or near Ohio Underground Railroad sites. The kiosks feature a new Web site created to showcase Ohio’s Underground Railroad sites and aid visitors in their travels. The campaign is the result of a collaboration between The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, the Ohio Department of Development’s Division of Tourism and American Express.
The program, the first of its kind covering an entire state, features the “Passage to Freedom” Web site, where visitors can access detailed information about Ohio Underground Railroad sites and other local attractions. The Web site will link to a network of interactive kiosks that will be located in former Underground Railroad communities around the state to provide visitors with regional travel information.
The first three kiosks will be located in Oberlin, Zanesville and Ripley, Ohio — each with several important Underground Railroad sites in their immediate vicinity. Kiosks will be placed at three additional sites later in the year.
The interactive kiosks at selected Ohio Underground Railroad sites will enable visitors to access detailed information about the site and its history using a touchscreen interface. Customized maps printed from the kiosk will enable travelers to seek out interesting, yet often overlooked regional attractions, as well as nearby restaurants, hotel accommodations, churches and other essential information.
Each kiosk will be linked to the Web site and constantly updated with the latest information about local and regional events, such as fairs, arts and cultural festivities and children’s activities. The kiosks will also offer details about other Underground Railroad locations within driving distance.
Thursday, 28 February 2008
The Palm Beach (Fla.) Post: This time, Smithsonian curators and eBay bidders weren't interested in Palm Beach County's election artifacts. Instead, most of the county's controversial paperless electronic touchscreen voting machines will be hauled away next week by a Tampa recycling firm to be stripped for parts. Florida Secretary of State Kurt Browning announced the ignominious end for the 6-year-old voting devices recently in Tallahassee. Gov. Charlie Crist and state lawmakers agreed last year to ban paperless voting in Florida and require that most votes be cast on paper ballots that can be read by optical scanners. The paper-ballot law takes effect this fall.
Tuesday, 19 February 2008
The Associated Press: Marijuana vending kiosks in Los Angeles violate international treaties and should be shut down, the U.N.-affiliated drug control board said recently. At least three Los Angeles medical marijuana dispensaries have installed vending machines to distribute the drug to people who carry cards authorizing marijuana use.
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Monday, 18 February 2008
The (San Jose, Calif.) Mercury News: Train riders at a San Francisco area train station will soon have the Contra Costa County library system at their fingertips. The last station on the East County BART line — through which about 5,000 people travel each weekday — will be one of the first places in the country to carry an automated book-borrowing kiosk. It resembles an ATM, except it holds 400 popular paperback titles instead of cash. Others will be added later at a shopping center in Discovery Bay, a transit village near the Pleasant Hill BART station and a site in West County not yet chosen. The machines will be considered part of the county library system, which will operate and maintain them. The approximately $95,000 for each kiosk is being paid for by grants from the California State Library and Bay Area Library and Information System, and the books for the first machine will be stocked by multimedia supplier Baker & Taylor Inc.
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Wednesday, 13 February 2008
(Durham, N.C.) NBC17: Durham residents can pay their taxes at a payment kiosk that opened recently. The Durham County tax payment kiosk is the first of its kind in North Carolina, officials said.
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Wednesday, 13 February 2008
RFID Journal: The city of Paris, France, has announced plans to implement RFID at 42 of its library branches, using a solution from 3M Library Systems. The libraries intend to use RFID to better manage circulation and inventory, as well as to improve security. Also, at those branches with larger numbers of patrons, the city plans to implement RFID-enabled self-service checkout and return facilities to free up staff. The agreement, according to 3M, calls for the company to provide at least 3 million RFID tags, as well as kiosks, interrogators, detection gates and self-checkout systems that allow customers to check out and return items, and in some cases pay fees and fines, without staff assistance.
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Tuesday, 12 February 2008
Nashua Telegraph: Checking out a book at the Nashua, N.H., public library is so easy, even a child can do it, thanks to the library's new self-checkout system. Just ask 5-year-old Sej, who recently received his first library card. Sej deftly navigated the system, scanning his card and the books he wanted to check out in the children's room. His mother, Stephanie Sewhuk-Thomas, stood by to offer assistance, but Sej did pretty well on his own.
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Tuesday, 05 February 2008
NewsOK.com: Customers of two stores in a local convenience store chain are able to pay their gas and electrical bills using an automated payment kiosk, Tulsa, Okla., officials say. A pilot program started by ChoicePay Inc. and QuikTrip in November makes it possible for customers to pay bills they get from Public Service Co. of Oklahoma, Oklahoma Natural Gas and other local and national billers.
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Monday, 28 January 2008
The Minneapolis-St. Paul (Minn.) Star Tribune: This week brings the debut of an interactive way for everyone to get the latest information on the rebuilding of the I-35W bridge over the Mississippi River. Touchscreen kiosks in Minneapolis will serve up bridge facts, photos and other interactive features, including animations of what the finished bridge will look like from a helicopter, a boat and a car. The I-35W bridge collapsed on Aug. 1, 2007, killing 13 people.
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Wednesday, 23 January 2008
KOAT-TV, Channel 7 (Albuquerque, N.M.): The Nob Hill neighborhood of Albuquerque is one of the city's most trendy spots, and now police are taking steps to keep the area safer. "Safe City" is a new partnership between the city, police, Nob Hill businesses and neighborhood associations. As part of "SafeCity," residents can tell police over the Internet what crimes they feel need attention, and police can alert residents to crime trends. It also includes a series of high-tech kiosks that will be installed along Central Avenue.
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Tuesday, 22 January 2008
The (Boulder, Colo.) Daily Camera: If you have a bad credit card, Boulder's new parking system has your number. The city installed a new kiosk system downtown that checks credit cards against a local blacklist, officials say. The list includes credit cards that banks have rejected for various reasons.
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Monday, 21 January 2008
Burlington County (Pa.) Times: The Lenape Regional High School District in Pennsylvania has turned to a comprehensive computer system to monitor visitors who pass through its four schools each day. LobbyGuard, an electronic visitor-management system and kiosk, was installed before the start of the school year at several high schools. The LobbyGuard kiosk eliminates the days of paper sign-in sheets, and seems to be a major security upgrade for the schools.
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Wednesday, 09 January 2008
WLNS 6 (Lansing, Mich.): A commercial driver's license is now available, literally at your fingertips. Touchscreen testing kiosks will be installed at 100 Secretary of State branches throughout the state. These automated systems give branch employees more time to help other customers. The kiosks also give immediate test results.
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Monday, 07 January 2008
The (Grand Junction, Colo.) Daily Sentinel: The grocery shopping lists of parents of some Colorado students may now include grade reports or teacher e-mail messages, in addition to the standard fare of bread, milk and eggs. Six stores in the Grand Valley area contain kiosks where parents can gain a little insight into how their children are performing in school and stay connected with teachers.
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Thursday, 03 January 2008
(United Arab Emirites) Khaleej Times: Dubai Traffic Police have launched a new service in which citizens can pay traffic fines at kiosks in various shopping malls or online at the police Web site.
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Wednesday, 19 December 2007
Associated Press: Colorado's secretary of state has declared many of the state's electronic voting machines to be unreliable, but said that some of them still could be used in November if a software patch was installed. Other machines that failed could be replaced with equipment certified for use in other states, Secretary of State Mike Coffman said. Coffman recently met with a task force of state lawmakers to discuss what Colorado should do after he decertified three of the four voting equipment manufacturers allowed in the state, affecting six of Colorado's 10 most populous counties.
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Monday, 03 December 2007
TCPalm.com: The holiday rush for mailing heavy packages and standing in lines at post offices across the United States has arrived. But U.S. Postal Service officials say the wait times could decrease if more customers used the self-service machines at many post offices.
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Monday, 26 November 2007
The (Boulder, Colo.) Daily Camera: The installation of a new kiosk parking system in Boulder has meant drastically fewer parking tickets for downtown visitors, but city officials say it's too early to know whether that trend will continue.
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Tuesday, 20 November 2007
LEWIS CENTER, Ohio ·Microcom Corp. and IBM has announced plans for allowing drivers to renew their license plate registration at self-service kiosks throughout the province of Ontario, Canada.
James Larson, president and CEO of Microcom Corporation, said the project will put drivers trying to renew their plates in the fast lane.
"The kiosks streamline the renewal process and help drivers avoid the agony of standing in long slow moving lines at registrars' offices," he said.
IBM sought Microcom's help to engineer a solution enabling them to automatically validate and issue serial-numbered registration stickers at ServiceOntario kiosks. These machines, deployed in about 70 locations throughout the province, are a part of the largest self-service kiosk network of its kind in North America.
Microcom designed and manufactured a rugged and dependable media printer/dispenser equipped with a laser barcode scanner. Once a customer enters the required information at the kiosk and submits a payment, the barcode reader authenticates a registration sticker and dispenses it to the user.
The Ministry of Transportation is looking to leverage self-service technology in response to growth.
"They simply are looking to find smart and efficient ways to help tackle the increase in customer volume, while at the same time decrease costs," Larson said. "The ServiceOntario kiosk will also provide the technology platform for Canadian officials to deliver future innovations aimed at improving customer service."
Monday, 12 November 2007
Star and Stripes: Some registered Florida voters will be able to forgo the difficulty of voting overseas with the introduction of voting kiosks at three Air Force bases in Europe and Asia. Voters registered in Okaloosa County, Fla., will be able to use the kiosks to vote via a secure Internet connection. The kiosks will be largely aesthetic, mimicking that back-home experience.
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Friday, 02 November 2007
The Indianapolis Star: A U.S. self-service postal facility has broken ground recently in Fishers, Indiana. The 600 square-foot, free-standing facility will be the first self-service postal facility of its kind in Indiana. The facility is scheduled to open in early 2008. It will offer 24-hour access to customers and will house two Automated Postal Centers.
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Wednesday, 31 October 2007
Government Technology: The Portland International Airport in Oregon recently became the sixth airport in the country to offer Mailsafe Express kiosks that assist passengers who have had prohibited items intercepted in secure areas of checkpoints. The other airports are William P. Hobby and George Bush Intercontinental, both in Houston; Palm Beach and Tampa international in Florida, and Chicago O'Hare, where a pilot program is nearly complete. Mailsafe allows passengers, with the help of our transportation security officers, to mail prohibited items home or to other destinations without ever leaving the security line.
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Tuesday, 30 October 2007
Kokomo Tribune: Inmates at the Howard County Criminal Justice Center saw an increase in the commissary items they are able to purchase. Keefe Commissary Network installed kiosks in every pod of cells that allows inmates to order the commissary items via a computerized system.
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Monday, 24 September 2007
APA: Azerbaijan's Labor and Social Protection Ministry will for the first time install computer-based information kiosks in public areas which will allow job seekers to have access to the database of vacant jobs.
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Thursday, 20 September 2007
Gazette.net: When library patrons were granted free parking privileges in Bethesda, Md., they soon found themselves competing for spots with folks trying to snag free space while they did other business. Now, a kiosk is on guard. Library users park, note the number of the space and enter into the self-service device when they enter the building. Periodically, a parking enforcement officer matches numbers from the machine with occupied spots, and tickets cars that have been signed in at the kiosk. Each sign-in is good for two hours.
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Tuesday, 11 September 2007
Sacramento (Calif.) Business Journal: The first 100 of 300 new pay-and-display parking kiosks have been deployed in downtown and midtown Sacramento. Drivers walk to the kiosk, pay for parking, then return to their vehicles to display the receipt, which has a peel and stick backing. Users tape the receipt to the inside of the street side window. Unexpired time is transferable to other parking spots downtown.
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Tuesday, 11 September 2007
(Albany, N.Y.) WXXA 23: New York State is rolling out a new tool in the effort to locate missing children · an interactive kiosk aimed at getting out the word about them. At first glance, the kiosk at Albany International Airport looks like some kind of advertisement. It is in a way · advertising the names and faces of the dozens of missing children in New York State.
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Friday, 07 September 2007
The (Montpelier, Vt.) Times-Argus: Vermont's Department of Motor Vehicles has deployed kiosks in each of its five permanent branch offices and Montpelier, Vt., headquarters. The department began installing the kiosks, which allow motorists to renew auto registrations themselves, about two years ago, says Bonnie Rutledge, commissioner of the department. Now the self-service terminals are located in each DMV office in the state.
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Monday, 27 August 2007
USA Today: Travelers at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport can now check in and print their boarding passes when they enter the main parking garage. The service is available for fliers not checking luggage if they're traveling on any of five airlines: Alaska, Continental, Horizon, Northwest and United. It may be expanded to other airlines in the future.
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Tuesday, 31 July 2007
The Bakersfield Californian: The first in a series of kiosks designed to promote Kern County, Calif., tourist attractions is on its way. The first two kiosks are set to roll out now, with seven more on the way.
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Monday, 09 July 2007
The Times of India: Thanks to a new government venture, Bangalore citizens now have access to land records via a kiosk that is expected to be set up at the local high courts. Users just enter property details and then pick up copies of their documents.
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Tuesday, 26 June 2007
The Albuquerque (N.M.) Tribune: Albuquerque's residents are struggling with the city's new parking kiosks, which are designed to take credit cards, bills or coins. "We don't want people to struggle with the new technology, and we want it to be as customer-friendly as we can," said Mark Motsko, spokesman for Albuquerque's Department of Municipal Development.
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Thursday, 14 June 2007
Fredricksburg.com (Virginia): All Virginia state parks will soon be able to use kiosks to get GPS-based trail details, spotting guides for wildlife, extensive data on park amenities, printable guides and maps, schedules and more.
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Thursday, 14 June 2007
Fredricksburg.com (Virginia): All Virginia state parks will soon be able to use kiosks to get GPS-based trail details, spotting guides for wildlife, extensive data on park amenities, printable guides and maps, schedules and more.
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Monday, 04 June 2007
(Virginia) Leesburg Today: Guests gathered at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center near Washington, D.C., recently to unveil a kiosk with an electronic database and touchscreen that directs visitors of the museum to various other places of interest in the region, including historic sites, special tours, entertainment and shopping centers.
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Friday, 25 May 2007
TheOtherPaper.com: The looming installation of parking kiosks may mean an end to angst over the city's electronic meters. Within three years, self-service parking kiosks will replace new-fangled meters that have proven less reliable than the mechanical ones they replaced.
Read more.
Saturday, 12 May 2007
The Royal Gazette: Kiosks now make it easier for Bermudans to pay duty on items bought overseas. Developed in conjunction with KIOSK Information Systems, the self-service devices have been installed at LF Wade International airport.
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Thursday, 03 May 2007
Elpasotimes.com: El Pasoans now have an opportunity to access city services and resources online thanks to an information kiosk that has been installed at their city hall.
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Tuesday, 01 May 2007
Computerworld.com: Organizations that use RFID devices should systematically evaluate potential security and privacy risks posed by the technology, U.S. government officials say in a new report detailing best practices for retailers, manufacturers, hospitals and federal agencies.
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Tuesday, 24 April 2007
Heartland.org: Controversy over the use of RFID continues to grow as New Hampshire has reintroduced legislation to regulate the use of RFID chips in consumer products and entirely ban their use in government documents such as driver's licenses. The New Hampshire bill, H.B. 686, would require retailers to label any products, such as food, apparel or appliances, that contain RFID chips.
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Monday, 16 April 2007
ODENSE, Denmark · FKI Logistex, announced the award of a contract from the Odense Central Library in Denmark for a fully automated item-handling and sorting system.
The Odense Library selected FKI Logistex for its solutions, which will allow the library to reduce waiting lines and manual-item handling by streamlining and extending its self-service and automated sortation capabilities.
One of Denmark's largest public libraries, the Odense Central Library operates nine city-based branches and one mobile unit. The cost-effective FKI Logistex solution addresses the library's efficiency goals, which include replacing its existing security gates and automating at least 90 percent of all lending and returning activities.
The Odense contract covers installation of FKI Logistex Library Mate automated check-in and checkout self-service kiosks and an FKI Logistex Compact Sorter. It also includes FKI Logistex Ergo Cart ergonomic book carts and volume containers. The integrated system will handle and sort a wide range of library materials, from books to CDs, DVDs and magazines.
"When compared to other solutions in the market, the FKI Logistex Compact Sorter and the company's other library technologies are very convincing," says Lene Nielsen, administration manager, Odense Central Library. "In particular, we were impressed by the high capacity and tremendous flexibility offered by the company's solutions and its excellent service agreement."
FKI Logistex library equipment and systems interface with existing library communications protocols and are compatible with RFID or barcode labeling technologies.
Monday, 16 April 2007
DALLAS · AXCESS International Inc., a provider of dual-active RFID and real-time location systems solutions, announced that three civilian U.S. government agencies are installing its patented ActiveTag wireless RFID system for locating, tracking and protecting laptop computer assets and critical documents. AXCESS' RFID solution is designed to prevent such thefts by working automatically to identify, locate and track assets as they move around a facility.
AXCESS' ActiveTag system provides a solution to agencies reportedly losing personally identifiable information that works in concert with standard security alarm equipment, to identify authorized personnel and provide instant message alerts when unauthorized individuals attempt to remove tagged laptops or other assets.
The technology, which manages assets with no manual human involvement, can identify a laptop by using a small battery-powered property tag attached to the computer, often with an optional anti-tamper circuit that serves as a fail safe measure.
U.S. Congress is considering five bills that require safeguards and prompt notification of potential victims of identity theft.
AXCESS' ActiveTag RFID/RTLS and sensing systems use small, re-usable battery-powered tags that when automatically activated, transmit a wireless message typically 30 to 100 feet to hidden palm-size receivers. The receivers are connected via standard network simultaneously to the enterprise system software, the existing security alarm equipment, and stand-alone middleware and enduser software provided by AXCESS under the Online Supervisor label. Tags last five years or longer.
Tuesday, 10 April 2007
Timesdispatch.com: Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine unveiled an interactive kiosk that's expected to provide Virginians and visitors at state parks with trail information, wildlife-spotting guides, printable maps, program descriptions, schedules and other details.
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Monday, 09 April 2007
Denver.yourhub.com: Douglas County Motor Vehicle Offices located in Denver have introduced computer kiosks that will expedite motor vehicle registration and marriage-license processing in Parker, Highlands Ranch and Castle Rock. Four work stations in the recording office in Castle Rock also will offer computer kiosks for online marriage licenses.
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Monday, 09 April 2007
Computerworld.com: The California State Senate is expected to vote as early as this week on several bills that would regulate the use of RFID technology in government documents. Two of the bills would impose a three-year moratorium on the use of RFID technology in California driver's licenses and public-school ID cards, while a third would create interim privacy safeguards for existing RFID-enabled government IDs, such as those that students use in the state college system. A fourth bill would make it a crime to "skim,"� or surreptitiously read, data from an RFID document.
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Friday, 06 April 2007
Govexe.com: The House Homeland Security Committee demanded the Homeland Security Department describe what system and technology will be used to determine when foreigners leave the country or overstay their visits. By law, the department is required to use biometric identifiers to verify foreigners leave the country.
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Friday, 06 April 2007
LANSING, Michigan · The State of Michigan announced the number of customers choosing self-service stations to renew their license plate tabs has more than doubled in the second year since Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land first announced them in March 2005, confirming their popularity with motorists.
The stations, which are similar to cash machines, logged almost 30,000 transactions and $3 million in revenue in their first 12 months. Since then, the stations have become even more popular, racking up more than 75,000 transactions totaling $7.5 million in revenue in the second year. Since their inception, there have been more than 105,000 transactions and $10.6 million in revenue.
The self-service stations are powered by Esprida. The Esprida remote management software allows Michigan to monitor and manage all of the stations from a central location, to improve availability and provide dependable service to consumers through a network of stations across the state. Michigan built the self-service stations on the Esprida platform to speed development time, use standard technologies and leverage remote management capabilities for both the user interface and components — card readers, thermal and receipt printers.
"The Michigan DMV project demonstrates the value of our technology — it enables our customers to deliver reliable service wherever and whenever needed," says Anila Jobanputra, president of Esprida Corporation and member of the Self-Service and Kiosk Association Advisory Board.
The stand-alone stations feature simple touchscreen instructions, dispense new license tabs in just moments and accept the Discover credit card and Visa- and MasterCard-branded debit and credit cards. Customers simply scan the bar code on a renewal notice with their correct name, address, vehicle information and personal identification number before paying.
Customers still can renew their tabs online, by phone or mail, or from a branch office customer service representative.
Tuesday, 27 March 2007
Insurancejournal.com: The Connecticut Supreme Court has adopted a new legal rule making it easier for plaintiffs to sue businesses for negligence alleged in self-service operations. The new rule puts the burden on businesses to recognize the possibility of foreseeable hazards they should take reasonable steps to address.
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Friday, 23 March 2007
Computerworld.com: North Dakota is set to ban the forced implantation of RFID chips into people. Both chambers of the legislature earlier this month handily passed a bill that would make it a Class A misdemeanor to force someone to have an RFID device implanted into his/her body.
Friday, 23 March 2007
The Star (Malaysia): Under an ambitious plan by Malaysia's Road Transport Department, driver's license renewal will be offered at kiosks and online. The department's deputy director-general Solah Mat Hassan said the online renewal service, expected to be available from next month, is for holders of competent driving licenses, and can be accessed through kiosks situated at testing centers around the country.
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Thursday, 22 March 2007
Amhersbergecho.com: The town council of Amherstburg, Ontario, has re-affirmed its position to implement a new customer-service kiosk at the Amherstburg Municipal Building. The kiosk would allow offer convenience for residents who would otherwise have difficulty seeing administrative staff.
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Wednesday, 14 March 2007
LOMBARD, Ill. — The Defense Commissary Agency has awarded ADUSA, Inc. a contract to put self-ordering deli kiosks in its new Naval Base San Diego commissary, helping introduce thousands of military personnel and their families to the benefits of self-ordering shopping for perhaps the first time.
Commissaries are the grocery store of choice for military families, and this partnership between ADUSA and DeCA represents DeCA's initial implementation of self-ordering kiosks.
The first two deli kiosks will be installed in a commissary by early April 2007. DeCA and ADUSA personnel will monitor how well these kiosks are accepted by the shoppers, and how often they're used. According to Tom Milks, director of sales for DeCA, "We will evaluate a number of points with respect to these first kiosks, and will hopefully be able to build a case for additional deployments. Self-ordering is really the way of the future in retail and we're anxious to expose our clientele to its benefits."
When the ribbon is cut to officially open the San Diego store on April 20, it will be the largest U.S. military commissary in the world and the first DeCA store to contain many of the agency's "store of the future" concepts. The infusion of state-of-the-art technology, expanded departments, a health and wellness section, information kiosks and a store-within-a-store layout that serves both convenience and full-cart shoppers are several enhancements that will make San Diego the flagship for a new generation of commissaries.
Thursday, 01 March 2007
InformationWeek: Lawmakers in the state of Washington are considering restrictions on RFID technology. State Rep. Jeff Morris has introduced an Electronic Bill of Rights that would outlaw the collection, storage and disclosure of radio frequency identification information without notifying consumers. The bill states that all companies using active and passive RFID devices would have to either disable the devices or gain consumer consent.
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Tuesday, 20 February 2007
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Source Technologies, manufacturers of transactional kiosks, will host a demonstration area at CUNA's Governmental Affairs Conference showcasing self-service technologies for the financial services industry. Source Technologies' booth #1028 will feature Concourse Total self-service banking kiosks in use by credit unions and retailers across the country.
The conference will be held February 25-27, 2007 at the Hilton Washington & Towers in Washington, D.C.
Live demonstrations of Concourse kiosks demonstrating both "Total" and "Teller-Assisted" self-service banking will be available to provide attendees with hands-on experience using self-service technologies to deliver branch financial services.
Thursday, 15 February 2007
BismarckTribune.com: Concluding its $1 million price tag was too rich, the North Dakota Senate dumped a proposal to set up computer kiosks in police stations for sex offenders. The kiosks were proposed for sex-offender use, allowing offenders to enter their information at self-service terminals that would notify authorities of their whereabouts.
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Monday, 12 February 2007
The St. Petersburg Times: Pinellas County, Fla., has introduced payment kiosks for fines in misdemeanor and felony cases, municipal and county ordinances, and boating and traffic citations.
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Thursday, 01 February 2007
Reuters: Florida Gov. Charlie Crist on Wednesday said he would propose abandoning touchscreen-voting machines adopted after the disputed 2000 presidential race and replacing them with devices that provide a paper record.
In response to intense criticism over the 2000 race · when a recount dispute focusing Florida's "hanging chads" and inscrutable ballots was resolved by the Supreme Court · election supervisors in 15 counties spent millions on touchscreen technology, which itself has come under fire.
Tuesday, 30 January 2007
Bowling Green, Ky. -- The Western Kentucky University Athletic Department has teamed up with Hitcents to develop satellite ticket locations in the Bowling Green area. This cooperative effort between the two partners may revolutionize where, when, and how customers can buy tickets for athletic events.
"Thanks to Hitcents, we are reaching out to over 10 million Topper sports fans each year with off-site ticket buying options," says WKU athletic director Dr. Wood Selig. "This technology is revolutionary and will assist us in our efforts to expand our footprint of support for our athletic events. It makes ticket buying easier without the additional charge typically associated with purchasing tickets off site. Fans get the best seat without having to call, order online, or travel to the ticket office."
Selig added that no other collegiate program in the nation currently has such a system in place, as the necessary technology and computer programming was originally and uniquely devised by Hitcents. Their goal was to provide a convenient and user-friendly method to purchase tickets in lieu of the other ticket purchasing methods.
"We have basically expanded our hours of operation and will be able to serve our customers much better throughout the year," Selig said. "We can place these kiosks in surrounding counties as well to gain a greater presence of mind for WKU athletics."
Fans can purchase tickets to WKU athletic events from the kiosks · which are designed and function in a similar fashion to ATM machines · at Greenwood Mall, Houchen's Market in Glasgow, and the Rockfield IGA on Russellville Road.
The interactive program allows customers to select which games they would like to attend and the number of seats needed. They will be presented with a list of the best seats available based on the fan's selected price level. After selecting the seats and swiping their credit or debit card, the customer will instantly receive their printed tickets and receipt. Visa, Mastercard, and Discover cards are the only forms of credit or debit payment accepted.
The kiosks also provide E-Fan information from WKU athletics. Fans can submit their e-mail addresses at the terminals free of charge to receive updates from the athletic department. They will also be sent a coupon which can be redeemed at the kiosks for a free ticket to any Hilltopper or Lady Topper basketball game this season.
The kiosks, which were installed in October, have already become a success according to WKU ticket manager Jim Cope. As more people found out about the stations, Cope said, the machines actually had to be reloaded with additional seat locations after a flurry of purchases before the men's basketball games against Eastern Kentucky and Southern Illinois. Several other athletic departments have inquired about the logistics and possibilities of using the program as well.
Tuesday, 30 January 2007
Henryherald.com: Waiting to take his luggage from the baggage claim area, frequent traveler and businessman Michael McKenney noticed the brightly-lit Georgia Lottery kiosk. And he thought to himself, why not?
This lottery kiosk is one of two at Hartsfield-Jackson. The other sits directly across the way on the South Terminal of the airport. The kiosks opened in November and have since grossed nearly a quarter-million dollars in sales · indications that more than McKenney believe the airport kiosks were a good idea.
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Friday, 26 January 2007
Fast Company: Technologist and inventor Jefferson Han has recently been approached by Lockheed Martin, Pixar and various government agencies about his new multi-touch technology, which drew cheers and whistling at last year's TED (technology, entertainment and design) conference. (Watch the live demonstration.)
"Touch is one of the most intuitive things in the world," Han says. "Instead of being one step removed, like you are with a mouse and keyboard, you have direct manipulation. It's a completely natural reaction · to see an object and want to touch it."
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Tuesday, 23 January 2007
Waiting in line can be frustrating no matter where we are. But the most frustrating wait for Americans: cooling our heels at local department or division of motor vehicles (DMV) offices, closely followed by waiting to make purchases at retail outlets.
A survey conducted for NCR Corp. by Opinion Research Corp. also found that 39 percent of consumers are willing to use timesaving self-service alternatives to help reduce their wait times.
Although the DMV was number one on their "wait we hate the most" list, respondents in the "NCR Queue Review" survey dislike waiting for service in many other areas affecting daily life. Ranking third, fourth and fifth on the list were registering at clinics or hospitals; checking in for airline flights at airports; and ordering at fast-food restaurants or deli counters.
"Clearly, Americans want more control over their lives, and that includes being able to reduce the time they spend in nonproductive activities such as waiting in lines," said Mike Webster, vice president, Self-Service Solutions Division at NCR. "Fortunately, a growing number of retail, travel, health care and government organizations are providing alternatives · including self-service solutions · to help give that valuable time back to their customers, patients and clients."
The top reasons for consumers' frustration with waiting for service or waiting in line were: the lack of employees able to assist them (44 percent), a concern for being late (39 percent), not knowing how much longer they'd have to wait (33 percent) and the time it takes for each person ahead of them to finish (19 percent).
A day or two saved is quality time earned
The survey found that consumers figure they are spending more than two days per year waiting in line for service · time they believe could be better spent with friends or family or other forms of leisure. Nearly half (49 percent) of the respondents estimate they waste between 30 minutes to two hours each week waiting for service. Younger consumers seem especially cognizant of their lost time, with one-sixth (16 percent) of those aged 18-24 saying that in a typical week they waste two hours or more standing in line or waiting for service.
When asked how they would use time saved by using self-service technologies instead of waiting in line, spending more time with friends or family was the clear winner from a list of 10 possible alternative activities.
Self-service to the rescue
Consumers are seeking and embracing alternatives, such as self-checkout and other self-service technologies, to reduce their wait and help them get out the door faster. Thirty-nine percent of the survey respondents said they would be extremely or very interested in using a self-service kiosk or other self-service device if one was available to help them complete the activity at hand more quickly.
The availability of self-service can influence where a consumer goes for goods or services, with 43 percent of respondents saying they have chosen one provider of goods or services over another because it offered self-service. The survey found that minorities are even more inclined toward self-service technologies, with 55 percent of African-American and 57 percent of Hispanic survey respondents saying they have chosen one provider of goods or services over another because it offered the option of self-service.
"Self-service is emerging as the new ‘essential convenience,' like the Internet or the cell phone," Webster said. "More and more, we find it hard to imagine how we ever lived without it!"
Thursday, 28 December 2006
HeraldTribune.com: The final phase of a state inquiry into whether the 18,000 undervotes in Florida's District 13 congressional election were the product of a touchscreen voting-machine malfunction has begun. State election officials pulled computer chips from a random sample of Sarasota County's iVotronic voting machines to take to Tallahassee for analysis.
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Thursday, 21 December 2006
Guardian Unlimited: The paper ballots and hanging chads that marred the 2000 presidential election have almost vanished from polling places, replaced by electronic-voting machines that are supposed to eliminate recount chaos. But now election directors have a new worry: printer jams.
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Friday, 08 December 2006
News.com: Automated garages, with racks of cars placed and picked by robots, are replacing their concrete forebears. And the kiosk has become the new parking attendant.
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Thursday, 16 November 2006
Examiner.com: Citing the disputed vote in a Florida congressional district, a Democratic lawmaker on Wednesday urged Congress to approve his measure requiring a paper trail for touchscreen voting. Rep. Rush Holt, sponsor of the bill, said the inaccuracy of electronic touchscreen voting machines "poses a direct threat to the integrity of our electoral system." The New Jersey congressman argued the Florida district, in which more than 18,000 votes have gone uncounted, has exposed the system's flaws.
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Thursday, 16 November 2006
Huntington Beach Independent:The recent looting of bank accounts held by hundreds of customers in Huntington Beach and other Orange County communities has prompted police to issue a warning. In October, thieves siphoned money from bank accounts of more than 600 people, among them 70 in Huntington Beach. The only common link in those thefts was that the victims had bought groceries using a debit card at Ralphs supermarket on Goldenwest Street, police said. According to Verifone, manufacturer of the check-stand terminals used at Ralphs, what occurred was impossible, Huntington Beach Det. Jeff Nelson said.
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Wednesday, 15 November 2006
St. Louis Post-Dispatch: St. Louis city officials are experimenting with parking meters that take credit and debit cards, as well as coins. If the new meters work well, they could eventually replace coin-only machines in other city hot spots, such as the Central West End or Washington Avenue.
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Wednesday, 08 November 2006
CNN.com: Police arrested a voter after he smashed a voting machine. Officials said votes cast on the machine were not lost.
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Thursday, 02 November 2006
Chicago-Sun Times: Now that "pay-and-display" parking kiosks, credited with easing the downtown parking crunch, are coming to Chicago's commercial strips, a question arises: What about motorcycles? On a motorcycle, there is no place to secure the receipt to prove that you paid to park.
"What's to stop the guy in the car behind me from pulling up and taking the receipt off the motorcycle and putting it on his window? You could tape the receipt to your bike. But what happens if it's a windy day?" said Dan Harper, state legislative coordinator for ABATE, Illinois' leading motorcycle rights organization.
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Tuesday, 31 October 2006
Forbes.com: Rep. Loretta Sanchez, a democrat who has been a critic of the no-fly list, said her staff had booked her a one-way ticket from Boise, Idaho, to Cincinnati through Denver. But they were prevented from printing her boarding pass online and at an airport kiosk. Sanchez said she was instructed to check in with a United employee, who told her she was on the terrorist watch list.
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Monday, 30 October 2006
SFGate.com: Oakland is losing $2 million a year because of missing or broken parking meters, according to a city audit. The city is considering replacing most of the meters with multimeter kiosks.
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Monday, 30 October 2006
The Philippine Star: State-run pension fund Government Service and Insurance System is spending more than P70 million ($1.4 million) to install wireless kiosks allowing users to apply for loans using contactless cards to identify themselves.
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Tuesday, 26 September 2006
The New York Times: A growing number of state and local officials are getting cold feet about electronic voting technology, and many are making last-minute efforts to limit or reverse the rollout of new machines in the November elections.
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Friday, 22 September 2006
CecilWhig.com: Lines at the county treasurer's office could become a thing of the past. A new computerized kiosk in the Cecil County Cecil Court building allows county property owners to pay taxes and search tax records without ever having to set foot in the office. Installed by Kionetics Interactive Solutions, the kiosk went online nearly two weeks ago at its location near the Clerk of the Court's office in the courthouse.
Read more
Wednesday, 20 September 2006
Mercury News: Mayor Gavin Newsom announced Sept. 18 that San Francisco is one of five cities to be awarded a $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to fund a new food stamp access program.
Using the grant money, San Francisco's Human Services Agency, in collaboration with several community partners, will set up Web cameras and computer kiosks for San Franciscans to enroll in the food-stamp program or renew their applications online.
Read more
Friday, 08 September 2006
New Straits Times: A new kiosk allows citizens to send crime-related information to police with a touch of the screen. The unmanned kiosk has a camera and a speakerphone linked to the Kuala Lumpur police command headquarters in Jalan Hang Tuah via a high-speed broadband connection. The system, known as the Police Emergency Reporting System, launched Sept. 7.
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Thursday, 07 September 2006
Ottawa Citizen: Ottawa's transportation committee endorsed the beginnings of an electronic card system for people to buy a range of city services. The system will be used for bus passes and tickets, but city staff say eventually it could be used for many things like library books, swimming pool fees, parking meters and other city services. Bay Councillor Rick Chiarelli said eventually the concept will see kiosks around the city, where people could take their cards, insert them, purchase credits for several city services, and load the credits on the card. For instance, someone could buy $10 to be used in parking meters, which can already handle the cards, $10 in bus tickets, $10 worth of swimming pool time, and $10 in library books.
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Tuesday, 05 September 2006
TBNWeekly: The Florida Department of Veteran's Affairs and the Pinellas County Tax Collector's Office recently launched the state's first Veterans Information Kiosk at the Mid County Tax Collector's Office.
Read more.
Thursday, 31 August 2006
LOUISVILLE, Ky. · That consumers in North America are on pace to spend $150 billion more this year than last with self-service solutions makes David Drain, executive director of the Self-Service & Kiosk Association, a happy man.
Quoting a new research study conducted by IHL Consulting Group, Drain said North Americans are on their way to spending more than $475 billion at self-checkout lanes, ticketing kiosks and other self-service machines in 2006 — an increase from $324 billion in 2005.
"Our mission is to promote the self-service industry, so definitely, this is good news for us," Drain said. "But we really feel this is only the beginning of what self-service technology is going to mean to consumers, retailers, corporations and commerce in general in the coming years. We've only just scratched the surface in terms of what can be accomplished."
In order to promote awareness, the Self-Service & Kiosk Association has launched a public relations campaign with the help of several high-profile entities, including Mazda, Subway, BMW, BEHR Paints and the City of New Orleans. The campaign, "The Best Service is Self-Service," extols the virtues of self-service technology through testimonials: Mazda and BMW promote new car offerings using kiosks; Subway shortens the customer wait time and increases profits; BEHR Paints promotes a kiosk that allows customers to choose paint colors, and the City of New Orleans implements a self-service permit system to help in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
"This sped up the recovery process " and helped us make better use of a limited workforce and budget," Greg Meffert, Chief Information Officer for the City of New Orleans, says in the campaign.
Drain said the campaign will appear online and in print publications, and will be promoted via direct e-mail campaigns.
"Our association membership is growing right along with self-service use in business transactions," Drain said. "We feel this is an important message not just for companies who currently deploy or plan to deploy kiosks or other self-service devices, but also for the general public. At some point, every consumer will likely use self-service, and it's important they understand the benefits."
The rapid growth of self-service solutions began in the 1980s with ATMs, and blossomed in the late 1990s as airlines began to install self-service terminals on a widespread basis. Today, self-service technology can be found everywhere — from supermarkets to truck stops to quick-service restaurants and retail.
For more information, visit http://www.selfservice.org/bestservice.php.
Tuesday, 15 August 2006
LOUISVILLE, Colo. · KIOSK provider of self-service kiosk solutions, announced its compliance with the European directive 2002/95/EC on the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) and also its new status as a certified "Green Partner" for Sony Corp.
Fulfillment of the RoHS directive and compliance with WEEE (Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment) are part of KIOSK's overall strategic initiative to support ongoing global environmental programs.
"As a world supplier of innovative solutions, KIOSK is committed to the goal of producing products in accordance with legislative standards established to protect human health and that are in line with global environmental obligations," said Dan Houck, chief operating officer of KIOSK. "We're pleased to comply with RoHS directives, having invested heavily for the past few years in our business and manufacturing infrastructure, and in helping our customers and suppliers develop attainable transition programs. As a result, we are proud to validate compliancy with KIOSK Declarations of Product Compliance, third-party test reports, and Certificates of Conformance for components and materials. In a continuing initiative, KIOSK is actively pursuing processes and methodologies to address the WEEE Directive for the treatment, recovery and recycling of electric and electronic equipment."
Sony has established its own global standards for management of chemical substances, titled "Management Regulations for the Environment-Related Substances to be Controlled which are included in Parts and Materials" (SS-00259) and is implementing control of certain specified chemicals in parts and materials.
Sony has established the "Green Partner Environmental Quality Approval Program" in 2002, which outlines Sony's Green Partner Standards, the standards for chemical substance management, and audits suppliers based on these standards. In fiscal 2005, approximately 3,500 supplier and 200 OEM suppliers were certified as Green Partners.
Under the above chemical substances management system, Sony has prohibited the use of six chemical substances in parts and materials specified in the RoHS Directive. By the end of fiscal year 2005, Sony has completed elimination of those specified chemicals from all Sony products, not only for the European market, but also for the worldwide market.
Monday, 14 August 2006
Forbes: Don't expect Aug. 10's foiled terror plot in London to ground the U.S. government's Ez-pass style security program for frequent travelers. And that's good news for Steve Brill, the media entrepreneur who's now running a security business geared to frequent business fliers. His company, Verified Identity Pass, a screening service that's created an express lane at airport security posts for pre-screened passengers deemed safe by the government, has effectively been cleared to take off past its initial successful test run in Orlando, Fla. Already, it's proved enormously popular with customers.
In the Orlando experiment, frequent travelers forked over $79.95 to register with Brill's company, which passed along the names to the Transportation Security Agency. Those cleared as safe were given an electronic card allowing them to proceed through high-tech kiosks, bypassing long security lines. The technology includes fingerprint and iris scans to help ensure the person zipping through is in fact the customer who applied and was approved for safe travel. The kiosk also detects any explosive materials a traveler may be carrying.
Read more
Friday, 11 August 2006
Pink News: An innovative method of reporting homophobic attacks has been hailed a success by the West London Gay Men's Project.
Over 30 incidents have been reported via a kiosk installed inside the well-known Birdcage pub in Chiswick.
Read more.
Wednesday, 26 July 2006
The Associated Press: The U.S. Postal Service is replacing dozens of unconnected human-resources systems nationwide with one that will allow its 700,000 employees to make benefit and payroll changes over the Internet or at the 519 kiosks located at postal facilities around the country.
The PostalPEOPLE system is rolling out in phases to replace a hodgepodge of more than 70 systems used by 3,800 HR managers across the United States. All postal service employees will have access to basic functions by the end of October.
Read more
Wednesday, 19 July 2006
Bizjournals.com: The city of Albuquerque is betting that its new Downtown parking meters along Central Avenue will help retailers by curbing all-day parking by business employees and freeing up more parking for shoppers.
But business owners disagree over whether the new policy is a boon or a further deterrent to shop in an already struggling economic area.
Read more. (online registration required)
Tuesday, 11 July 2006
MSNBC.com: Paying for a parking spot has just gotten easier in the West End district in downtown Dallas. City-owned lots there will now accept credit cards.
The three lots are located under the Woodall Rogers Freeway. You can park, swipe your credit card at a kiosk and enter your parking space number.
The city is planning the same system for lots in Deep Ellum soon.
Read more.
Monday, 10 July 2006
CBC.ca: It's going to cost the City of Charlottetown $200,000 · $100,000 more than it expected · to get rid of 36 electronic parking kiosks that drivers, apparently, hated.
Charlottetown installed the so-called "pay and display" meters for what was supposed to be a six-month trial basis. That was almost two years ago.
Read more.
Wednesday, 05 July 2006
Peopledaily.com.cn: Singaporeans can plead guilty to minor traffic and parking offenses at the Automated Traffic Offense Management System (ATOMS) kiosks islandwide and the Subordinate courts will offer this online service at its Web site by the end of this year.
Other initiatives include integrating the case management systems from the ministries with the courts' database to facilitate information exchange.
Read more.
Monday, 26 June 2006
IndyStar.com: Thirteen of the meters are in the 100 block of South Illinois Street near the Ram Restaurant and St. Elmo Steak House. Others are being tested in the 400 block of West Washington Street.
Drivers can hunt for their loose change as usual — or pay with a credit card at an ATM-style kiosk.
Advertising executive Rose Durbin of Carmel, who works at Hirons & Co. near the South Illinois Street meters, called them a "great convenience."
"Without this service I would have to keep a roll of quarters or I would have to borrow from other employees," she said.
Parking is 75 cents per hour, for a maximum of two hours at a time.
Read more.
Monday, 26 June 2006
Bizjournals.com: Global Resources Inc., which advertised business opportunities for public-access Internet machines at "lucrative locations" has been ordered to pay $2.2 million, including restitution to 96 people who the state says were defrauded out of their investments.
In the lawsuit filed by the Florida Agriculture and Consumer Services Commission, a Pinellas County circuit court judge ordered Global Resources, and its former owner Stewart Pope, to pay $960,000 in civil fines and more than a million dollars in restitution.
Read more.
Wednesday, 21 June 2006
Tampa Bay Business Journal: Global Resources Inc., which advertised business opportunities for public-access Internet machines at lucrative locations, has been ordered to pay $2.2 million, including restitution to 96 people who the state says were defrauded out of their investments.
In the lawsuit filed by the Florida Agriculture and Consumer Services Commission, a Pinellas County circuit court judge ordered Global Resources, and its former owner Stewart Pope, to pay $960,000 in civil fines and more than a million dollars in restitution.
"These people put their faith and money into a business venture and got absolutely nothing in return," said agriculture commissioner Charles H. Bronson in a release. "We asked for and received the maximum fine for each offense, and I hope this sends a message that we will go after companies that rip off our citizens."
Read more.
Wednesday, 14 June 2006
Indianapolis, Ind. — Self-service will soon be hitting the streets of Indianapolis. The city is trying out a new way to pay for parking.
Parking meters are the city's unforgiving metal parking police. Feed them a few quarters and they'll keep your car in check. But let them go hungry and you could pay the price.
Soon the more traditional models may expire as the city considers a more modern way to collect on parking debts.
Read more.
Friday, 09 June 2006
bayoubuzz.com: New Orleans mayor C. Ray Nagin praised the efforts of the city's department of safety and permits, which deployed emergency residential permit processing kiosks from 5point to help residents back into their homes after Hurricane Katrina.
Read more.
Tuesday, 11 April 2006
Skaneateles Falls, N.Y. - Hand Held Products, Inc., a leader in image-based data collection systems for mobile applications, announced that its Dolphin 7900 series mobile computers are being used to enforce parking regulations at The Parking Place in Calgary, Canada. Hand Held Products is working with Vault Technologies Inc., an industry leader in electronic parking equipment systems, to deliver the mobile solution.
The Dolphin 7900 is a key component of Vault's integrated solution for the parking industry, which provides all of the necessary hardware and software to increase the performance and revenue of parking facilities. The Dolphin 7900 enables parking operators to easily and quickly capture information on offending vehicles and print tickets at the scene.
For example, Bluetooth technology with adaptive frequency hopping allows parking attendants to transmit ticket data to a wireless portable printer and the 802.11b wireless capabilities allow the attendant to wirelessly transmit data to and from the management database at the end of each shift.
Two additional factors were critical in the decision to implement the Dolphin 7900s:
- The Adaptus Imaging Technology allows attendants to take a digital picture of an illegally parked vehicle, visually documenting the driver's infraction. As a result, the rate of payment on parking fines has increased and even encouraged faster payment.
- The ability to support multiple wireless communications options (Bluetooth and 802.11b) allows attendants to connect to wireless peripherals and conduct real-time data transmission to host servers.
"We required mobile computers with flexible functionality, long battery life and durable construction to better enforce violations across our indoor and outdoor venues," said Laurie Gainer, President of The Parking Place. "Using the Dolphin 7900 helps us meet those needs and allows our violation and patrol operations to run more efficiently."
"Automated parking management is at the front-end of an industry trend that is moving away from the simple honor box payment method to advanced electronic equipment able to conduct technology driven violation and patrol activities," said Mark Purcell, Vice President of Sales & Marketing of Vault Technologies. "As we look toward future deployments, we have decided to offer violation and patrol solutions exclusively using the Dolphin 7900 because of its reliability in the field and its versatile functionality."
"We have seen that in parking violation management, a picture is not only worth a thousand words, but it can translate into the same amount of dollars as well," said Kevin Ahearn, VP & GM, Mobile and Wireless, Hand Held Products. "The capabilities provided through advanced mobile computing solutions and Adaptus Imaging Technology have been proven to add significant value in these types of applications."
About Hand Held Products
With headquarters in Central New York, Hand Held Products is a worldwide leading manufacturer of image based data collection systems for mobile, wireless, and transaction processing solutions. Through its proprietary Adaptusâ„¢ Imaging Technology platform, Hand Held Products is dedicated to delivering innovative imaging solutions, reliability and durability to its customers and partners through more than 30 sales offices and hundreds of resellers. Hand Held Products is a privately held company and is represented in every major market and geographic region of the world. To find out how Hand Held Products can help you at the point-of-sale, on the sales floor, in the warehouse or on the delivery truck, call us at 1-800-582-4263. Or visit us at handheld.com.
About Vault Technologies
VAULT Technologies, Inc., is headquartered in Dallas, Texas with a regional office in Calgary, Canada. Vault's platform, a Sarbanes-Oxley compliant solution, allows parking managers to improve parking operations. Vault's solutions are built by parking professionals for parking professionals, with knowledge and insight gained from decades in the field. VAULT Technologies does not just manage parking problems, it seeks to improve the functionality and profitability of parking facilities. More information may be found on the company's Web site, www.vaultpark.com.
Friday, 07 April 2006
Toronto, ON - One year after the state of Michigan installed automated Self-Service Stations for drivers to renew their license tabs, officials have high praise for the network of stand-alone kiosks.
Better customer service
Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land said the kiosks are a big success "It is encouraging to see so many people using them. This is another way technology can be used to enhance customer service for the people of Michigan." Michigan installed 28 kiosks at locations spread across the state. Residents who use the automated system instead of waiting to be served by counter staff say the kiosks are convenient and fast - it takes a fraction of the time to complete a transaction. And in the first year of operation, the people of Michigan completed nearly 30,000 transactions at the Department of Motor Vehicle kiosks. That added $3 million to state coffers through the Department of Motor Vehicle kiosks.
Esprida makes life easier for I.T. departments
Esprida provides Michigan with a remote device management solution that allows I.T. staff to monitor and manage all of the kiosks spread throughout the state. Tom Weston, Michigan's E-Commerce Project Manager says "The Esprida software is an efficient tool for managing our devices remotely and that's a big issue for us because we release Microsoft patches every month. Without Esprida, we would be sending someone out in a truck to manually upgrade each of the 28 kiosks, across the state, once every month."
Michigan officials chose Esprida for this project because its application used the state's existing technology infrastructure and leveraged its skill sets. And because Esprida Enterpriseâ„¢ is designed to run multiple applications, Michigan can offer a number of government services on the kiosks.
The next step - Michigan expanding service offering using Esprida solution
Weston said the state is already planning the next step to improve service delivery to Michigan residents. The state plans to offer a self-service Low-Risk Probationer application, where low-risk probationers will perform many of their parole check-ins electronically. "Data collection there would be especially important", Weston said. "The real advantage is that it will allow Probation Officers to spend more 'face to face' time with High Risk Probationers than people who have committed lesser crimes."
Anila Jobanputra, President of Esprida Corporation says "The Michigan experience shows how the Esprida solution influences consumer behavior, enhances consumer experience and transforms business operations"
About ESPRIDA Corporation
Esprida is an innovator in the development of device management solutions. Esprida offers an enterprise solution that enables businesses to manage and control networks of devices in diverse locations from a web browser. Esprida Enterprise delivers device-generated intelligence and device-oriented analytics to maximize availability, enhance the user experience, increase revenue and transform business strategies and operations. Esprida Corporation is a privately held company with offices in the U.S. and Canada.
Web Site: www.esprida.com
For further information contact:
A. Parray, Marketing and Communications, 905-629-0455,
About E-Michigan Web Development
E-Michigan Web Development is a department within the executive branch of the State of Michigan and is responsible for providing strategic enterprise guidance for e-commerce best practices, standards, tools, methods and processes and e-commerce application design, development, implementation and support for cross-agency and enterprise-wide solutions.
Friday, 31 March 2006
ALLEN, Texas -- Sixty-three Illinois counties deployed optical scan and touch-screen voting stations from Diebold Election Systems for the March primary election with positive results. The majority of the counties had already used Diebold's optical scan system for several years. However, this was the first Illinois election in which Diebold's touch-screen voting station with a voter-verifiable paper audit trail printer was used, enabling blind and physically challenged voters to cast their ballot privately and independently, meeting Help America Vote Act requirements.
A total of 5,300 Diebold touch-screen and optical scan voting stations were deployed by Illinois jurisdictions for the primary election. More than two million registered voters in nearly 3,000 precincts had the opportunity to vote on Diebold machines during the election.
DuPage County, the second largest county in Illinois with more than 550,000 registered voters, was the largest Illinois jurisdiction to use Diebold's voting solutions. DuPage County deployed approximately 340 optical scan and 340 touch-screen units.
"Our Diebold system performed commendably, was well accepted by the voters of DuPage County and enabled us to effectively meet federal accessibility requirements," stated Robert Saar, Executive Director of the DuPage County Elections Commission. "The March primary election was the first time DuPage County offered early voting to our electorate, and the touch-screen systems were used to record ballot selections from all early voters. The touch-screen stations with voter-verifiable paper audit trail printers were very well received by voters, and the paper audit trail proved to be reliable and 100 percent accurate, as verified by our post-election recount. Tabulation of early voting and election day optical scan and touch-screen results was an easy process with Diebold's unified election management software."
Diebold Election Systems, Inc. is a wholly owned operating subsidiary of Diebold, Incorporated (NYSE: DBD), a global leader in providing integrated self-service delivery systems and services. Headquartered in Allen, Texas, Diebold Election Systems provides high-quality voting technology to jurisdictions of all sizes, along with comprehensive service and support capability, and is committed to elections accuracy, security and integrity. For more information on Diebold Election Systems, visit the company's Web site at http://www.dieboldes.com, or call 1-800-433-VOTE.
Monday, 20 March 2006
ST. PAUL, Minn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The 3M Bookcheck Unit Model 940-Series premieres on March 22 in booth 3117 at the 2006 Public Library Association (PLA) National Conference in Boston, Mass. These new circulation accessories help library circulation staff realize productivity gains by reducing processing time and errors at checkout and return.
The 3M Bookcheck Unit Model 942 desensitizes and resensitizes 3M Tattle-Tape Security Strips on print materials, DVDs and CDs quickly and reliably. Library staff and customers benefit from efficient, virtually false alarm-free processing. 3M Bookcheck Unit Model 943 adds a bar code scanner to the list of equipment features. Each system interfaces with existing integrated library systems, can be installed into or onto a countertop and has a sleek design to complement any library decor.
"3M has been pioneer in providing reliable and innovative solutions to libraries around the world for more than 35 years," said Rory Yanchek, business manager, 3M Library Systems. "Whether it is security, productivity or information management, 3M has a proven solution that will help increase productivity, reduce costs and free staff to offer more service to customers."
Capabilities of the Bookcheck Unit Model 942 include:
- Efficient, reliable processing that virtually eliminates false alarms
- Enhanced ergonomics
- Flexible, easy to use, customizable system with intuitive feedback indicators
- Desensitization and resensitization of security strips in one unit
- System indicates presence of active security strip when verification option is enabled
- USB-enabled to allow future product upgrades
- UL-listed equipment that complies with state and local regulations
- The Bookcheck Unit Model 943 includes all capabilities of the Bookcheck Unit Model 942 plus:
- State-of-the-art bar code scanner that allows bar code scanning, desensitization and resensitization in one unit
A global leader in library innovation for more than 35 years, 3M provides security, productivity and information management solutions that harness technology to free librarians to spend more time doing what they love -- helping people. 3M also partners with libraries to support their technological advancement and ensure their success through numerous industry sponsorships and programs. For more information about the 3M Library Systems solutions, visit http://www.3M.com/us/library or call 1-800-253-6845.
About 3M - A Global, Diversified Technology Company
Every day, 3M people find new ways to make amazing things happen. Wherever they are, whatever they do, the company's customers know they can rely on 3M to help make their lives better. 3M's brands include Scotch, Post-it, Scotchgard, Thinsulate, Scotch-Brite, Filtrete, Command and Vikuiti. Serving customers in more than 200 countries around the world, the company's 69,000 people use their expertise, technologies and global strength to lead in major markets including consumer and office; display and graphics; electronics and telecommunications; safety, security and protection services; health care; industrial and transportation. For more information, including the latest product and technology news, visit www.3M.com.
3M, Bookcheck, Tattle-Tape, Scotch, Post-it, Scotchgard, Thinsulate, Scotch-Brite, Filtrete, Command and Vikuiti are trademarks of 3M.
Monday, 13 March 2006
HOLTSVILLE, N.Y., March 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Symbol Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: SBL - News), The Enterprise Mobility Company, today announced that Judge Jed S. Rakoff of the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of New York has ordered Metrologic Instruments, Inc. to pay Symbol $14.8 million in past due royalties and interest in a licensing dispute between the two companies. The license relates to handleld bar code scanning products.
In 2005, an arbitrator upheld Symbol's contention that certain Metrologic products fall within the scope of a licensing agreement between the two companies and that, therefore, Symbol is entitled to ongoing royalty payments for use of its patented technology. Upon Symbol's motion, the Court confirmed the award in February 2006, and earlier this month, the Court agreed that Metrologic owed $14.8 million, representing royalties owed through December 31, 2005, plus interest through March 3, 2005.
"Throughout this case, Metrologic has refused to pay licensing fees that are required under the licensing agreement between the two companies. We are pleased that the Court has supported our position and is requiring Metrologic to fulfill its financial obligations, as outlined in our licensing agreement," said Aaron Bernstein, Symbol deputy general counsel and vice president of intellectual property. "We view the Court's decision as strong validation of the ongoing strength of our laser patent portfolio and its continuing importance in the data capture industry."
About Symbol Technologies
Symbol Technologies, Inc., The Enterprise Mobility Company(TM), is a recognized worldwide leader in enterprise mobility, delivering products and solutions that capture, move and manage information in real time to and from the point of business activity. Symbol enterprise mobility solutions integrate advanced data capture products, radio frequency identification technology, mobile computing platforms, wireless infrastructure, mobility software and world-class services programs under the Symbol Enterprise Mobility Services brand. Symbol enterprise mobility products and solutions are proven to increase workforce productivity, reduce operating costs, drive operational efficiencies and realize competitive advantages for the world's leading companies. More information is available at www.symbol.com.
Wednesday, 08 March 2006
WASHINGTON, March 8, 2006 - HP today announced new solutions and services to help government agencies increase security while becoming more agile.
Announced at FOSE 2006, the offerings focus on several federal priorities including: identity management; personal identification verification solutions in support of HSPD-12, a homeland security presidential directive; open source strategy and solutions; document management; and solutions for ports, borders and customs.
"HP is pleased to demonstrate our global government solutions for federal decision makers at FOSE," said Jim Ganthier, leader, worldwide Defense, Intelligence, and Public Security Solutions, Technology Solutions Group, HP. "HP enables governments to better serve the public by improving access, insight and integration of information, processes and people."
HP is working with ImageWare Systems, Inc. and Software Productivity Strategist, Inc. on a solution that incorporates biometrics for a personal identification verification card to allow both physical and IT access to enterprise resources.
The solution leverages the HP OpenView Identity Management software suite, including HP OpenView Select Access and Select Identity, to simplify the management of the lifecycle of the identity, access rights and compliance through a single enterprise view with remote management control from edge devices to the enterprise database. In addition, the solution's "Biometric Engine" can evolve to comply with the future needs of government biometric requirements.
The use and need for identity management solutions span all areas of the public sector including government, health and education, with applications ranging from passports, drivers' licenses, health and human services and university ID cards.
Federal Open Source Alliance
Intel, HP and Red Hat have formed a marketing initiative called the Federal Open Source Alliance. The alliance seeks to deliver tailored solutions to help federal government agencies mitigate risk while benefiting from the performance, flexibility and lower costs of Linux.
Federal Open Source Alliance solutions deliver the agility and economy of scale that federal government agencies want from an open source strategy, combined with the trustworthiness expected from an industry-standard platform delivered and supported by proven partners.
New HP scanners
In response to government compliance issues and a growing number of agencies relying on scanners to organize and manage documents, HP has introduced a new line of scanners to provide more document management options for organizations. The scanner line can help agencies accelerate workflows, reduce the cost of operations and control risk while managing critical documents.
For workgroup document scanning, the HP Scanjet 8390, 8350 and 7800 provide increased productivity with single-pass duplex automatic document feeders and industry-leading speeds at their respective prices.
Microsoft Across America Mobile Experience
HP is the official host of The Microsoft Across America Mobile Event Experience at FOSE 2006. Parked in booth 1800, the 42-foot, state-of-the-art truck is outfitted with the latest business technology from Microsoft, Cisco, HP and Intel. Local government representatives can obtain the information and hands-on experience they need to help make smart technology decisions and drive productivity, profitability and growth.
HP is located in booth 1600 at FOSE 2006, taking place March 7-9 at the Washington Convention Center in Washington. More information on HP's offerings for the public sector is available at http://www.government.hp.com/index.asp.
About HP
HP is a technology solutions provider to consumers, businesses and institutions globally. The company's offerings span IT infrastructure, global services, business and home computing, and imaging and printing. For the four fiscal quarters ended Jan. 31, 2006, HP revenue totaled $87.9 billion. More information about HP (NYSE, Nasdaq: HPQ) is available at www.hp.com.
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