The term 'beta test' comes from an IBM Product Test convention, dating back to punched card tabulating and sorting machines.

All smalls are sent to a series of "bullfrogs" (sorting machines).

Maintenance and custodians, who see to the overall operation and cleaning of mail sorting machines, work areas, public parking and general facility operations.

Rice color sorting machines are used in rice mills during the processing of rice.

Fala uses the power to run office computers and sorting and inserting machines for its direct-mail operations.

Norwich had been selected as it already had eight automatic mail sorting machines in use.

He returned to targeting private businesses both in the United States and abroad, attempting to identify industry applications for his automatic punching, tabulating and sorting machines.

Paper cuts are also a problem, even though the 135 Tingle Tables and the huge mail sorting machines have sanding mechanisms that soften the edges of the envelopes.

Sorting machines incorporating microprocessors have been ordered in the past few weeks to upgrade rice, coffee and groundnuts.

"Until then, everyone's information was piecemeal," said James Willard, who repairs mail sorting machines.