Wasp Barcode Technologies: The Barcode Solution People

A Great Game That Never Was

System ID joined forces with partners Psion and Xterprise, Wednesday, May 11th, for an RFID presentation at The Ballpark in Arlington. The idea was simple enough: RFID and baseball. In a beautiful ballpark on a beautiful day, this event was going to be the stuff of legends; the stuff dreams are made of. It was an event that was supposed to go off without a hitch, one we could pull off easily, and mark as successful. For the most part it was; it was everything we could have hoped for…for the most part. 8:00 a.m.: The day started out normal enough, slightly overcast but at least it wouldn’t be hot. We set up and waited on the arrival of the attendees: our loyal, local customers. 9:00 a.m.: Customers arrive, introductions and coffee 9:30 a.m.: Presentations begin. We start off with The Basics of RFID, given by our Senior Product Manager. It was great, very informative, and it produced a lot of good questions. Highlights included: Uses for RFID, Active vs. Passive tags, Psion RFID Interrogators, RFID Tags and Labels, and finally RFID Misconceptions. (Stay tuned readers; this presentation will be available shortly for your viewing pleasure.) Overall it was a great presentation. So far, so good. 10:15 a.m.: Break 10:30 a.m.: Presentations continue. It was now Xterprise’s turn; they had a tough act to follow, but we were confident that they were up to the challenge, and up to it they were. Xterprise is a local company that specializes in RFID software solutions, specifically in retail situations. An impressive presentation along with an even more impressive demonstration was given, and this was all concluded by a give away. The give away was RFID based of course; we scanned all the customers name badges, fitted with RFID labels and a random winner was chosen by an RFID reader and awarded a cash prize. The lucky winner was certainly impressed. 11:30a.m.: Lunch and in-depth discussion. Lunch consisted of BBQ brisket and chicken. It was very good; almost as good as the discussions that took place during lunch about the presentations and RFID in general. Wait, wait, wait. Hold on, you are probably saying to yourself, this event sounds exactly as you described it above. It is going perfectly, without a hitch, the stuff of legends. Well before you click the close button, allow let me finish this epic tale. Where was I? Oh yes. 12:15 p.m.: Hand out tickets to the American League Champion Texas Rangers game. 12:50 p.m.: Leave the meeting area with our new friends in RFID and make our way out to the seats. While walking out we notice that the sky has gone from slightly overcast to eerily dark. Maybe it will pass, the day has been perfect so far, and surely the weather would hold up until after the ball game. 1:05 p.m.: The game begins. After a slow first inning the lights, that’s right, lights come on at 1:00 in the afternoon. It is really getting dark now, but we push on. This won’t spoil our fun. Another slow inning and now an announcement is made, “Will all the visitors sitting in the upper deck please move down to the lower level?” After a small cheer the upper deck is cleared. Into the third inning now, the Rangers are up to bat and the bases are loaded. Mitch Moreland steps up to the plate, the pitch is thrown and it’s hit. It’s hit hard, back, back, back, and it’s gone! GRAND SLAM! The crowd goes wild; high five and chest bumps all around. The first ever in Moreland’s career and I was there to see it. Wow, this is amazing, and to top it off the Rangers scored three more runs in that inning! Up seven to zero, it is now the top of the fourth. We are all having a great time when it happened. The heavens opened up with a torrential downpour. 2:15 p.m.: We run for cover, back to the meeting area to regroup and to wait this thing out. “It’s moving pretty fast,” one customer says while looking at his smart phone, “I think it will pass us pretty quickly.” There is no way we are leaving. This has been a great game so far. 3:30 p.m.: Still waiting and the rain is not letting up. It is raining just as hard as it was when it started. As a group we decided to call it a day, better to head home and beat traffic than to risk the game being called and heading home during rush hour. So you see, this day was not all rainbows and bubble gum. Sure, the actual event was a success, but the Rangers winning would have made it that much better. In the end I guess I should be happy, the presentations went well and they got people talking about RFID. Hey, things could be worse. I could be Mitch Moreland; I could have hit my first ever grand slam and have it not count.