QR Codes

Sat Apr 14 12:13:37 EDT 2012

These are not mutually exclusive.  I see people offering QR codes in lieu
of hyperlinks.  A patron (a person) might be at a library terminal and
<GASP> not armed with a smartphone.  Suppose you are in a library that has
useful links to physical location, but you don't have a smartphone.  If the
OPAC is smart enough to know where you are - should be easy, since you are
in a physical location, right?  (Not necessarily, but whatever.)  If you
want to emulate a human directing you, a QR code is useless.

Assuming your patron (user) can consume a QR code is folly.  Thank God for
the ADA.

ENthusiasts want to offer a visual link (e.g. a QR code) in the absence of
a simple hyperlink.  If you have a link, make it active.  There is no
reason why a QR code has to replace a hyperlink.  They can exist side by
side.

QR codes don't always work, even on the latest smartphones, by the way.

I remain puzzled by the fascination with QR codes, as if penicillin had
been discovered.  It is, by now, an old technology, useful in context.

It is a bar code.  A bar code is applied to a physical object that you scan
with a scanner, or, more recently, with a camera, perhaps on a smart phone.
 I appreciate the notion of taking a screen shot if you have a camera that
can decode an image seen on screen, but it doesn't cover all users (or even
most) and it should not supplant conventional directions within a physical
space.

/rich

On Sat, Apr 14, 2012 at 9:45 AM, Rosenberger, Luke E <
rosenberger at uthscsa.edu> wrote:

>  Although I agree that the most effective uses of QR codes are to bridge
> between physical objects/spaces and online information, they can also be a
> useful tool to bridge the gap between desktop and mobile interfaces.  For
> example:
>
>
>
> 1. Libraries may offer a QR code link in their OPACs so that a patron
> using the OPAC can simply scan the code from the screen using their device
> before they head off to locate an item in the stacks.
>
>
>
> 2. QR codes have been used very effectively to link from webpages to apps
> in the Android Market and iTunes App Store -- it actually can save the time
> of the user when installing new apps.
>
>
>
> Therefore, I would disagree with the general statement "If you offer a QR
> code on a Web page instead of a simple hyperlink, you are raising a
> barrier" -- assuming that the target of the QR code is specifically
> designed for mobile use.
>
>
>  Luke Rosenberger · Director ·
> Library Technology & Historical Collections ·
> UT Health Science Center San Antonio ·
> MSC 7940, 7703 Floyd Curl Dr · San Antonio TX 78229-3900 ·
> +1 210.567.2486 · rosenberger at uthscsa.edu ·
> http://www.library.uthscsa.edu
>   ------------------------------
> *From:* Web technologies in libraries [WEB4LIB at LISTSERV.ND.EDU] on behalf
> of Richard Wiggins [richard.wiggins at GMAIL.COM]
> *Sent:* Saturday, April 14, 2012 7:49
> *To:* WEB4LIB at LISTSERV.ND.EDU
> *Subject:* Re: [WEB4LIB] QR Codes
>
>  Nice to see that QR codes have evangelists.
>
> Some things to keep in mind:
>
>  QR codes are 2D bar codes.  They apply to physical objects, not Web
> pages.  If you offer a QR code on a Web page instead of a simple hyperlink,
> you are raising a barrier.
>
> QR codes have for some reason become a topic of fashion in the year 2012,
> yet they date back before 2000.
>
> It is especially puzzling when a QR code translates to a simple URL - or
> should.
>
> I don't recall such fascination with conventional bar codes when grocery
> stores adopted the UPC.
>
> /rich
>
> On Sat, Apr 14, 2012 at 6:21 AM, Steffen Schilke <
> steffen.schilke at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Hi there again,
>>
>>  forgot to mention that the best is to link to a mobile web page
>>
>>  Regards
>>
>>  @QRCodeART
>>
>>
>> On Fri, Apr 13, 2012 at 11:52 PM, Liz Hubert <liz_hubert at yahoo.com>wrote:
>>
>>>  Hi all,
>>>
>>> I could use a little help. For the past year or two, I've been doing a
>>> lot of work with QR codes at my library. We've got a pretty good program
>>> going, and I'm really excited about it. We have unfortunately run into
>>> problems with the longevity of our codes as well as flaky creators. We
>>> first used Kaywa to create codes, but our codes all died about four months
>>> after we created them. We've been using myqr.co since, but have been
>>> noticing lots of problems with the generator in the past month or so. We're
>>> ready to switch. I know lots and lots of creators since I've researched
>>> this extensively, but I'd like to get your feedback. Has anyone been using
>>> the same creator for a significant period of time? I don't care much about
>>> how they look, since we have a great graphic designer. I put the codes
>>> through bitly, so it doesn't need to have a tracker either. I really just
>>> need something that is reliable and will last a long time. Can anyone share
>>> their experiences? I'd be so grateful!
>>>   ============================
>>>
>>> To unsubscribe: http://bit.ly/web4lib
>>>
>>> Web4Lib Web Site: http://web4lib.org/
>>>
>>> 2012-04-13
>>>
>>>
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>>
>> 2012-04-14
>>
>>
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