BBV question/solution? IrDA ports for printing paper reciepts.

[JanMichael]

An example of a micro printer that retails for $299 which if bought in mass quantities would be significantly cheaper:

http://www.brother.com/usa/mprint/info/mw100/mw100_ove.html

The IrDA is simply an infra red port to printer setup. From what I can tell most all computerized voting machings have an IrDA port.

This way you can vote and get a paper reciept, verify that it's correct, then place in secured box.

Would that satisfy most people here?

[Walt Starr]

1. Wow, with an IrDA port one could

connect remotely to a voting machine with a Pocket PC.

Not saying it could be used to hack, but conmnection could be established...

[JanMichael]

2. I suppose. What about the printers though?

Nifty, eh?

[gristy]

3. Not if you call it a "receipt"

This way you can vote and get a paper reciept, verify that it's correct, then place in secured box.

Would that satisfy most people here?

If a state calls those pieces of paper the official "ballots" in the sense that vote totals obtained by counting them will take precedence over any DRE totals, then I would probably be satisfied. If not, I would not be.

Without proper legal characterization of those pieces of paper, they are less than worthless. They would actually harm the effort to get our votes counted.

[JanMichael]

4. Then call it a ballot.

The electronic results could be used, for TV mostly, until the hand count verified it.

[DEMActivist]

5. But there's already a printer

in the machines. They are used for printing the reports.

No need for a 2nd one.

[Gin]

6. the machines already have a printer inside????? I didnt know that.

gin

[DEMActivist]

7. They sure do!

That's the point we've been trying to make all along....

It's not about adding a printer - it amounts to adding PAPER. No ink (they're thermal printers), rated for over 1 mil MTBR (mean time between repairs) lines printed on the printers.

There's no reason for not having a voter verified paper ballot. None. Zero. Zilch.

[SharonAnn]

8. What type of printer is inside them? A journal printer?

That's a roll of paper (can be thermal) inside the machine like those inside a cash register.

The receipt you receive from a cash register is only part of what's being printed. There's also a "journal" record being printed on the roll of paper. That "journal roll" allows you to reconstruct the transactions.

A standard part of auditing is that the paper is kept in a continuous form (like a roll) so that you can see exactly what the sequence of transactions is.

While you can use this as a "voter verifiable paper ballot", I would actually prefer the more expensive type like what is used by the airlines to print tickets and boarding passes. It prints a "punch card" sized document that could more easily be separated when "voided" and more easily be either hand counted or machine counted.

[RedEagle]

9. Bringing this back for Computer Types to Comment

Because of Walt's observation above. Is this an access point that's been overlooked? It is possible?


Walt
1. Wow, with an IrDA port one could connect remotely to a voting machine with a Pocket PC.

Not saying it could be used to hack, but conmnection could be established...

[Cronus Protagonist]

11. Why use IRDA when you could use WiFi?

A lot of them are on WiFi. Boggles the mind, doesn't it?



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[terryg11]

10. so technically, I could get a paper receipt (or whatever)

from the machine after I'm done voting, is that correct? If true, then it's foolish not to get paper in there