ColorZip's latest code tech, ColorCode

May not be the case in America where 2D-code technology is, er, drastically archaic, but the rest of the world seems to be appropriately enthusiastic about fitting lots of data into printable code. QR code (top right) is the current Big Deal with up to 7,000 encodable characters in one block. But ColorZip wants their ColorCode technology to unseat new 800lb 2D-code gorilla; unlike barcodes and QR codes, which are inherantly offline technologies, ColorCode merely encodes URL-like data locators (think tinyurl), which means to interpret the code you have to retrieve its corresponding data online. Of course, this alleviates the problem of an encoded character limit, but also has the unfortunate side-effect of requiring a net connection. Fortunately for the Japanese, that's something they've got little to worry about.

[Via 3yen]

[Wonderkid @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

Hang on, what is the point of this when a number is machine AND human readable? My company is experimenting with an online directory where each listing is assigned a unique 'GoNumber' (See http://www.gonumber.com ). For businesses listed (such as most of the Indian restaurants in Brick Lane, E1, London), we affix a sticker in the window showing the GoNumber for people to make a note of or snap with their camera phones. No reason why software could not interpret the number and generate a URL, so why bother with patterns at all? Or am I missing something here?

[Brian @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

can't they just add a couple digits to the existing barcodes? this would let companies have more products, and not completely knock out the existing systems.

[Yves @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

Basically, the new thing is that not only it can be read as a traditional 2D barcode (with a QR code embedded in the ColorCode), but also as a "shortcut" to remotely stored data of any size and type. The info the user gets after scanning the ColorCode can be any media. For example music or video streaming.
Actually, for more details on how this offers new possibilities and opportunities, visit the link to 3yen.com and/or the official website.

P.S.: About "think tinyURL": Instead, think doiop, where you can choose your own keyword. :) (http://doiop.com)

[Joe @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

I can't see how the code itself has any bearing on the variety of media that can be returned. As I see it, both Colorzip and QR Codes work in essentially the same way: scan code, code gets translated to unique ID number, ID number gets pushed out to a server, server uses the internet to send something back. All you need is some kind of Java app that can accept and route the ID numbers to the appropriate place. I guess for QR Codes, it's generally just a URL rather than a special ID number, so the software on the phone converts the code to text and pumps that text into the phone's browser - but it needn't work that way - it's all dependant on the software at the phone end.

[Gerhard Fasol @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

> I guess for QR Codes, it's generally just a URL
> rather than a special ID number, so the software
> on the phone converts the code to text and pumps
> that text into the phone's browser - ...

No that is not how QR codes work. You don't need any internet connection to use QR codes. they work off-line also. They can what you describe, but they do much much much more. You can find this all on the internet, but we also have it all summarized in our QR code report: http://www.eurotechnology.com/store/qr-code/

Greetings from Tokyo/Japan,

Gerhard Fasol
http://fasol.com/

[Max Hodges @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

seems like the QR code or any bar code technology could do the same thing. Maybe use a couple bits to flag whether the data should be loaded into an address book, pulled up on a web browser, or used to get further instructions from a web site. I don't see the innovation in the colorzip code. I cost more to print in color (think business cards, commodity labels, etc.)