Weevil™ is a complete barcode-scanning, database, and communications application written especially for Symbol Technologies devices that use PalmOS devices. The unique feature of Symbol Palms is a built-in bar-code scanner and laser pointer.
Weevil is a PalmOS program that allows farmers and researchers to quickly scan and enter information for boll weevil traps. Boll weevils are small insects which can destroy entire cotton crops, therefore fields are constantly monitored using small traps so that researchers can track boll weevil infestation levels at a regional and national levels. The entire system is made up of thousands of farmers and researchers across the southeastern United States, all using Weevil to capture and send information back to researchers.
After a researcher gathers the information (usually consisting of readings from several hundred traps) using the Weevil program he then clicks the "Send database" button. Weevil then connects to the net and send the database to a central server at Mississippi State University. This information is then automatically entered into the main database there and allows researchers at the University to monitor boll weevil population trends and migration patterns at a regional level. Researchers at the University can then offer advice and preemptive measures to the farmers of the Mississippi Delta region.
