Post #3: Utilities - Red Laser

After browsing the "Utilities" section of 23 Mobile Things, I elected to try the "Red Laser" app, which can scan bar codes and provide prices for items. I would have preferred to try the Google Goggles, as it seemed much more far-reaching in scope and, therefore, more useful.  I downloaded Red Laser and and used it to scan the bar codes of a few items around my house.  I scanned mostly cds and books, as those would be some of the most likely items to find in a library setting.  The app gave me the online price of a Woody Guthrie cd ($12.99) but couldn't identify a book about Minnesota gardening or a an out-of-print Grateful Dead cd.  It did, however, provide the online and "local" prices for a Bruce Springsteen biography ($1.65 online and $20.78 local).  This app would be best used on a cell phone that could be carried around to compare prices.  It's a nice app, but hardly essential since it doesn't provide information about all items.  Library staff looking to find deals on specific books may find it a quick alternative to performing an online search for prices.