New York City Uses QR Codes on Building Permits
Written on Thursday, February 24, 2011
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| QR Codes on NYC Building Permits |
Pretty interesting piece of news from TechCrunch, reporting that the New York City Mayor has decided to make use of QR codes to allow citizens to quickly retrieve information related to the under-construction buildings around NYC.
QR codes are one of those technologies that have been promising for a long time but never actually taken off to the extent everyone expected. This is a brilliant example, though, of a great use for them, as they're ideal when you're out and about and need some quick and easy way to retrieve information on a physical artifact (another good example where they're being used is museums). And it is a great way for sparking interaction indeed - the starting point of a whole entailing user experience, just because pointing and clicking is so easy. In fact, QR codes go quite some way in providing the link between the physical and digital world - allowing users to transcend from the physical to the digital world.
Here's more from the article:
New York City’s Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg today announced the use of Quick Response or QR codes (which are something like a smartphone-readable barcode) on building permits, to provide New Yorkers with easy access to information related to buildings and construction sites throughout the city.
Smartphone users who scan a QR code on a construction permit in New York, according to a press release from the mayor’s office, will get “details about the ongoing project – including the approved scope of work, identities of the property owner and job applicant, other approved projects associated with the permit, [and] complaints and violations related to the location.”
The QR codes will link users to a mobile version of the Department of Buildings Information System, and will give them the option to click a link that will initiate a phone call to the city’s 311 phone service, where they can register a complaint about noise, safety or other concerns.
As permits at 975,000 building and construction sites that already have them are replaced, they will have QR codes added; all New York City permits are expected to have QR codes by roughly 2013.
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Very interesting that New York would go to all that trouble. Los Angles should follow suite... That also should give the mom&pops a good reason to go that route...
Reg B.
Let's see, Forrester reports that apx. 1% of mobile users have scanned a QR code in the past 3 months. Less than 50% of phones can scan a QR code. Why use them when trying to reach the PUBLIC, which, last I remember was 100% of the population.
And, two years from now? QR is already dated and new platforms are emerging.
@anonymous: I don't usually allow anonymous comments but yours is to the point, so I've published it, so that I can reply.
I never claimed in my article that QR codes is the answer to getting through to 100% of the public, in fact I mentioned myself that they haven't taken off yet.
Still, your point about them being dated I believe is somewhat exaggerated. I'm happy to see them choosing an applied technology, rather than an emerging one (you never know whether the new one will be adopted in the same extent as the existing one), or, worse, rather than none at all.
The way you put it, in the mobile world a technology can become dated in a matter of a few months. But even so, why are you saying that two years from now they won't substitute QR codes with whatever has replaced them by then?
Finally could you please cite a source for the 50% figure? I would be inclined to think that with all Java capable phones being able to scan one, iPhones, Androids and Blackberries (who are all able to scan them)this figure would be wrong..?
QR codes save the user from typing which is why they are really useful. However that's just a way to get users into your website. It's inexpensive and more users are getting educated on how to use it.
Side note: check here for beautiful QR codes. I was really against QR codes until I saw these! They are no longer the ugly duckling of the mobile industry.
Top 10 beautiful QR Codes: http://10beautifulqr.mobdis.co