Well, not to invite disaster, but I disagree. It's true that I would never bother to scan the QR code on an ad, but that's mainly because the few times I did so, it took me nowhere of any interest. Sorry, ad people, but you blew it.
On the other hand, QR codes have some really practical and useful applications. There are a lot of places IRL where I'd really like to reach out and click the object in front of me to get more information or have something useful happen. It's not like we don't have a globally accessible network where information can be stored. For example, I did a job in one company where they had signs on the wall with a QR code to connect to their internal network. You walk in, scan the code, and boom! You've got net.
Some other useful real-world applications for QR codes:
- On a material or product to open its Material Safety Data Sheet
- On an E-Ticket to see gate assignment and flight status for the flight
- Next to a work of art to load information about the piece
- On a product to load the manual or an instructional video
- On a bus shelter to get a schedule for the routes that stop there
- Etc.
If you want to play with creating and scanning QR Codes, try the free QR Code Generator at QRStuff.