{"id":41186,"date":"2019-12-14T06:54:12","date_gmt":"2019-12-14T10:54:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=41186"},"modified":"2019-12-14T06:54:57","modified_gmt":"2019-12-14T10:54:57","slug":"george-laurer-amateur-radio-operator-and-inventor-of-the-bar-code-dies-at-94","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2019\/12\/george-laurer-amateur-radio-operator-and-inventor-of-the-bar-code-dies-at-94\/","title":{"rendered":"George Laurer, amateur radio operator and inventor of the Bar Code, dies at 94"},"content":{"rendered":"

Many thanks to\u00a0SWLing Post<\/em>\u00a0contributor,\u00a0Paul Evans<\/a>, who writes:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>George Laurer (K4HZE), the inventor of the Bar Code (that’s on everything you buy) died recently: https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-us-canada-50726950<\/a><\/p>\n

I happened to meet him and fellow IBM ‘pusher’ of the idea (Norman Woodland) when they were visiting Bermuda. Ed Kelly (VP9GE) invited them to give a presentation to the RSB (Radio Society of Bermuda) meeting at the Elbow Beach resort in November 1975.<\/p>\n

It turns out they were promoting the idea to local supermarkets because Bermuda was an isolated test subject that would be ideal for a limited roll-out. We couldn’t understand why they would stick a label with bars on it onto every thing and then scan it! It just wasn’t going to take off…. or so we thought!<\/p>\n

Well, it never took off in Bermuda. Today ‘Marketplace’ (formerly Piggly Wiggly) still sticks price labels on every item and there is no bar code scanning. It must be one of the last places to do so in the First World!<\/p>\n

It’s interesting how they were both hams and that the idea was based on Morse code. It’s a small world.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I had no idea…his legacy will certainly live on. There’s hardly an item on the planet that doesn’t have a barcode these days. Many thanks for sharing this memory with us, Paul.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Many thanks to\u00a0SWLing Post\u00a0contributor,\u00a0Paul Evans, who writes: George Laurer (K4HZE), the inventor of the Bar Code (that’s on everything you buy) died recently: https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-us-canada-50726950 I happened to meet him and fellow IBM ‘pusher’ of the idea (Norman Woodland) when they were visiting Bermuda. Ed Kelly (VP9GE) invited them to give a presentation to the RSB […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3],"tags":[8198,8197,7864],"class_list":["post-41186","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-bar-codes","tag-george-laurer","tag-paul-evans-w4-vp9kf"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-aIi","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":41426,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2020\/01\/reginald-fessendens-connection-to-bermuda\/","url_meta":{"origin":41186,"position":0},"title":"Reginald Fessenden’s connection to Bermuda","author":"Thomas","date":"January 3, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to\u00a0SWLing Post\u00a0contributor,\u00a0Paul Evans (W4\/VP9KF), who writes: The story of Reginald Fessenden has a background in Bermuda. Before he finished his college education in Canada, he spotted an advert for Headmaster at a school in Bermuda. He applied for it and got the job. At the right age of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Ham Radio"","block_context":{"text":"Ham Radio","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/ham-radio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/406px-Fessenden.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5767,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2013\/03\/bermuda-missing\/","url_meta":{"origin":41186,"position":1},"title":"Bermuda…Missing?","author":"Thomas","date":"March 2, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"My good buddy, David Goren, directed me to the VOLMET frequency for New York Sunday afternoon on 3,485 kHz. VOMET, for those of you not familiar,\u00a0is a worldwide\u00a0network\u00a0of radio stations that broadcast\u00a0TAF,\u00a0SIGMET\u00a0and\u00a0METAR aviation weather reports on\u00a0shortwave\u00a0radio, and in some countries on\u00a0VHF, too. 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[Click here to read a recent ARRL News post.] It is also entering service\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Ham Radio"","block_context":{"text":"Ham Radio","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/ham-radio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/Contayner-OTH-RADAR-Spectrum-Display-Waterfall.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/Contayner-OTH-RADAR-Spectrum-Display-Waterfall.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/Contayner-OTH-RADAR-Spectrum-Display-Waterfall.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/Contayner-OTH-RADAR-Spectrum-Display-Waterfall.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":62700,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2025\/04\/pure-am-radio-nostalgia-vintage-aircheck-recordings-from-the-1970s-by-dan-greenall\/","url_meta":{"origin":41186,"position":4},"title":"Pure AM Radio Nostalgia: Vintage Aircheck Recordings from the 1970s by Dan Greenall","author":"Thomas","date":"April 27, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Dan Greenall for once again sharing a remarkable collection of vintage off-air AM radio recordings. 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