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The Curious Comeback of the Dreaded QR Code

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Re: The Curious Comeback of the Dreaded QR Code

#3

Post by cmrx64 »

fhood wrote: post #2

Can someone explain to me what the advantages of QR codes are over bar codes or other similar methods?

1. Denser (ie, more information per unit area)

2. More redundant (ie, more surface area can be destroyed and still be able to recover the original message)

Re: The Curious Comeback of the Dreaded QR Code

#4

Post by andrewla »

fhood wrote: post #2

Can someone explain to me what the advantages of QR codes are over bar codes or other similar methods?

The confusing thing about this question is that "other similar methods" includes QR codes [1] -- they're just a generalization of 1-dimensional bar codes to a 2-dimensional matrix, with some error correction and alignment information to make scanning them theoretically more reliable.

They also have native support for some data types, like URLs. Other than that, it's mostly that they have some traction.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barcode#Matrix_.282D.29_barcod...

Re: The Curious Comeback of the Dreaded QR Code

#5

Post by taeric »

fhood wrote: post #2

Can someone explain to me what the advantages of QR codes are over bar codes or other similar methods?

I'm assuming the largest advantage is just the amount of data they can hold. One of the top google results[1] indicates that 1d bar codes can hold ~100 characters, while 2d ones can hold ~2000 characters.

There is also a bit of artistic freedom you can do with the 2d ones. They really aren't as ugly as the 1d ones. Especially if you use them to "frame" something. Note, still not pretty, per se. Just not as ugly.

[1] http://support.idautomation.com/Barcode-Learning/How-much-da...

Re: The Curious Comeback of the Dreaded QR Code

#6

Post by lightbyte »

Surprised they didn't mention cryptocurrencies at all here. Scanning QR codes to enter an address when making a transaction is pretty much the only feasible option I know of. Manually entering a very long random string is too much of a hassle, especially if you'd want to do real-world transactions.

Re: The Curious Comeback of the Dreaded QR Code

#8

Post by devopsproject »

fhood wrote: post #2

Can someone explain to me what the advantages of QR codes are over bar codes or other similar methods?

* data density (up to 100 times more than barcodes)

* built in error correction (partially marred qr codes can still be used)

* skinable\customizable (embed your logo, change colors, etc )

* 360 degree scanning capability

Barcodes still have their place but the QR code does have some unique properties

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