Interesting uses of QR codes or Microsoft tag?
March 14, 2011 9:56 AM Subscribe
Have QR codes and/or Microsoft Tags caught on at all in the US?
It's been a year since a similar question was posed and I'm wondering if the needle has moved at all with these technologies or if they're headed for the technical dustbin of history. Looking for useful and/or popular uses of QR codes or Microsoft Tags that are more than just proof-of-concepts. Has anything hit mainstream? Anything you've used more than once?
It's been a year since a similar question was posed and I'm wondering if the needle has moved at all with these technologies or if they're headed for the technical dustbin of history. Looking for useful and/or popular uses of QR codes or Microsoft Tags that are more than just proof-of-concepts. Has anything hit mainstream? Anything you've used more than once?
I see QR codes in adverts at subway stations, train carriages, etc. I've never seen anyone else scan them, though.
posted by devbrain at 10:05 AM on March 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by devbrain at 10:05 AM on March 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
I'm in the UK and we're just starting to see them used a lot in TV and outdoor advertising. For example, you can scan one on a commercial and it will take you to the iTunes page for the album.
posted by mippy at 10:06 AM on March 14, 2011
posted by mippy at 10:06 AM on March 14, 2011
My opinion is, it's an interesting technology that's not going to go anywhere as long as it's only used in advertising. Because who cares?
Most people just tune ads out, and to the extent they may notice the code, advertisers don't do enough to make it worth the user's while to scan it. Most QR codes are like, "Scan this to go to our website!" A) I can go to your website just fine on my own, and B) why should I?
It's the CueCat all over again, but without the adorable kitty form factor.
posted by ErikaB at 10:10 AM on March 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
Most people just tune ads out, and to the extent they may notice the code, advertisers don't do enough to make it worth the user's while to scan it. Most QR codes are like, "Scan this to go to our website!" A) I can go to your website just fine on my own, and B) why should I?
It's the CueCat all over again, but without the adorable kitty form factor.
posted by ErikaB at 10:10 AM on March 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
We use them on museum object labels, leading to "more information" websites for the object or exhibit. My impression is that there was some demand for them from overseas tourists.
posted by nonane at 10:14 AM on March 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by nonane at 10:14 AM on March 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
I made t-shirts for an ex-bf and myself that was basically one of our in-jokes in QR form.
posted by Room 641-A at 10:14 AM on March 14, 2011
posted by Room 641-A at 10:14 AM on March 14, 2011
I see QR codes in national magazines, often for advertised apps or phone-special coupons for some national retailers. I don't live in a place with much mass transit, which I imagine would be another good use for them since people sit still and have time to get out their phones and scan things if they want.
Target has begun using them in their mailers for home decorating, I think someone said it takes you to a video of some decorator telling you about how to use the items in your personal home but I haven't bothered to find out. I also THINK I saw one at Target the other day in the furniture section, where they have those flip-books they display with the one table-and-chairs set that shows all the OTHER furniture from the same line that you order online? But obviously I didn't slow down enough to look. but that would be kinda convenient, if I wanted the console table and could scan the QR code and e-mail myself the link so I could find it on the website later without hassle.
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 10:16 AM on March 14, 2011
Target has begun using them in their mailers for home decorating, I think someone said it takes you to a video of some decorator telling you about how to use the items in your personal home but I haven't bothered to find out. I also THINK I saw one at Target the other day in the furniture section, where they have those flip-books they display with the one table-and-chairs set that shows all the OTHER furniture from the same line that you order online? But obviously I didn't slow down enough to look. but that would be kinda convenient, if I wanted the console table and could scan the QR code and e-mail myself the link so I could find it on the website later without hassle.
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 10:16 AM on March 14, 2011
I'm in the US, have no idea what to do with a QR code, and I'm generally fairly up on tech trends. I've never heard of a "Microsoft tag."
posted by desjardins at 10:21 AM on March 14, 2011
posted by desjardins at 10:21 AM on March 14, 2011
I've only ever seen them on ads. In fact, there's one in particular that's running in our area on bus stop shelters and subway cars that is just a giant QR - no text at all. I've overheard several people wonder what the hell it is and whether it's a real ad or just some sort of mistake, so I don't think people really understand what they are or how to use them.
posted by backseatpilot at 10:30 AM on March 14, 2011
posted by backseatpilot at 10:30 AM on March 14, 2011
Not really. I've had them pushed upon me a couple of times, despite my protestations, and the takeup has been next to nil. I'm sure there's a use for them, but I have no idea what it is. People understand language much better than a barcode.
posted by Magnakai at 10:32 AM on March 14, 2011
posted by Magnakai at 10:32 AM on March 14, 2011
I have never heard of or seen a 'Microsoft Tag' but QR codes are starting to show up everywhere. Maybe I've just started to notice them because I've just recently gotten a phone that can read them, but it seems like they're much more common than even six months ago.
Yesterday I was at Costco looking at a plastic garden shed, and on the advertising materials on the front of the shed was a QR code. I scanned it and it took me to the manufacturer's website for that particular model. Earthshaking? No, but convenient.
A few weeks ago I stopped to look at a house for sale in my neighborhood, and the literature in the little box on the For Sale sign included, among other things, a QR code. In this case I'm not sure how useful it was (since there was a human-readable URL on there too), but I noticed it.
Going through Penn Station in NYC over the weekend, I saw a number of billboards and other advertisements that had QR codes; one of them was printed quite large (at least 12"x12"), I guess so you could scan it from a few yards away. Don't remember what it was for though.
So anyway, yes I think they are starting to become more common, but it's still only a relatively small segment of the population who have phones capable of reading them (smartphones), and then a smaller segment still who have the correct apps (Barcode Reader on Android, I assume some equivalent for iOS) installed. So if I was putting together an ad campaign I don't think I'd be spending a whole lot of time on them, but they might be nice to have if you were targeting the same sort of people that are likely to have a smartphone.
posted by Kadin2048 at 10:33 AM on March 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Yesterday I was at Costco looking at a plastic garden shed, and on the advertising materials on the front of the shed was a QR code. I scanned it and it took me to the manufacturer's website for that particular model. Earthshaking? No, but convenient.
A few weeks ago I stopped to look at a house for sale in my neighborhood, and the literature in the little box on the For Sale sign included, among other things, a QR code. In this case I'm not sure how useful it was (since there was a human-readable URL on there too), but I noticed it.
Going through Penn Station in NYC over the weekend, I saw a number of billboards and other advertisements that had QR codes; one of them was printed quite large (at least 12"x12"), I guess so you could scan it from a few yards away. Don't remember what it was for though.
So anyway, yes I think they are starting to become more common, but it's still only a relatively small segment of the population who have phones capable of reading them (smartphones), and then a smaller segment still who have the correct apps (Barcode Reader on Android, I assume some equivalent for iOS) installed. So if I was putting together an ad campaign I don't think I'd be spending a whole lot of time on them, but they might be nice to have if you were targeting the same sort of people that are likely to have a smartphone.
posted by Kadin2048 at 10:33 AM on March 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Sorry, should contextualise - I mean pushed to use as an element on a printed page. Audience was not particularly tech-savvy, but wealthy and not unlikely to be ahead of the curve.
posted by Magnakai at 10:34 AM on March 14, 2011
posted by Magnakai at 10:34 AM on March 14, 2011
I've seen QR codes in ads on the subway and, curiously, real estate ads.
I've taken a picture of them with my cell phone...but I don't know what I'm supposed to do with that picture.
posted by dfriedman at 10:36 AM on March 14, 2011
I've taken a picture of them with my cell phone...but I don't know what I'm supposed to do with that picture.
posted by dfriedman at 10:36 AM on March 14, 2011
QR codes are common when browsing online for Android apps. Websites will review the app and provide a QR code, which you can scan with your phone to begin the download. I have used this several times--it is quite convenient.
In the real world, I saw one at the cash register at a coffee shop in Atlanta yesterday. I didn't scan it, but it was there. Google Places will give your business window clings to put on your door with a QR code on them--the idea is that passers-by can scan them to see what deals you have going on. I have seen the codes around town, but I've never once been inclined to actually scan one.
I also feel like some of those mobile apps that you have to "check in" at locations use them. Not Foursquare and not Yelp, but one of those other knockoffs...I'm forgetting which one right now.
posted by wondercow at 10:40 AM on March 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
In the real world, I saw one at the cash register at a coffee shop in Atlanta yesterday. I didn't scan it, but it was there. Google Places will give your business window clings to put on your door with a QR code on them--the idea is that passers-by can scan them to see what deals you have going on. I have seen the codes around town, but I've never once been inclined to actually scan one.
I also feel like some of those mobile apps that you have to "check in" at locations use them. Not Foursquare and not Yelp, but one of those other knockoffs...I'm forgetting which one right now.
posted by wondercow at 10:40 AM on March 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
An art museum near me uses them on the exhibit signs to send you to a webpage to give you extra information on each exhibit.
posted by octothorpe at 10:46 AM on March 14, 2011
posted by octothorpe at 10:46 AM on March 14, 2011
I'm starting to see QR codes all over the place in Seattle.
posted by spinifex23 at 10:46 AM on March 14, 2011
posted by spinifex23 at 10:46 AM on March 14, 2011
I use them often for grabbing Android apps. Magic Hat brewery puts them on some of their beer bottles. And I see them on outdoor ads and in magazines. I see very few Mtags.
posted by smich at 10:50 AM on March 14, 2011
posted by smich at 10:50 AM on March 14, 2011
NYC is going to start putting them at all construction sites. Scanning it will get you the all the permit and funding information for a particular site as well as any registered complaints about it.
posted by mikesch at 10:52 AM on March 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by mikesch at 10:52 AM on March 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
The Google Mobile app (Goggles) reads QR codes. I think they have yet to gain any real momentum, but as more and more people have smartphones, I wouldn't count them out as obsolete tech just yet.
posted by monospace at 11:09 AM on March 14, 2011
posted by monospace at 11:09 AM on March 14, 2011
The problem is that almost all QR readers for US phones suck. I have one on my business card and people are still all "Oh, I tried that a year ago and couldn't get it to work." I chalk it up to being yet another example of the US being a 3rd (cellphone) world country.
posted by rhizome at 11:20 AM on March 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by rhizome at 11:20 AM on March 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
I teach high school, and will be using some in the yearbook this year. It will connect to content that we don't have space or time to publish (graduation, etc). Students will be able to download and print it if they want to. I'm guessing, however, that it will be slow to catch on.
posted by SamanthaK at 11:36 AM on March 14, 2011
posted by SamanthaK at 11:36 AM on March 14, 2011
I've recently seen them in a Sears tool catalog and I have one hanging on my 'frige that connects guests with my wifi.
posted by Confess, Fletch at 11:39 AM on March 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by Confess, Fletch at 11:39 AM on March 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
Love QR codes!
I've got a QR code on my business cards, but I've also included the URL in case people don't have a smart phone. I figure at the very least it'll be a conversation-starter even if they can't figure out what it is at first.
posted by thymelord at 11:40 AM on March 14, 2011
I've got a QR code on my business cards, but I've also included the URL in case people don't have a smart phone. I figure at the very least it'll be a conversation-starter even if they can't figure out what it is at first.
posted by thymelord at 11:40 AM on March 14, 2011
Yeah, I'm another fairly tech-savvy USian who doesn't have the faintest idea what to do with QR codes. I've seen a code I was interested in scanning once or twice, but I wasn't interested enough to figure out how to read it. I have a not-completely-stupid phone (OK web browsing etc.), but it's not Android or iOS, and installing apps is a pain in the ass; I'm sure there's a way for me to read the codes but I haven't had a compelling reason to try. I'm not usually on this side of the digital divide! It feels weird!
posted by mskyle at 11:50 AM on March 14, 2011
posted by mskyle at 11:50 AM on March 14, 2011
Confess, Fletch, how do you do that with the connect guests to the wifi? WANT.
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 12:07 PM on March 14, 2011
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 12:07 PM on March 14, 2011
I was recently interviewed about QR Codes, and have many of the same sentiments as people above. QR Codes can be thought of as 2D barcodes. A common use of QR Codes is as physical hyperlinks. While there have been cute applications of QR Codes, no one's really figured out a killer app for them yet.
FYI, here are some possible apps:
- We've been using them as physical bookmarks, letting people login to web sites in a secure fashion. Our QR Codes have the web page URL, username, and password in encrypted form (to your specific device), and you just show it to your webcam to login.
- Having a book with QR codes could be a nice way to add multimedia to existing books. One of my friends transcribed oral histories he did with people, and on the printouts had barcodes that would let people jump to the right part of the audio. Having some kind of code in all my music books would be nice too, to hear clips of the actual symphony the author is talking about.
- QR Codes on business cards could be nicer if the app helped record the context in which you met them (you scanned in this card while you were at the SXSW conference in 2011 in the W hotel)
- Having QR Codes on physical devices like printers would be nice too, if it streamlined device pairing. For example, you have a document you need to print out. Take a picture of the printer's QR Code, and then print to the printer in front of you.
I think there are a lot of possible small apps, but like I said, no killer app yet that would drive adoption at scale.
posted by jasonhong at 1:02 PM on March 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
FYI, here are some possible apps:
- We've been using them as physical bookmarks, letting people login to web sites in a secure fashion. Our QR Codes have the web page URL, username, and password in encrypted form (to your specific device), and you just show it to your webcam to login.
- Having a book with QR codes could be a nice way to add multimedia to existing books. One of my friends transcribed oral histories he did with people, and on the printouts had barcodes that would let people jump to the right part of the audio. Having some kind of code in all my music books would be nice too, to hear clips of the actual symphony the author is talking about.
- QR Codes on business cards could be nicer if the app helped record the context in which you met them (you scanned in this card while you were at the SXSW conference in 2011 in the W hotel)
- Having QR Codes on physical devices like printers would be nice too, if it streamlined device pairing. For example, you have a document you need to print out. Take a picture of the printer's QR Code, and then print to the printer in front of you.
I think there are a lot of possible small apps, but like I said, no killer app yet that would drive adoption at scale.
posted by jasonhong at 1:02 PM on March 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
I've been seeing QR codes mostly in advertising as a way to convey a URL in a machine-readable form, both in print and in public advertising (sides of buses, that sort of thing). I feel like it's just within the past 6 months or so that they've started to achieve critical mass. In fact, just the other day, I saw a joke QR code, which suggests that they've reached a certain level of awareness (admittedly, this was for a SXSWi party).
I've been thinking about having business cards printed with a vCard encoded as a QR code.
I have never seen a Microsoft code in the wild outside of a Microsoft ad, and even then, not often. I have a friend who wants to use Microsoft codes in an art project. I don't think it's a great idea.
posted by adamrice at 1:37 PM on March 14, 2011
I've been thinking about having business cards printed with a vCard encoded as a QR code.
I have never seen a Microsoft code in the wild outside of a Microsoft ad, and even then, not often. I have a friend who wants to use Microsoft codes in an art project. I don't think it's a great idea.
posted by adamrice at 1:37 PM on March 14, 2011
I work in book publishing and we're using them on the backs of books and sometimes within, usually leading to video. I've also seen them all over mass transit and outdoor advertising as well as magazine ads and (rare) editorial.
posted by peanut_mcgillicuty at 2:14 PM on March 14, 2011
posted by peanut_mcgillicuty at 2:14 PM on March 14, 2011
i finally got a QR code to work today. I'd tried a few months ago without luck (downloaded a couple of reader apps to my iphone and then couldn't get them to work). Today there was a QR code in the Washington Post spread about the website redesign. Pulled out the phone and boom, the code reader worked and brought me directly to the info webpage, which i already had open on my laptop. I'm not sure this counts as a success or not.
posted by jindc at 2:20 PM on March 14, 2011
posted by jindc at 2:20 PM on March 14, 2011
Eyebrows Mcgee
Go here and choose 'Wifi network' from the first dropdown, the rest should be self explanatory
posted by Confess, Fletch at 6:26 PM on March 14, 2011
Go here and choose 'Wifi network' from the first dropdown, the rest should be self explanatory
posted by Confess, Fletch at 6:26 PM on March 14, 2011
I see them everywhere and just roll my eyes. Yeah, lots of people have smart phones that can read them just fine. I don't and doubt I would read them even if I did.
They are starting to be used in merchandising certain products, like printers, that prospective consumers can interact with in a store. That's probably the most useful (least useless?) application of them I've seen.
posted by carlh at 6:30 PM on March 14, 2011
They are starting to be used in merchandising certain products, like printers, that prospective consumers can interact with in a store. That's probably the most useful (least useless?) application of them I've seen.
posted by carlh at 6:30 PM on March 14, 2011
QR codes are just starting to really gather steam in the library world. There was a bunch of discussion about them in the past month even.
Basically the issues are three-fold: 1) smartphone adoption is not quite widespread enough (and libraries, at least, are very interested in providing equal/equitable access), 2) consumer recognition is not quite there (even the tech savvy have a tendency not to know anything about them, unless the person has spent a lot of time in Japan), and 3) the applications aren't quite (ok, hardly at all) interesting enough (to provoke people to actually follow through with the action of reading the codes).
Uses that have been discussed or implemented in libraries: on the ends of book stacks, to provide a map of the area or access to the library catalog; in the reference area, to pull up the library's website or the Ask a Librarian page; somewhere near a notable item to provide context a la the museum walking tour kind of thing.
Uses that I have seen in real life, as a consumer: in an ad in an automotive magazine. I was mildly annoyed, because I don't have a smartphone right now and that means that there's information available to people who are willing to pay for it (via the cost of a smartphone) that isn't available to me. Is that a rational feeling? Probably not, but it's why I'm not pushing for them in my library right now.
My overall opinion: for the mainstream, it's a bit soon. If you have an interesting in being the first (you're developing a competitive QR code reader, you've got a killer app, whatever), now would be a great time to get your foot in the door. Otherwise, it's a little ways off the horizon yet.
posted by librarylis at 8:38 PM on March 14, 2011
Basically the issues are three-fold: 1) smartphone adoption is not quite widespread enough (and libraries, at least, are very interested in providing equal/equitable access), 2) consumer recognition is not quite there (even the tech savvy have a tendency not to know anything about them, unless the person has spent a lot of time in Japan), and 3) the applications aren't quite (ok, hardly at all) interesting enough (to provoke people to actually follow through with the action of reading the codes).
Uses that have been discussed or implemented in libraries: on the ends of book stacks, to provide a map of the area or access to the library catalog; in the reference area, to pull up the library's website or the Ask a Librarian page; somewhere near a notable item to provide context a la the museum walking tour kind of thing.
Uses that I have seen in real life, as a consumer: in an ad in an automotive magazine. I was mildly annoyed, because I don't have a smartphone right now and that means that there's information available to people who are willing to pay for it (via the cost of a smartphone) that isn't available to me. Is that a rational feeling? Probably not, but it's why I'm not pushing for them in my library right now.
My overall opinion: for the mainstream, it's a bit soon. If you have an interesting in being the first (you're developing a competitive QR code reader, you've got a killer app, whatever), now would be a great time to get your foot in the door. Otherwise, it's a little ways off the horizon yet.
posted by librarylis at 8:38 PM on March 14, 2011
I have a web site which is very hard to have people hear and spell. I love this concept!
In Switzerland, I can buy a train ticket on my phone (previously set-up account), and they download one of these codes. I show the conductor, and he scans it to verify my ticket purchase. I use it to buy upgrades to first class, when I want, as I have an annual pass.
I actually like the idea of these being normal on advertising, like posters on buses and such. Easy to take a reference to find out more. Sometimes, I actually am interested in finding out more!
Also, just in general, anything that reduces typing on a touch-screen is a Very Good Thing.
posted by Goofyy at 12:24 AM on March 15, 2011
In Switzerland, I can buy a train ticket on my phone (previously set-up account), and they download one of these codes. I show the conductor, and he scans it to verify my ticket purchase. I use it to buy upgrades to first class, when I want, as I have an annual pass.
I actually like the idea of these being normal on advertising, like posters on buses and such. Easy to take a reference to find out more. Sometimes, I actually am interested in finding out more!
Also, just in general, anything that reduces typing on a touch-screen is a Very Good Thing.
posted by Goofyy at 12:24 AM on March 15, 2011
Oh - I bought tickets on the Eurostar for a couple of weeks' time (YAY) and each one has a QR code on it.
posted by mippy at 5:13 AM on March 15, 2011
posted by mippy at 5:13 AM on March 15, 2011
I've used the QR code on an app page thing to download Android apps--easier to browse apps on a computer, but obviously the final step must be done on the phone.
I've been playing with an idea for a couple of months of bar coding the ISBN onto the spine of all of my books using some kind of 2D barcode (probably Data Matrix). The idea of having the ISBN bar code available without having to open the book up or even take it off of the shelf is really appealing, and my phone was doing a great job scanning codes small enough to go on a book spine. Mostly I get bogged down on the thought of printing that many labels...
On a non-consumer side of things, 2D codes are hidden everywhere, so they're certainly not going to die out.
posted by anaelith at 6:00 AM on March 15, 2011
I've been playing with an idea for a couple of months of bar coding the ISBN onto the spine of all of my books using some kind of 2D barcode (probably Data Matrix). The idea of having the ISBN bar code available without having to open the book up or even take it off of the shelf is really appealing, and my phone was doing a great job scanning codes small enough to go on a book spine. Mostly I get bogged down on the thought of printing that many labels...
On a non-consumer side of things, 2D codes are hidden everywhere, so they're certainly not going to die out.
posted by anaelith at 6:00 AM on March 15, 2011
I've been thinking about having business cards printed with a vCard encoded as a QR code.
Although there might be enough capacity in a QR code (WP says max 2,953 bytes in binary mode), I'm not sure if this would really be a great idea since most barcode reader apps won't be able to parse a vCard. The card reader on my phone, for instance, is used to either getting a URL or straight text out of the barcode. It doesn't have the ability to take the contents of the code and treat it as a vCard ... and I'm not even sure I could copy/paste it in a way that would result in it being loaded into the address book.
What you could probably do is encode a URL which then pointed to a vCard stored on a server somewhere; that would probably work ... although it's less elegant since it's not totally self-contained.
Just something to consider.
This is sort of the general problem with QR (and other types of 2D barcodes, like Data Matrix) codes right now; you can stuff a fair amount of data in there, but you don't really have any guarantee that the person who reads the code is going to be able to do anything with it, unless it's either human-readable text or a URL, or a small number of commonly-understood things like UPCs or ISBNs. What they need, IMO, is something like the MIME "Content-type" header that expresses (in a machine-readable way) what you're about to be given. That way you wouldn't have to write kludgy readers that have to sort out (or worse, display to the user and let them puzzle out) "is this an ISBN? UPC? vendor-specific serial number? contact information? RSA pubkey?" etc. But AFAIK there isn't any standardization for the barcode contents; it's only standardized up to an equivalent of the transport layer (the barcodes and the error checking / encoding stuff).
posted by Kadin2048 at 8:34 AM on March 17, 2011
Although there might be enough capacity in a QR code (WP says max 2,953 bytes in binary mode), I'm not sure if this would really be a great idea since most barcode reader apps won't be able to parse a vCard. The card reader on my phone, for instance, is used to either getting a URL or straight text out of the barcode. It doesn't have the ability to take the contents of the code and treat it as a vCard ... and I'm not even sure I could copy/paste it in a way that would result in it being loaded into the address book.
What you could probably do is encode a URL which then pointed to a vCard stored on a server somewhere; that would probably work ... although it's less elegant since it's not totally self-contained.
Just something to consider.
This is sort of the general problem with QR (and other types of 2D barcodes, like Data Matrix) codes right now; you can stuff a fair amount of data in there, but you don't really have any guarantee that the person who reads the code is going to be able to do anything with it, unless it's either human-readable text or a URL, or a small number of commonly-understood things like UPCs or ISBNs. What they need, IMO, is something like the MIME "Content-type" header that expresses (in a machine-readable way) what you're about to be given. That way you wouldn't have to write kludgy readers that have to sort out (or worse, display to the user and let them puzzle out) "is this an ISBN? UPC? vendor-specific serial number? contact information? RSA pubkey?" etc. But AFAIK there isn't any standardization for the barcode contents; it's only standardized up to an equivalent of the transport layer (the barcodes and the error checking / encoding stuff).
posted by Kadin2048 at 8:34 AM on March 17, 2011
Kadin2048--interesting point about the vcards. I just learned about MeCards (simpler alternative to vCards) and generated a QR code based on one--the two scanner apps (Red Laser and Bakodo) on my iPhone both parsed that correctly and offered to create address-book entries from the scans.
I also generated a QR code from a vCard. The scanner apps dealt with them kinda-sorta appropriately, but included some of the keys in the values (eg, my home address began with HOME:)
posted by adamrice at 9:10 AM on March 17, 2011
I also generated a QR code from a vCard. The scanner apps dealt with them kinda-sorta appropriately, but included some of the keys in the values (eg, my home address began with HOME:)
posted by adamrice at 9:10 AM on March 17, 2011
The standard Barcode Scanner app for Android recognizes vCards just fine and offers useful options like save contact, call, or send e-mail. Granted, not everyone has one--and not everyone knows that there even is a barcode scanner app.
posted by anaelith at 9:12 AM on March 17, 2011
posted by anaelith at 9:12 AM on March 17, 2011
Apparently I had an ancient version of the Barcode Scanner app on my phone, and it wasn't set to upgrade ... I just upgraded it manually and now it handles the test vCard I generated perfectly. (Before it was just displaying the contents to me as text.) I had no idea it could do that. Neat.
So I take back that criticism of the business-card idea ... since it sounds like it also works on iPhones, many more people may have the capability of reading them than I thought. You may just have to tell people who aren't aware of the fact (like me).
posted by Kadin2048 at 11:16 AM on March 17, 2011
So I take back that criticism of the business-card idea ... since it sounds like it also works on iPhones, many more people may have the capability of reading them than I thought. You may just have to tell people who aren't aware of the fact (like me).
posted by Kadin2048 at 11:16 AM on March 17, 2011
Very late to this party, but I was searching for posts about QR codes precisely because there's been a flurry of activity around them in my life recently here in the UK:
--first, and clearest evidence that they are now mainstream, my mum (mid-60s) asked me a couple of weeks ago what they are;
--then I noticed one on the back of a blacksmith's van, which is the most excellent marriage of old and new tech I've seen in a good long while;
--then I saw new students crowding round the notice boards in my (large, university) department last week taking photos of class lists with their smartphones, and I thought, "Wouldn't it be easier if we just put up a QR code?" But "Hah!", I immediately continued, "No chance of the department being that tech-savvy." Well: perhaps I thought too soon, because in the next two days (i) the student society for the department stuck up their bright, well-designed, "Welcome to the department!" display, and right in the middle of it was a QR code, and (ii) I dropped into the library to talk to our subject specialist about books for this term and noticed that she and the other people in her office now have QR codes next to their names on the office door so students can find their contact details easily (http://thisuniversity.ac.uk/personsstaffpage/qr=yes) when the office is closed. So my department might not be sufficiently tech-savvy, but some people around the university are, and not just students.
These are still quite basic uses, not like some of the suggestions above--but clear evidence that they're spreading widely, and are only going to get more common as they find more uses. I mean, it's not as if phones are going to get any less smart, is it?
posted by lapsangsouchong at 3:29 PM on September 24, 2011
--first, and clearest evidence that they are now mainstream, my mum (mid-60s) asked me a couple of weeks ago what they are;
--then I noticed one on the back of a blacksmith's van, which is the most excellent marriage of old and new tech I've seen in a good long while;
--then I saw new students crowding round the notice boards in my (large, university) department last week taking photos of class lists with their smartphones, and I thought, "Wouldn't it be easier if we just put up a QR code?" But "Hah!", I immediately continued, "No chance of the department being that tech-savvy." Well: perhaps I thought too soon, because in the next two days (i) the student society for the department stuck up their bright, well-designed, "Welcome to the department!" display, and right in the middle of it was a QR code, and (ii) I dropped into the library to talk to our subject specialist about books for this term and noticed that she and the other people in her office now have QR codes next to their names on the office door so students can find their contact details easily (http://thisuniversity.ac.uk/personsstaffpage/qr=yes) when the office is closed. So my department might not be sufficiently tech-savvy, but some people around the university are, and not just students.
These are still quite basic uses, not like some of the suggestions above--but clear evidence that they're spreading widely, and are only going to get more common as they find more uses. I mean, it's not as if phones are going to get any less smart, is it?
posted by lapsangsouchong at 3:29 PM on September 24, 2011
Also, obviously, people are going to start thinking a bit more imaginatively about what they can do with even an encoded URL--are presumably doing so already. So instead of the code on a movie poster taking you to the website for the movie, it takes you to the Google search page for where that movie is playing near your location (which it works out from the location of your phone).
Is anyone doing this already? I guess they must be.
[Misses opportunity to make $$$$$$$]
posted by lapsangsouchong at 3:42 PM on September 24, 2011
Is anyone doing this already? I guess they must be.
[Misses opportunity to make $$$$$$$]
posted by lapsangsouchong at 3:42 PM on September 24, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by rmless at 10:03 AM on March 14, 2011