Business-card Reader

Creating a database out of business cards can be a really tedious affair. So, here’s the BizCard Reader to make your life easier. This is a tiny scanner that scans your business cards and saves the information in the respective fields in a database automatically. You can use the BizCard Reader software to search the data or even export the data to Word, Access, Excel or Outlook Express.

BizCardReader 600C connects to your computer through a USB port and can be easily taken around. You can also connect it to your notebook. It can also scan color photographs and save them as part of the database. You can save up to eight photographs related to a particular contact. The Reader also saves an image of the business card in the database.

The sofware picks up data from business cards and puts them in relevant fields

The 600C scans at a maximum resolution of 600 dpi. The software picks up data from business cards and puts them in relevant fields like name, desi- gnation, address, e-mail (ten are pre-defined and two are user-definable fields). Data gets stored in the .biz format. You can then sort the data and search for what you’re looking for. If you want to share the data in the .biz file with other applications, you need to first export the information into a text file and then import it into the application.

You can drag ‘n’ drop data from one field to another. You can drag text from the image of the card to the respective field.

You can also print required information in the desired format. The software supports nine European languages, including German, French and Spanish. Though the Reader claims to understand the address formats of business cards from different countries, it failed to interpret our business cards that make use of background colors.

BizcardReader is compatible with Windows 98/ NT/Me/2000 and comes with a warranty period of 90 days. Price: Rs 19,500.

Contact: Convergent Communications. Tel: 080-6612973—76 Fax: 6612977.

108, Gavipuram Guttahalli, Off Bull Temple Road, Bangalore 560019.  www.convergentindia.com/bizcard1.asp

E-mail: sudarshan@convergentindia.com

Vini Goel in Bangalore