Abstract: Readable indicia, such as, a two-dimensional (2D) quick response (QR) code, is affixed to a product or a document. A scanning device, such as a mobile phone equipped with a camera, scans the readable indicia to obtain data stored in the readable indicia. The data is used to detect counterfeit products and documents, and track and authenticate documents.

Abstract: A method for providing vendor information to a consumer includes scanning, by a mobile device, an indicia to retrieve a product identifier, sending, by the mobile device, a first message including a location of the mobile device and the product identifier to a computer server remote from the mobile device, determining, by the computer server, a vendor from a list of vendors that supply a product associated with the product identifier and whose location corresponds with the location of the mobile device in response to the first message, and sending, by the computer server, a second message including vendor information of the determined vendor to the mobile device.

Abstract: According to an exemplary embodiment of the invention, a method for tracking a unit of goods includes sending, by a supplier device, a first message to a server including a code of a product tag and a supplier location of the supplier device, wherein the code uniquely identifies the unit from other units of a same type, recording, by the server, a data record including the code and the supplier location, scanning, by a consumer device, the product tag to retrieve the code, sending, by the consumer device, a second message to the server including the code; and sending, by the server, a third message to the consumer device including the supplier location. The supplier and consumer devices are remote from the server.

Abstract: The present invention relates to methods and apparatus for managing computers, data, information and peripheral resources particularly in a computer network. More specifically, the invention relates to improved methods and apparatus for computer network management. The improved methods and apparatus of the present invention are highly flexible and easily extensible and optimize the network's resources.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for managing a computer network which utilizes a process pool. A pool master dispatches agents for transaction processing. The agents are application specific and utilize a common interface. The process pool grows as transactions increase and contracts as transactions decrease.