Hyperlinks Embedded In Printed Books

A professor at Purdue University, Sorin Matei, has embedded books with two-dimensional QR codes that work as hyperlinks when photographed. Matei’s project Ubimark tries to focus on people who prefer print books over e-books but still want some interactive elements in them. Ubimark aims to enhance the physical reality of books with stories, travel experiences, ratings or information from the web. The classic novel, Around the World in 80 Days, is the first book to be available under this project, with bar-like codes.

When a reader photographs a code accompanying a chapter or illustration from the book, a web browser uses that image to link to a corresponding website which may include a discussion forum, markers with readers’ annotations or a historical map of the location.

Matei eventually wants to develop scholarly publications with embedded features in the future.

See a YouTube demo below

[via The Chronicle]