Back in the early days of the commercial Internet, I stumbled across a website called Karen's Power Tools. It turns out that there was a very talented computer code writer who's name was Karen Kenworthy. This was back in the days when most of us were still connecting to the Internet via dial-up.
Back then, technology was primitive and the online world was a bit like the wild west. However, a lot of the first people to get online were people that wanted to make the world a better place and they fostered a spirit of giving, often helping each other for free with tech problems or writing a short program someone might need.
I never met Karen, but I began using her programs. They weren't glamorous, but they performed exactly as they were designed and I loved them!!! One of the Power Tools was called "Karen's Replicator" and it was the easiest to use and implement replicator backup software that I had ever seen. I am still using it to backup my Windows systems. I began talking about Karen's Replicator in the lectures I was doing on "paperless offices" and I would always advise folks to download and use it.
The most amazing part of all of these programs? Karen had a big heart and was generously giving them away for FREE. She asked for donations if the user could afford them, but it wasn't necessary. Needless to say, I always encouraged doctors to send some money to Karen. Anyone who is willing to do nice things for people and expect nothing in return, deserves to be rewarded. I placed an order for the Power Tools CD and was thrilled when it arrived in a small padded envelope via US Mail.
Sadly, Karen passed away on April 12, 2011. I'd never met her, but I was sad nonetheless. She had a "Power Tools Newsletter" that I subscribed to and over the years , I got a feeling for the type of person Karen was. She was a truly giving person and I felt the world had lost a 'good soul' when she passed. However, in her memory he family and friends continued to keep her website www.karenware.com up and running. That means that everyone can still access all of the programs that Karen had made available for download. I still *highly* recommend Karen's Replicator! Those friends have even worked to provide updates to the original code.
I thought keeping her site up and running was a fitting memorial... that Karen continued to give to others even though she was gone from this world.
I am still subscribed to the newsletter and every once in a while I receive an update. The site is now run by her friend Joe and he sends things out occasionally. Recently I got a newsletter that announced that for the first time since her passing, the site now has a new program. It's called QR Code Talker and Joe wrote it and is following in Karen's footsteps to provide it for free downloads.
If you are in need of an easy way to create your very own QR code, give Joe's new program a try. It's a great way to carry on the memory and the work of a very giving lady. Karen Kenworthy may be gone, but she left a legacy of free software for the rest of us. Thanks, Karen!
No comments:
Post a Comment