An Automated Who's Who

A new computerized system automatically reads and files the information on business cards.

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It may be divvying up the desktop too finely for most, but for offices heavily into names, titles, and addresses, a computerized system that automatically reads and files the information on business cards will save time -- and possibly money. Cypher Tech, manufacturer of the CypherScan 1000, claims that passing eight business cards through optical-character-recognition software and then into a database takes about a fifth of the time that keying in the information would take. As for designer cards with a hodgepodge of particulars that most humans can't even read, the software deciphers them with sophisticated expert-system logic.

CypherScan 1000 ($395) consists of a business-card-size optical scanner and Windows-compatible software. It requires an IBM-type PC with a 486 microprocessor, Windows 3.0 or higher, and 10 megabytes of free disk space. Six megabytes of RAM are recommended. For information, call 408-734-8765.