December 1998

Reader's BEST Tips

Technology + Money = Solutions
Find More Funds For City and County IT Initiatives

City and county agencies can find additional or alternative funding for their document technology projects. Here are a few sources to consider.

1. CopsMore (Community Oriented Policing Services - Making Officer Redeployment Effective) Grants are one of the largest sources of capital for many law enforcement projects. In 1998, the Federal government budgeted $246 million, but received requests for approximately $800 million. So far, it has awarded $229 million to about 350 agencies. Up to $300 million may be awarded in 1999, but funds will likely go to existing applicants. Get your requests prepared for the year 2000. For information, visit www.usdoj.gov/cops/webgrant.htm or call the US Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services 202-514-2058.

2. The Department of Transportation is dedicating $208 billion in grant funding over six years under the TEA-21 program. One of the many funding opportunities has been the allocation of $35 million in FY 99 for the purchase and/or use of technology (e.g. digital cameras/video) to document a driver's level of intoxication. Go to www.fhwa.dot.gov/tea21/index.htm.

3. The Department of Commerce grant fund contains a piece called "The Telecommunications and Information Infrastructure Assistance Program." If your agency needs to get wired, look into this fund. Contact the National Telecommunications and Information Administration at 202-482-2048 www.ntia.doc.gov/otiahome/tiiap/.

Ian Roth is a project manager at Griffin Grant Writing & Consulting (Mill Valley, CA, 415-383-9635), which helps counties and municipalities apply for grants.

Care and Feeding Instructions
Prolong Scanner life, Maximize Productivity

One Keep the scanner free of paper dust that can cause of poor image quality. Flush the scanner with dry, chemical-free compressed air and then wipe all glass and plastic surfaces with a lint-free cloth.

Two Prevent the buildup of ink and other chemicals. Some chemicals may even permanently deform rubber parts such as rollers, belts and pulleys, which can lead to misfeeds, skews and paper jams. To clean, use a lint-free cloth and a manufacturer-approved rubber cleaning solution. [The editors suggest you test isopropyl alcohol.]

Three Remove all paper clips and staples from the document prior to feeding. These sharp objects can scratch optics and tear rubber components along the paper path, causing streaks, noise and skews. Daniel Eliasoff is an applications support analyst at Bell & Howell Scanner Division (Arlington Heights, IL 847-357-0630 www.bellhowell.com/scanners/index.html).

Laser or Inkjet
Choosing the Right Color Printer

1. Evaluate your printer budget. Color inkjets are the most economical way to add color to office documents. Networkable color inkjets start at around $799 and can produce photo-like quality. Personal color inkjets can be had for $150. Color lasers cost $2,000 and up.

2. Plan for ongoing printer maintenance costs. There's more to buying a color printer than just the price of the box. Color printers - both laser and inkjet - use a lot more ink than black and white printers. Make sure to compare the ongoing costs of supplies like transparencies and color cartridges, which are packaged as separate colors or come with three colors on one cartridge. If you print a lot of color, the supplies cost will quickly add up.

3. Think about how many color prints you make. Would you use color occasionally or all the time? Would you print out one page or many pages? While color inkjets spit out the first page of a job faster, color laser printers are usually better equipped to handle and process multiple color prints. If you are printing 1,000 or more pages per month, you likely want a color laser.

4. Decide how you use color in your office. If you frequently create presentations, a color laser printer is much faster, and transparency costs are much lower.

5. Determine how long you keep color documents. If you need record permanence, then you would likely want a color laser, as the powdered inks are compressed into the fiber of the paper. In contrast, inkjets spray liquid ink on top of the paper.

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