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stories filed under: "printers"
(Mis)Uses of Technology

(Mis)Uses of Technology

by Mike Masnick

Fri, Mar 13th 2009 5:28pm


Filed Under:
business models, newspapers, print, printers

Companies:
medianews



Will Newspapers Start Selling Special Printers Now?

from the desperation-sets-in dept

Reader Cannen alerts us to the fact that MediaNews wants to experiment with the idea of letting people create custom newspapers and print them out at home via a special printer. The idea is interesting at a first pass, but the more you think about it, the less it makes sense. Who wants to get a special printer just to print out their newspaper? If they really wanted to offer this, what's wrong with letting people use the printers they already have? Or are these newspapers hoping to make more money by selling printers? Perhaps they're jealous of the ridiculous margins found in printer ink these days -- and they're hoping to cash in on selling special ink that you can only buy from them to print your paper. While I'm sure there are some people who might like this option, just so they can still read their news on paper each day, it seems like a pretty narrow market.

10 Comments | Leave a Comment..

 
(Mis)Uses of Technology

(Mis)Uses of Technology

by Mike Masnick

Wed, Jul 16th 2008 5:17pm


Filed Under:
counterfeiting, disclosure, identification, laser printers, printers



Should Printer Companies Tell You Your Printer Leaves Secret Identifying Info?

from the disclosure-seems-appropriate dept

Every few years or so, the press picks up on the story that laser printers leave some dots that are invisible to the naked eye on every print. These dots are included for the purpose of anti-counterfeiting efforts. Each printer leaves a unique mark that can be read with special blue LED light, and interpreted with a decoding system that only the printers and the secret service are supposed to have. The story is getting some press again as the EFF is pointing out that laser printers have become cheap enough that many people have them and it's possible that the identification dots could be used for other purposes, meaning that people who print stuff out on the assumption that the documents would be anonymous, may be wrong. Officials in the article scoff at the idea that the codes would be used for anything other than anti-counterfeiting efforts. And, indeed, it does seem unlikely that the codes could be used for very much (not only would you need to interpret them, you'd also need the means of tracking down who owns a specific printer). But there is a good point in all of this: why shouldn't the printer providers be forced to at least disclose that their printers mark every document with a unique identifier?

31 Comments | Leave a Comment..

 
(Mis)Uses of Technology

(Mis)Uses of Technology

by Mike Masnick

Wed, Aug 1st 2007 8:04am


Filed Under:
printers, smoking



Watch Out For Secondhand Printing? Laser Printers Deemed Dangerous To The Lungs

from the watch-out dept

A new report is getting all sorts of attention today for claiming that laser printers can be as dangerous for your lungs as smoking. Apparently, laser printers kick up some tiny particles of toner that people inhale. The researchers are asking the gov't to start regulating the printers and requiring health warnings -- but it may be a bit quick to call for such things. The study only showed that 1/3 of printers they studied had this problem and seems to show that this could be a problem, not that it actually is. Not to say that it shouldn't be studied more to find out if it is a real health issue, but before spending lots of time and money on regulations it seems like a little more research should be added. In the meantime, why not just publish which printers are the dangerous ones? That should drive people to stop buying those printers while also pushing the printer makers to fix whatever it is that causes the emissions. Since it doesn't happen on all printers, clearly it's something that has a technical fix that doesn't require the government to get involved at all.

33 Comments | Leave a Comment..

 
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