Japan, that nation of crazes and fads, is non-stop in search of the next new thing. Some time ago, that next thing was the Print Club, or as they say, "puricura." Found in any video game parlor, the Print Club machine is a digital camera and printer that you can use to take a picture of you and your friends, with various backgrounds or other digital gimmicks, and get an immediate printout. The small stickers can then be posted anywhere and traded with friends, and young girls in particular have notebooks filled with these miniature pics. I have heard that the puricura has even made its way over to the United States, though I am sure it is not so prevalent as it is in Japan.
The Print Club has survived for some time now and the makers of the machines keep coming up with new, more appealing variations on the theme. But if you look closely, the hordes of school girls who used to line up at these machines are gradually waning. So... what's the next fad?

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