Can all phones read QR codes natively?
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@JaredBusch said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
@Dashrender said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
@bnrstnr said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
Wow. I'm an idiot. I always thought you had to have a QR reader app to use QR codes...
I just tried pointing the regular camera app of my iPhone at it and it read it immediately. :man_facepalming:
I learned that more by mistake a few weeks/month ago.
This was only added natively in iOS 12 I think
Yup, it was 11 or 12. All modern smart phone operating systems handle them natively now, but that is a fairly modern change. You used to have to use a 3rd party app.
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Bigger question - are they really a think anymore? Or are they more of a hold out from 3+ years ago?
The idea is definitely cool - but the risk they offer is pretty big. While the app does show the URL it's going to, most users won't bother reading it, or will could be hard to tell if it's a close but not quite URL sending them to a fake page. -
@Dashrender said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
While the app does show the URL it's going to, most users won't bother reading it
That's a web browser issue, not a QR code one. If users don't pay attention to that, any mechanism for a URL is a problem.
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@scottalanmiller said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
@Dashrender said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
While the app does show the URL it's going to, most users won't bother reading it
That's a web browser issue, not a QR code one. If users don't pay attention to that, any mechanism for a URL is a problem.
This is totally a user problem. But if you put up - http://myscammywebsite.com/hackyourcomputer - a user will never type that into their phone/browser (well, we hope not anyhow).
But, someone could put a QR code up going to that same site - the user won't bother to READ where the QR code is taking them... and they will just accept it and get hacked... the simplicity of the QR code enhances the laziness of the user, and enables greater damage - that's all I'm saying. Does that mean we shouldn't use QR codes? I could see the answer on both sides to that.
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@Dashrender said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
This is totally a user problem. But if you put up - http://myscammywebsite.com/hackyourcomputer - a user will never type that into their phone/browser (well, we hope not anyhow).
Someone who is going to take the effort to go to a URL is going to go. QR codes, short codes, full URLs... one way or another. We don't have any bypass to users reading the URLs, but we know that they are going to go to them.
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I see them all the time, and I never use QR codes... like ever. Do you want to visit the website listed on the back of your mayonnaise bottle, or a random QR code posted on some poster somewhere? I never do. The last time I used one was strictly out of curiosity of the thing worked or not.
It feels like one of those neat idea services Google would start but nobody wants to use.
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@Obsolesce said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
I see them all the time, and I never use QR codes... like ever. Do you want to visit the website listed on the back of your mayonnaise bottle, or a random QR code posted on some poster somewhere? I never do. The last time I used one was strictly out of curiosity of the thing worked or not.
It feels like one of those neat idea services Google would start but nobody wants to use.
IIRC QR Codes were originally supposed to replace barcodes. So having them on products like that make sense.
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@Obsolesce said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
I see them all the time, and I never use QR codes... like ever.
Same. Like... do normal people know how to use these? I've never seen anyone just use one.
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@coliver said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
@Obsolesce said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
I see them all the time, and I never use QR codes... like ever. Do you want to visit the website listed on the back of your mayonnaise bottle, or a random QR code posted on some poster somewhere? I never do. The last time I used one was strictly out of curiosity of the thing worked or not.
It feels like one of those neat idea services Google would start but nobody wants to use.
IIRC QR Codes were originally supposed to replace barcodes. So having them on products like that make sense.
They are a barcode. That's all that they are. You can use barcodes for the same things.
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@Obsolesce said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
It feels like one of those neat idea services Google would start but nobody wants to use.
LOL
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Yes, QR codes are just barcodes but if they contain something like a link, the phone knows what to do with it.
I use an addon in Firefox that makes a QR code out of any page or any link. I use that to get the link quickly into the phone without typing. As urls have become more readable, they are also a lot longer.
If you use duckduckgo you can just enter "qr https://myawesomepage.com" into the search and you'll get a QR label directly.
This is our fav forum link:
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@Pete-S said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
I use an addon in Firefox that makes a QR code out of any page or any link. I use that to get the link quickly into the phone without typing.
Never thought of that, good idea.
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A few years back I wanted to setup my home WIFI credentials as a QR code for guests, but I think that was before iOS had the built in support, I might revisit this now that I know you just need to point the default camera app at it.
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@bnrstnr said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
A few years back I wanted to setup my home WIFI credentials as a QR code for guests, but I think that was before iOS had the built in support, I might revisit this now that I know you just need to point the default camera app at it.
That... is extremely useful.
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I was looking over my wifi settings here....
No need for that site!
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AWESOME Sauce!! No more excuses about not creating a help desk ticket!! Printed and implemented.
:right-facing_fist_medium-light_skin_tone:
:left-facing_fist_medium-light_skin_tone: -
@popester said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
AWESOME Sauce!! No more excuses about not creating a help desk ticket!! Printed and implemented.
:right-facing_fist_medium-light_skin_tone: :left-facing_fist_medium-light_skin_tone:That was my home Wifi
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@Obsolesce said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
I was looking over my wifi settings here....
No need for that site!
That's great!
For us that don't have that in the AP.
From the link above it looks like the format of the text in the QR code is:
WIFI:S:<SSID>;T:<WPA|WEP|>;P:<password>;;That means you can use duckduckgo as well to generate the QR code, or any other tool or site or label printer that can do QR.
For instance with SSID=GUEST_WIFI and password=AGZ53k!-12a the QR code should be:
WIFI:S:GUEST_WIFI;T:WPA;P:AGZ53k!-12a;;So using duckduckgo it becomes: qr WIFI:S:GUEST_WIFI;T:WPA;P:AGZ53k!-12a;;
Result is:
The QR works fine on my Android phone.
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My idea for the QR codes was to add them to device labels (servers, routers, laptops etc) and have them link directly to the web page where the device documentation is.
So if you're in the field and wonder what is this device, you can immediately scan the QR code with your phone and get all the relevant info.
So a link from the physical world to the virtual world.
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@scottalanmiller said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
@bnrstnr said in Can all phones read QR codes natively?:
Wow. I'm an idiot. I always thought you had to have a QR reader app to use QR codes...
Me too, I've never had a phone manage to use a QR code, but I guess you just have to know how to use them.
There is not much knowing anymore on iOS.
It pops up in front of you.
