Overview

We want to create apps that include QR codes and wanted to offer a better experience then embedding an image. This change adds a new module, qrcode that allows for generating QR codes that look great on the display.

Notes on QR Codes

• QR Codes have version numbers, which roughly equates to the size of the code in terms of modules
• A module is a 1x1 square, so for us a module is a pixel
• Versions are from 1-40. We can use the following versions on a Tidbyt:
  • 1 == 21x21
  • 2 == 25x25
  • 3 == 29x29
• One gotcha is that lower version numbers also can contain less data. This becomes a problem if a users wants to include large URLs in small QRCodes without shortening them
• QRCodes have a an error correction feature, which is useful in environments like a paper menu when there might be smudges, etc.
  • Because we're using small QRCodes, we can't support a super high level of error correction without sacrificing the length of URL we have

Changes

• modules: Add QRCode module.
  • This commit adds a module to generate QR codes to pixlet! This native QR code integration can be used to create promotional apps.

Example

load("render.star", "render")
load("qrcode.star", "qrcode")

def main(config):
    code = qrcode.generate(
        url = "https://tidbyt.com?utm_source=pixlet_example",
        size = "large",
        color = "#fff",
        background = "#000",
    )

    return render.Root(
        child = render.Padding(
            child = render.Image(src = code),
            pad = 1,
        ),
    )