Yes, you too can become a secret agent.

The latest hot device for the man or woman about town is the hand held scanner. These thin portable scanners allow quick scans of pages of text, bits of sentences you may want to remember, or a document left astray on a desk -- a sort of digital highlighter.

Three competing scanners have been making the news recently as among the best -- they are the Siemens Pocket Reader, WizCom's QuickLink Pen Personal Scanner, and what looks like the best of the lot, C-Technologies' C-Pen.

The first two devices are under four ounces and run on a couple AAA batteries.

The QuickLine using the WizCom QuickLink Pen Personal Scanner either as a portable text scanner or as a desktop peripheral to scan text directly into Windows applications, you can scan text in 6-to-22-point text, in either a left-to-right or right-to-left direction.

The Pocket Reader has about 556K of memory and was rated as inaccurate in reading most types of text by PC Magazine. The QuickLink Pen (about $150 in the US) has 2 megabytes of storage space and had better accuracy.

The C-Pen ($199) is heavier but does a lot more. The pen, which is like a Palm device, weighs 100 grams and has a screen with a variety of options. The C-Pen scans and translates text directly into one of six languages using a miniature digital camera and has eight megabytes of memory. According to various rave reviews in a couple industry magazines the scanner was rated as highly accurate. Check out the details at http://www.cpen.com. Just remember not to leave anyone in your office alone for too long with one of these devices.

Portable people will also look forward to the DynaSheet, a new form of computer notebook being developed by Toshiba. The DynaSheet is expected to come on the market in five years and takes the form of a thin electronic screen that can roll up into a pocket-sized device.

It's going to be one centimetre thick and weigh about 120 grams and is intended as the technology that's going to take over from the laptop. Toshiba has been a bit gushing about its dreams for this concept notebook, or newspaper reader or whatever.

"Writing -- just as on paper -- with Toshiba's new DynaSheet: 1 gigahertz processor, 3.5 gigabyte optical hard disk, 512 MB memory, 4.7 gigabyte DVD drive, integrated radio interface to all popular network standards and online services. Size: A4. Depth: 0.5 cm. Weight: 120g. On sale from March 2006 for only (Euro) 2,099 - recommended retail price.'' Well, maybe the Euro might just still be around then. According to Toshiba the foldable screen will be based on light-emitting polymer (LEP) technology being developed in the UK by Cambridge Display Technologies. Flexible Lithium polymer cells will provide the juice. Data input will be via voice, stylus or on-screen keyboard.

Battery development has always been key in the creation of light portables.

Companies are now developing a flexible lithium polymer gel should have led to batteries that can form any shape required. Thus a computer manufacturer can mold battery power into any free space inside a computer.

Runners looking for the extra bit of help will like the "Raven'' line of chip equipped shoes, The chip adjusts the shoes' cushioning depending on whether the wearer is running or walking.

Quote of the week: ''Following positive feedback from employees since the implementation of dress-down Fridays, we are pleased to announce that ...

the Firm will adopt a `business casual' dress policy throughout the year.'' This from an internal memo by Morgan Stanley Dean Witter as quoted in Time Magazine's latest edition. The story details in an amusing way the push by companies to give themselves a new upbeat Internet image by casting off their business suits.

Tech Tattle deals with topics relating to technology. Contact Ahmed at ahmedelamin y hotmail.com or (01133) 467901474