A QR (Quick Response) code is just a fancy way to refer to a two-dimensional bar code that can be scanned by cell phone cameras and webcams. iCandy aims to put those QR codes to work (or play), either for your own personal branding mission, a marketing experiment, or just plain fun.
To get started, you'll need to download and install the desktop application, which is available for both Macs and PCs, but once you do you can use the print window to drag and drop iTunes tracks, links to web pages, and YouTube videos right into the window to create QR code-ready content.
When you're ready to transform the links or tracks in to QR codes, you can opt to print to disk (saves locally), print directly from your printer, or have Flickr and Snapfish do the printing for you.
Anyone with an iPhone or a web cam can scan the iCandy links to automatically access the website or track. On the iPhone, just make sure you have a QR scanning app (NeoReader didn't work for me, and 2D Sense was just okay), then use the app to take a picture of the bar code (ie. scan it). If things work perfectly the code will open up a browser window to the appropriate site.
With it comes to scanning QR codes, the iCandy desktop app is pretty neat - letting you use your webcam to scan codes from your desktop or your physical world. Scanning hard copy QR codes couldn't be easier - just hold up the code to your web cam and wait for a red box to appear and process the code.
Even though I struggled at first with scanning the saved iCandy links on my laptop, I finally discerned that in order to get the webcam to read the QR code you have to drag the entire file on to the camera preview pane. Once you drag the file to the preview window, you'll immediately get directed to the respective site. As for iTunes songs, those will immediately start to play if you own the track, or let you buy the track if you don't. If you're still lost, watch this short video.
If you choose to use iCandy for business purposes, or even if you're simply trying to feed your ego, you'll definitely want to take advantage of the iCandy dashboard to gain insight into your conversion metrics. You can take a peak at mobile, Mac, and Windows scans, scans by location, and total scans and prints.
iCandy is pretty fun and a little futuristic. If QR codes start becoming something people get accustomed to pointing a scanning device at, it just might be the next great new way to market your product. Until then, play around and let us know what you think in the comments.