The Voice of the Street

The Voice of the Street gibt Streetart Künstlern die Möglichkeit echtes Feedback auf ihre Kunstwerke zu erhalten, ohne dabei ihre Anonymität zu verlieren. Artists melden sich auf der Website an und bekommen einen personalisierten QR-Code zugewiesen, den sie mit in ihre Arbeiten einbauen oder in deren Nähe kleben.

My QRCode trail @ Adobe MAX 2007

Hi all. I’m trying an interesting experiment with QR Codes while I’m at Adobe MAX 2007.

Basically, if you see the “Community Card” below, you know I’ve been there/meet that person.

If you have a Nokia N95 and/or otherwise have a QR code reader (such as kaywa) installed on your mobile device … or if you’re international and have keitai you can scan this card to contact me (for fun) … since there is no other information on this card, you’ll need to scan the QR to contact me.

Hackergame, zum Ersten an der FH Rapperswil

Jeder Besucher bekam beim Eingang einen Badge mit einem QR Code (wenn ich es richtig verglichen habe). Diese wurde fotografiert und so eine Rangliste erstellt. Eine sehr gute Idee.

Why mobile Japan leads the world (the Guardian)

Yasuko San is aiming her mobile at a small, square tattoo on paper, clicking a little and peering happily at the result. Her prize? The latest novel written for the mobile, entitled "Teddy". Such serialised novels for mobiles are just the latest phone application that has caught the Japanese imagination, but - apart from neighbouring South Korea - few others.

Those printed square icons, however, made their debut in the UK earlier this month (to promote the DVD of the film 28 Weeks Later). Known as QR (quick read) codes, they have aided Japan's mobile revolution by making it easy to access a web page via mobile. Users can be directed to sites by snapping the codes printed in magazines, posters and even on biscuits.

Sorry for being picky - Quick Response, it's called.
And in the UK there were some other QR Code projects. First of all Kerrang started it all back in November last year. Then it was the Pet Shop Boys who just came out with their QR Code video.
And now Umbro along Gia's 28Weeks Later campaign have followed.

But - after my morning pickiness - let's go back to the article and hit the one paragraph that I think really makes the difference between Japan and the rest of the world.

But why is such technology such a hit in Japan and not in other mobile-savvy nations such as Finland? According to the man who kickstarted the trend - the father of i-mode, NTT DoCoMo's Takeshi Natsuno - it is because of the Japanese genius for designing new technologies that can be adopted by anyone, especially techno-phobes. It's not about "bandwidth, nor standards, nor unique Japanese culture", he says. It is about "fun and convenience".

What can I say more.

Developing multiplayer applications with Flash Lite XMLSockets and Java NIO
Multi-Player Mobile Game with FLASH LITE 2

Go to their site to see the full animation.

Mobile Tagging ist sicherlich die einfachste Form, die reale Welt mit Internetinhalten zu verbinden. Hierzu werden z. B. QR-Codes erstellt, die einen Link zu Internetseiten enthalten. Mit Hilfe eines speziellen Readers auf dem Mobiltelefon wird dann der Link ausgelesen und der direkte Zugriff auf die weiterführenden Informationen hergestellt.

Neben Weblinks können die Codes aber auch SMS-Inhalte, Textnachrichten und Telefonnummern - z. B. eines Call-Centers - enthalten. Während in Japan diese Technologie bereits allgegenwärtig ist, beginnt hier jetzt gerade die Experimentierphase mit Mobile Tagging. Ganz wichtig: Heute muss vor allem auch der notwendige Reader im Rahmen der Kommunikationsmaßnahmen mit angeboten werden.

>>> Hier Kaywa Reader downloaden

Disclaimer: Jost von Brandis is a partner.

Some parts of the unfinished video were apparently leaked too early. Now we can finally discover the official version as intended by the Pet Shop Boys.

Pet Shop Boys Integral Video




And you can also participate:

You can make your own Integral video by downloading the stop frames as a PDF from: http://www.petshopboys.co.uk/downloads/integral.pdf (it's a huge PDF with all images and QR Codes, NDLR), then using each page of the PDF as a frame in a stop motion video.

When you’ve finished, upload your video to our YouTube group at http://youtube.com/group/psbintegral to share it with others.

See also:
About QR Codes where the Kaywa Reader and some Nokia phones with a preinstalled QR Code Reader are mentioned.

Thank you Pet Shop Boys for mentioning us!

EMEA Mobile Advertising Guidelines Now Available

Aimed to enhance consumer experience and make mobile advertising campaigns a lot easier, The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) has recently released its Mobile Advertising Guidelines specifically designed for the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region (pdf*). Info included deals on how to use Mobile Web Banner, recommended file sizes, and other technical specifications.

Via The Mobile Weblog

* After a short visit to the EMEA site, it looks like these Guidelines are from June 2007.

There are several hundred Kaywa blogs who do not yet have a QR Code (it takes some time to discuss this with the owners as well as to integrate them). However - as this example shows - all blogs do already have one behind the scene.

For people who want to see the web version first, start with the Zurichblog. For all the others take your N95 or download first the Kaywa Reader.
PS: All blogs are in german


Amsterdam




Barcelona




Dubai




New York



Peking (Beijing)




Shanghai




Zürich

GSM Features That Aren't Widely Known

Things discussed:

• SMS Delivery Reports
• Call Forwarding
• Call Waiting
• Showing Your Number

Photo: Primer QR-Code en prensa española (La Vanguardia)


Photo: myself (Neue Zürcher Zeitung)

... and anthrazit starts with QR Codes (in german)


See also (in german):
Mobile-Tagging vs. Bluetooth - Kampf um den Zukunftsmarkt
Marvin Hegen discusses the pro's and con's between Bluetooth and Mobile Tagging in this great post. If I have time I'd like to come back on this and add my 2 cents.

Wayfinding Systems Based on Geo-coded QR Codes and Social Computing for Individuals with Cognitive Impairments

Abstract:

A novel wayfinding system is presented with an aim to increase workplace and life independence for cognitive-impaired patient such as people with traumatic brain injury, cerebral palsy, mental retardation, schizophrenia, and Alzheimer desease. It is based on geo-coded QR codes which embed the coordinate (x, y, floor) and social computing that helps shorten the learning curve for the people who use it. According to psychological model of spatial navigation and the requirements of rehabilitation professionals, PDAs prompting with spatial photos at the right time and place can assist cognitively-impaired persons with navigating indoors or on the road. To do so, geo-coded QR codes which can be imagined as a new traffic sign system, are posted to selected positions on routes. The navigational photos are served on demand to the user who uses the built-in PDA camera to shoot the QR code when it is in eyesight range. A tracking function is integrated to timestamp the visited positions and issue alerts in case of anomalies. The tracking system increases the sense of security and also lowers the entry threshold to accepting the assistive technology. A prototype which consists of wayfinding devices, a training blog, and a tracking system, is designed and tested on a university campus. Compared to the sensor network approach, QR codes are easier and faster to deploy and the cost is lower. The experimental results show the computer-human interface is friendly and the capabilities of wayfinding are reliable.

Via Yung-Cheng Tsai