The Sword and Laser discussion

I don't mail too much these days, so I've been nursing a bunch of free return address labels I've gotten from various places over the years.

However I'm starting to finally run out and I figured if I was going to buy some, I might as well try to get something Geeky (SFF, Video Games, Comics, etc).

I didn't find much on a quick google search, so I figured I'd see if anyone out there had bought something like this before.

I know you can just buy blank labels and print your own, but I use so few this doesn't really seem worth it to me.

Then again, I've never bought return address labels before so I'm not sure what is a normal price.

Anyone got any suggestions?

Thanks.

You can get 300 blank ones (30 per sheet, 10 sheets) for about $5, then you just find some free clip art or whatever. And the brand you buy should have a free website guide that will help you set it all up for the printer, choosing fonts and colors and such - I do this every Christmas when I give out tons of cards.

And you can just print one sheet and then when you use those you can make a new design if you want.

Print a test on regular paper though - to make sure you got everything lined up and the picture looks the way you want.

Edit - You can get them at Walmart or Staples for sure, probably lots of other places too.

What Michele said. I have used the Avery address labels for years. You just buy the labels and then go to the website to download the template. Easy-peasy.

This assumes one has a working printer with ink. I can't remember the last time I needed to print something. I just use my printer as a scanner to digitize what few documents/bills I can't seem to get digitally to begin with, and little else.

Oh well. Sounds like if I want some $5 labels, I'll have to drop $50 on some ink..

Alternatively, you could use some place like Kinkos or VistaPrint and do some custom-designed ones. I don't think Colorful Images has anything specifically geeky, but I do recall seeing labels with planets and whatnot in their catalog.

On a side note, how do you get away with not printing stuff? Leaving my photography prints aside, it seems like a week doesn't go by where I don't have to print some document or other for the government or insurance.

I dont know. I guess I just do everything digitally. It's been at least a year since I've had to print anything. Maybe longer.

After I finished grad school the only stuff I'd print regularly was map directions and boarding passes. Both of which has been rendered obsolete by my smart phone.

The government and insurance companies will probably get up to speed on the paperless thing by the time you're my age, so you'll be able to miss the nightmare of paperwork we geezers have to contend with.

Yeah. One of the few things I still get in paper is medical stuff. Though most of them seem to be setting up web portals finally.

Anyways, Ill look into the kinkos/vista print options. Good suggestion. Thanks.

Medical stuff requiring not only printing but FAXING drives me bonkers. Of the 4 fax machines I know of in my building, only 1 works...sometimes.

The faxing is insane. The printer I bought can also fax, but that was an incidental aspect of it I never expected to use. Why not use Morse Code and the telegraph, Aetna? Pony Express much? Pneumatic Tube? Come on.

I understand their finance departments use the abacus.

fwiw, I did a google search on "geek address labels" and found a few options, mainly zazzle and cafe press. Some links below.

http://www.zazzle.com/geek+labels

http://www.cafepress.com/+geek+labels

Not a cheep option. I got so pissed off about 8 years ago that every time I went to use my inkjet printer it was dried up. So, I found a deal on a dell laser printer, and even though I only print a few times a year, it just works. I finally had to get new toner cartridges last year, also not cheep, but the ones that came with lasted 7 years, so these should last a while too.

Yeah, probably. But I probably shouldn't.

Rob wrote: "Yeah, probably. But I probably shouldn't."

We won't tell!

Mark wrote: "Rob wrote: "Yeah, probably. But I probably shouldn't."

We won't tell!"

But the hard drive that comes in a lot of modern business grade printers might ;-)

A lot of people don't realise that everything they copy/print at their work is also copied onto the internal hard drive. IT guys and criminals do know. :-)

When I used to work in an office they had a change cup that you could print or copy your own stuff for 10 cents a page. Then they would donate the cup to the united way. Not everyone would be honest about it, but most of us were, and from a financial standpoint it was easier then trying to put the money back into the books.

^^ I went along on an audit of an Italian distributor once, when I worked for a film company. I was there late one night and saw my client contact printing out a copy of everything that had been faxed that day. There is no privacy for these machines.

I just got some from Visatprint. Any of those online places have templates were you can upload your own design or clipart, play around with the font and then preview it on your screen.

I went with a pre-made design, but then again my only requirements were "green" and "pretty".

John (Taloni) wrote: "^^ I went along on an audit of an Italian distributor once, when I worked for a film company. I was there late one night and saw my client contact printing out a copy of everything that had been fa..."

A lot of photocopiers also have that audit function. They can save a scan of everything that gets copied for later review.