Month: May 2010

ZXing online QRCode decoder

A side benefit of the Graffyard post – I fell over the ZXing decoder. Not needed in the wild, but if you’re wandering the web and see a QRCode – or if you’re testing stuff – it could be quite useful. In fact, I plan on using it tonight to test pictures of meltybead codes.

Step one – find a QRCode on the web:

Step two – right click and copy the image location (for our example image, it’s http://mtoynbee.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/mtoynbeecom_md.png).

Step three – go to http://zxing.org/w/decode.jspx and paste the location. Click ‘submit query’.

Hey presto!

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The QRCode does not have to be as pristine as our example – this decodes just fine:

Graffyard – QRCode Graffiti preservation

Via @GreatDismal, comes now this interesting  QRCode project – Graffyard. I’ll let the artist give you the run-down:

I am using QR Codes to preserve graffiti for posterity by photographing the graffiti before it is removed. After the graffiti has been cleaned off by the local authorities or building owner i place a QR Code in the exact location which resolves to an image of the original. In that way a mobile phone with a QR-Code Reader can be used to travel back in time.

Before:

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After:

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Reminds me of a similar project – one to embed QRCodes that link to street art. Where did I see that…? >grin< One interesting enhancement that occurs to me – the ability to page through various versions of the surface in question – a time-stream of modifications/tags/etc.

@Spyboy comments, “But the QR code IS graffiti too then.  An augmented reality app that overlays the graffiti on the clean surface would better.” First and foremost – agreed. A couple of caveats though:

  • The QRCode approach is do-able. No RFID xmitter/receiver needed, no GPS fix required, no AR app installed. Point your phone at the meta-graffiti and away you go. It’s important to keep in mind that we in the US are way behind in cell phone kulturny – QRCode readers are almost a given in Japan and very common in Europe.
  • I like the idea of a human-detectable (if – obviously- not human-readable) cue. The code is an indicator – ‘something is/was here’.

The ‘AR app on a clean surface’ gets me thinking – will the next gen tag battles be waged by folks with good tech chops trying to subvert each other’s AR data?