from the dept. The Cross Convergence pen can be used to keep track of Web addresses but not just with its conventional ballpoint refill. A tiny scanner at the opposite end can read and store up to 300 addresses hidden in bar codes on products, in advertising and in some newspapers and magazines. A New Ballpoint From Cross That Can Read as Well as Write By IAN AUSTEN The Cross Convergence pen can be used to keep track of Web addresses but not just with its conventional ballpoint refill. A tiny scanner at the opposite end can read and store up to 300 addresses hidden in bar codes on products, in advertising and in some newspapers and magazines. "Press a button and you have 20 seconds to run it over that code and you own it," said John Buckley, executive vice president and chief operating officer for the pen computing group at A. T. Cross. The pen can read two types of bar codes. Codes from the Digital Convergence Corporation are called Cues and appear in some publications and advertisements. They provide Web addresses that will offer specific, additional information about stories or products. The pen can also read Universal Price Code symbols. Digital Convergence has compiled an online database of U.P.C. codes that link to manufacturers' home pages. While that list does not include every U.P.C. code, Mr. Buckley said that it was relatively complete. "I've yet to find a product that I've dropped into the pen that hasn't taken me to at least the company's home page," he said. Later, users download the stored codes using a cradle that comes with the pen. Digital Convergence software, which is also supplied, takes the scanned data and, in the case of U.P.C. codes, consults its online database, to create a second Favorites or Bookmark window in users' Web browsers. Pages can be summoned from there at any time by clicking on their description. The current version of the product includes a cradle that plugs into computer serial ports and operates only on machines running recent versions of Windows. Mr. Buckley said a new version that will also work with the Macintosh operating system and utilize U.S.B. ports is in development. The $89.99 pen is available from Cross only at its Web site (www.cross.com) but will be available in stores in the new year.
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