Bleepers UNITE
Offline Weblinks using ShotCodes.
by Peter Leyshan I love the Internet
Peter Leyshan 
I love the Internet
ShotCode (www.shotcode.com) is perhaps the first symbology and system designed for use by the average person -- and it's becoming a cultural and business phenomenon. [Note: while this column discusses ShotCode in detail, it should not be construed as an endorsement.]
ShotCode is a matrix symbol composed of segments of concentric circles (see the website for examples). Once free ShotCode reader software is downloaded to a web-enabled camera phone, scanning a ShotCode takes you to the web page for that ShotCode owner (which could be a MySpace or other page anywhere on the Web).
Individuals can create an account and ShotCode symbol for personal use at no cost. The only charge for personal users is the fee charged by their cellular service for web access. (There is a charge for commercial interests to use ShotCode.)
The interesting part of this is that ShotCodes are beginning to show up in surprising places. Businesses are catching on to the ShotCode phenomenon: individuals are including it on their business cards, companies are integrating it into their advertising and marketing campaigns, it's showing up on products and even in trade show exhibits.
While a variety of symbols have been used (and are being used) to connect consumers to commercial sites (most notably, QR Code in Japan), the novel approach to ShotCode is that it provides individuals with a strong incentive to use it themselves for personal networking. And, once they're using it (and have the reader in their phone), it seems as if they're more likely to take advantage of marketing offers.
It's also interesting that, with all the concerns about privacy being raised by RFID applications, some people have no qualms about putting a ShotCode in places where anyone can read it (such as a tattoo on the back of the neck). And it's likely that personal pages will have a considerable amount of personal information on them.
It may be a measure of the public's acceptance of bar codes as just another modern convenience that permits this lack of concern. So, one has to ask, in another ten years or so, will ShotCodes be replaced by ShotChips that will interface with our PDAs so we can record or review notes on our virtual displays about someone we've just met? One has to wonder.
-Bert Moore
Jul 11th 2007 06:03
I love the InternetShotCode (www.shotcode.com) is perhaps the first symbology and system designed for use by the average person -- and it's becoming a cultural and business phenomenon. [Note: while this column discusses ShotCode in detail, it should not be construed as an endorsement.]
ShotCode is a matrix symbol composed of segments of concentric circles (see the website for examples). Once free ShotCode reader software is downloaded to a web-enabled camera phone, scanning a ShotCode takes you to the web page for that ShotCode owner (which could be a MySpace or other page anywhere on the Web).
Individuals can create an account and ShotCode symbol for personal use at no cost. The only charge for personal users is the fee charged by their cellular service for web access. (There is a charge for commercial interests to use ShotCode.)
The interesting part of this is that ShotCodes are beginning to show up in surprising places. Businesses are catching on to the ShotCode phenomenon: individuals are including it on their business cards, companies are integrating it into their advertising and marketing campaigns, it's showing up on products and even in trade show exhibits.
While a variety of symbols have been used (and are being used) to connect consumers to commercial sites (most notably, QR Code in Japan), the novel approach to ShotCode is that it provides individuals with a strong incentive to use it themselves for personal networking. And, once they're using it (and have the reader in their phone), it seems as if they're more likely to take advantage of marketing offers.
It's also interesting that, with all the concerns about privacy being raised by RFID applications, some people have no qualms about putting a ShotCode in places where anyone can read it (such as a tattoo on the back of the neck). And it's likely that personal pages will have a considerable amount of personal information on them.
It may be a measure of the public's acceptance of bar codes as just another modern convenience that permits this lack of concern. So, one has to ask, in another ten years or so, will ShotCodes be replaced by ShotChips that will interface with our PDAs so we can record or review notes on our virtual displays about someone we've just met? One has to wonder.
-Bert Moore
Jul 11th 2007 06:03
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