A QR code for a PDF that you can change later

You print a poster with a QR code on it. A week later you notice a mistake in the document the code opens. If the code points straight at a file, the poster is wrong until you reprint it.

The way around it is to point the code at a link whose destination you can change.

Why a QR code for a file is fragile

A QR code is just an address, drawn as a picture. Whatever address it holds is fixed once it is printed. If the address is a PDF stored somewhere, changing the PDF means changing the address, and the printed code stops working or opens the old file.

Point it at a flipbook instead

When you publish a document as a flipbook, you get a link. The link stays the same when you publish a new version. So a QR code for that link keeps working while the document behind it changes.

The share window in the Studio gives you the QR code. You can download it as an image and put it on a poster, a menu, a flyer or a slide.

One code per page

A QR code can also point at a single page of a flipbook. That is useful in a printed catalog, where each page of paper can carry a code that opens the matching page online. The Studio can give you a code for every page.

Tips for printing

• Make it big enough. On a poster, a code should be at least a few centimeters across. On a table card, make it comfortable to scan from a hand's length.
• Leave a blank margin around it. The empty border is part of the code. Do not crop it.
• Use strong contrast. Dark code on a light background scans most reliably.
• Test it with more than one phone before you print a thousand.
• Say what it opens. A few words, such as "Scan for the menu", get more scans than a bare square.

What happens when it changes

Update the document, publish the new version, and nothing about the printed code changes. People who scan it see the new version. If you remove the flipbook or set an end date, the code stops working, so add one only when you mean it.

A caution

A QR code on a public poster can be scanned by anyone. Do not put anything behind it that should not be public. If you add a password, the code still opens the flipbook, and readers are asked for the password.

Menus, price lists, handbooks and property brochures all use this. The templates for those are in the Studio.