QR Code

Is this how the old folks in our society feel?

I had a moment of distinct obsolescence while booking movie tickets online. Mind you, I have had plenty of experience doing it. Usually, after paying for the tickets at the Golden Village website, I would find an AXS machine to print out the tickets. The last step was rather a nuisance, but I had the assurance of arriving at the cinema's door step with physical proof of purchase.

Abruptly, it all changed. After booking the tickets, I received an email with an e-ticket, and a square with a black and white pattern. The email instructed me NOT to print out the ticket, and all I have to do is to use QR code to enter. And so I wondered...

What is a QR code? That black and white square?
What does it mean to "use" the QR code to enter?

It was so tempting to print out that pattern and bring it to the cinema, but it would probably make me a laughingstock :P And so I googled what a QR code is, and how one "reads" it. My conclusion is, I will show my iphone with that email to the usher when the time comes :P and hope for the best.

If it is difficult even for someone reasonably literate and comfortable with technology, what is life like for the old people who do not even know English? It must be like living in an alien world where most of the ongoing communication is completely unintelligible. No wonder there are still people willing to queue up at ticketing booths or bank tellers to transact the old-fashioned way, but how long will these options remain available?