I just received the updated (5th) edition of "The Bar Code Book" for work on track and trace, security labels, etc. The author has jumped to Trafford, an on-demand printer, http://www.trafford.com/, and the author notes in his forward, "Very little inventory is carried, and the whole process is quite amenable to making changes as updates are required"...in other words, even the sometimes assumed staid, stolid, stodgy, storefront world of barcodes has gone 2.0...on-demand printing is surely a "just in time" solution that actually makes sense to all involved. Reduced waste, instant versioning (if desired), decreased inventory, etc.

All of this makes the supply chain managers and bean counters happy. Imagine what it does for customers. They get personalized, to-the-minute salient information on the topic at hand. Software has versions like 9.0.1.1, why shouldn't books. Imagine getting a book that says, on the title/verso page, "934,567th Printing". Stick around, it's coming.

Why does this matter to security, brand protection and anti-counterfeiting aficionados? Because customization means evey copy is unique. When every copy is unique, every copy can be authenticated. Think of it as the digital way of hand-writing your name on the title/verso page.

Cheers,

Steve