QR Codes in Canada?

Slashdot is running a story on a Toronto company trying to bring QR codes to Canada.
Is this the start of North American QR adoption?
As we've found in our attempts to read codes in Japanese magazines, our phones will have to improve their camera's resolution for this to work.

Grant Proposal

Some things to consider for our grant proposal / conference submission:

1) Budget. Do we want to buy phones and sim cards to use? Do we want to be paid for hours worked? Do we want to include living expenses? Payment for testers? Tickets to SIGGRAPH?

2) Do we want to get some money for this, or present it at a conference? Or Both?

3) Assume we got to the stage where we have a working game and tried it out with the Lower Manhattan setting (our current goal, yes?). Where would we go from there? How do we advance this thing?

This NSF grant makes sense, more or less, for our project.

SIGGRAPH 08 might be interesting as well.

Play Tech Photo

Testing the Game

Playtech offered us the opportunity to test out Encrypted City in a small-scale deployment.
The code was finished at roughly 2:00am Saturday morning, then some more time was spent getting it to work on actual phones. SydeWynder, the software we're using to run the Encrypted City game server off a phone, features an emulator mode. When I was writing the code on my computer, I only had the emulator to test it with. Real phones presented some added twists that had to be addressed, not to mention we had to make all the phones had the barcode reader properly installed.


Once play commenced, in two teams, all sorts of interesting bugs popped up. Considering there had been no formal testing with the phones beforehand, this wasn't much of a surprise. We have some work to do before this sucker is running smoothly.

all of the 8 questions and answers

qr code location: next to elevator along hall way.
1.text in the word you find along the walls of 10th floor hallway
word:
answer:
superkalafragelisticexpeealedocious

qr code location: entrance to 10th floor lab room
2.What word is stuck under the wooden tables on the 10th floor?
a. noo
b. ono
c. non
d. onn
answer: b


qr code location: on the whiteboard in room 1013
3.What does MFADT mean?
multiple choice, please text the letter of the correct answer
a. musical fun and dance team
b. ministry of future advanced design terminology
c. master of fine arts in design and technology
d. mundane formulas advertising dictionary /thesaurus
e. multiple formations of automated depression therapy
answer: c

qr code location: at the end of the hall way from room 1006
4.Count the number of EXIT sign on the 10th floor.
answer:9

qr code location:stair G
5.(Go to stairway G on the 10th floor.) Look out the window,how many stories is the tallest building you see?
answer: 18

qr code location: staircase by elevator
6.How many stairs are there between the 10th and 11th floor?
answer: 18

qr code location:in 10th floor lab
7.Watch the video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBAT_BmqIdo
How many messages did the group get in the video?
answer: 1

qr code location: behind the door of room 1005
8.How many faces can you find in the picture from the following URL?
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimiQZCguDoLo0zA2vBb-CZecVwrRlszqpmwYla67-s8tUNI6vQ7Uugw0F_HR154R4PKkc1GeAVK8Dp-oN0uJ5IkmTxdCgd0BpeeyD5WKgCjoIcCZ8cfRT7P1RWsMq35kpSE4MdCTLTfC4D/s1600-h/HowManyFaces.jpg
answer: 10

8 questions some answers

qr code location: next to elevator along hall way.
1.text in the word you find along the walls of 10th floor hallway
word:
answer:
superkalafragelisticexpeealedocious

qr code location: entrance to 10th floor lab room
3.What word is stuck under the wooden tables on the 10th floor?
a. noo
b. ono
c. non
d. onn
answer: b


qr code location:anywhere
4.What does MFADT mean?
multiple choice, please text the letter of the correct answer
a. musical fun and dance team
b. ministry of future advanced design terminology
c. master of fine arts in design and technology
d. mundane formulas advertising dictionary /thesaurus
e. multiple formations of automated depression therapy
answer: c

qr code location:any exit
5.Count the number of EXIT sign on the 10th floor.
answer:?

qr code location:stair G
6.(Go to stairway G on the 10th floor.) Look out the window,how many stories is the tallest building you see?
answer:?

qr code location: staircase by elevator
7.How many stairs are there between the 10th and 11th floor?
answer:?

qr code location:in 10th floor lab
8.Watch the video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBAT_BmqIdo
How many messages did the group get in the video?
answer:?

qr code location: lab wall
10.How many faces can you find in the picture on the wall?
answer:?

10 Finalized questions

qr code location: next to elevator along hall way.
1.text in the word you find along the walls of 10th floor hallway
word:
superkalafragelisticexpeealedocious

qr code location:anywhere
2.the 1980 movie fame is based on what new york city high school?
a. Lafayette
b. La Guardia
c. La Salle
d. Loyola

qr code location: entrance to 10th floor lab room
3.What word is stuck under the wooden tables on the 10th floor?
a. noo
b. ono
c. non
d. onn

qr code location:anywhere
4.What does MFADT mean?
multiple choice, please text the letter of the correct answer
a. musical fun and dance team
b. ministry of future advanced design terminology
c. master of fine arts in design and technology
d. mundane formulas advertising dictionary /thesaurus
e. multiple formations of automated depression therapy

qr code location:any exit
5.Count the number of EXIT sign on the 10th floor.

qr code location:stair G
6.(Go to stairway G on the 10th floor.) Look out the window,how many stories is the tallest building you see?

qr code location: staircase by elevator
7.How many stairs are there between the 10th and 11th floor?

qr code location:in 10th floor lab
8.Watch the video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBAT_BmqIdo
How many messages did the group get in the video?

qr code location:anywhere
9.Whats inside this box?

qr code location: lab wall
10.How many faces can you find in the picture on the wall?

text in the word you find along the walls of 10th floor hallway

word:
superkalafragelisticexpeealedocious

the 1980 movie fame is based on what new york city high school?

a. Lafayette
b. La Guardia
c. La Salle
d. Loyola

What word is stuck under the wooden tables on the 10th floor?

a. noo
b. ono
c. non
d. onn

What does MFADT mean?

multiple choice, please text the letter of the correct answer

a. musical fun and dance team
b. ministry of future advanced design terminology
c. master of fine arts in design and technology
d. mundane formulas advertising dictionary /thesaurus
e. multiple formations of automated depression therapy

Questions for testing the game

1.Count the PCs in the 10th floor lab.

2.Count the hand models in the show window on 11th floor.

3.Count the number of EXIT sign on the 10th floor.

4.Go to the stair G. See through the window and find the highest building. Count the floors of that building.

5.Count the stairs between two floors.

6.Ask * * how many children does he / she have.

7.11+4*(23+125/5) = ?

8.Find the book in the project room and quickly read the first chapter. Then choose the topic of this book form 4 choices.

9.Find a CD in 1005 room and figure out the free space on it.

10.Watch the video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBAT_BmqIdo
How many messages did the group get?

11.Find a red box on the ninth floor and send back what you find in the box.


12.Work out a maze and find the picture formed by the path.

13.How many faces can you find in the picture?

attempt at how questions work in code

Question #
1. print question
2. ask for user input
3. check answer,
4. if right, send next question
if wrong, tell user of loosing 30 sec. give user choice to continue with question or skip question
5. if skip, send prompt "you clue will be sent in 30 seconds"
send next clue in 30 seconds
if answer again, check answer
6. if correct, send answer in 30 seconds x number of attempts

CODE Sample Question 3

Sample Question 3:

Location: Union Square
This "Dirty Boulevard" singer also sang about another New York location in 1973.

CODE Sample Question 2

Sample Question 2:

How many PCs are in the 10th floor lab?

Step 1:
Count

Step 2:
text answer

CODE Sample Question 1

Sample Question 1:

Look at the building room you are in, where else does it add up to?
hint: a city

Step 1:
Number 2
Room 1005

Step 2:
21005

Step 3:
the zipcode represents Aberdeen in Maryland.

Step 4:
Text: aberdeen

How questions are Scored

final score is number of questions correct divided by time the player took to answer them.

How questions work

Scan question

Solve question - every question involves part of the 4 major elements, observation, interpretation, research and common sense.

Text answer back

Every wrong answer will delay your next clue for 30 seconds

If you give the wrong answer 2 times to the same question, you will have option to continue trying question or to skip question and go on with game

Steps to play game

1. Cellphone distributed to players
2. 10 teams/phones
3. 10 questions
4. each team/person/phone receives a card with a code of starting question. or each team texts server phone to start game.
5. scan question (in this senario questions will be text, not url) on code or receive texted question.
6. answer question
7. text answer back ( questions are either multiple choice, a series of true or false questions or return a number value)
8. if answer is correct, send next question location and clue.
9. find location/code, repeat 6-8

Some questions that can be used in the GAME TESTING

1 counting the number of PCs in the lab
2 find the book in ???? room and count the pages of the last chapter. (or what the book about : multiple choice)
3 put the CD in ???? room computer and figure out the free space
4 find an ipod, listen to the song ???????? and send the lyrics (multiple choice)
5 watch a video, and find out the time someone shows up (multiple choice / number)
6 find the picture and count something
7 open the box in room ???? and send back what you find(multiple choice)
8 find the label on the blackboard in ???? room and do the math question
9 call ???-???-???? (service phone) and got the instruction (multiple choice)
10 work out a maze and find the picture formed by the path.
11 go and ask Sven something to get the answer

QR codes explained.

Encrypted City uses a type of 2d barcode (also called a matrix code) called QR codes. QR technology was initially developed by Toyota subsidary Denso Wave and released in 1994 for tracking parts in auto manufacturing. It was designed for high-speed scanning and recognition, hence the initials "QR": Quick Response. Unlike regular barcodes you see everyday, matrix codes like QR scan for data both vertically and horizontally. This enables them to hold more information in less space.

The QR code format (or "symbology" in barcode jargon) can encode several different types of data, including plain text, URLs, email, phonje numbers, and SMS. This makes it ideal for use in an interactive game. QR codes are very popular in Japan, where they appear in many youth and style magazines.

A sample code, giving the URL to a really excellent webcomic:








Outside of industrial applications, QR codes are generally scanned using mobile phones. To be able to scan a QR code, the phone must have a camera of sufficient resolution and the ability to run reader software. There are many supported models these days, but this support is far from complete. Additionally, in our own testing we've found that the device we used was able to read some codes, but not others. This mainly happened with small codes found in Japanese magazines that may have required a higher-resolution camera.

Mission Statement

Encrypted City is a game that combines history, technology and geography. In the tradition of urban scavenger hunts and puzzles such as the MIT Mystery Hunt, Encrypted city scatters clues across the field of play, in the for on 2d barcodes that can be read with camera-equipped mobile devices. The barcodes provide instructions, further clues or collectible game tokens to aid the player's advancement towards the puzzle's solution.

Current implementations of this game include an indoors implementation at Parsons the New School for Design in New York, and another larger staging across lower Manhattan.