Semacode - Hyperlinks For The Real World

An anonymous reader submits "Semacode is a fascinating concept - it involves encoding a standard network/web URL in visual form (essentially a 2D bar code) that can be displayed in the real world for people to 'read' with semacode-enabled connected devices. The reference platform for now is the Symbian/Series 60 phone platform - specifically, the Nokia 3650 . Semacode also works with the Nokia 6600 and 7650 camera phones."

Comments

Real world uses

[danharan]

Everyone is comparing this to CueCat without saying why this won't work.

The semacode website actually provides some intriguing uses for this technology. Since it is an open standard, we could think up other uses, but there are three that they mention that make sense to me:

• transit info - nextBus
• A web service to call a taxicab to your present location
• ticket sales from posters (e.g. concerts)

Cellphone prices are falling, and many people no longer even have a landline, so there could be a large market for this.

Also, these uses don't cost much if anything. It probably will have a few niches. Can anyone else think of good applications?

lucky charms?

[WhiteDragon]

I give them credit for the attempt to make a "2d barcode" sound like it is somehow more than -- you know -- the one on my box of Lucky Charms.

The difference is that a typical UPC (the barcode on groceries and other products) is a linear (1-dmensional) barcode. It can only store a few digits worth of information. A Matrix Code (aka 2D barcode) can store a lot more information. The article shows an example of a data matrix format code. The data matrix symbology is described at RVSI Acutity CiMatrix. It can store a large amount of data.