Colin the Computer Meets Barry and Quincy: How Barcodes and QR Codes Work

By Matthew Allen

Lily is playing shop when she spots the funny little black lines on a cereal box. Colin the Computer knows exactly what they are. They are barcodes, and they are on everything in the shops But Colin has no scanner, so he cannot read what they say.

Beep In strolls Barry Barcode, a cheerful, stripy fellow who has been around for over fifty years. His thick and thin lines are a number in disguise: one quick look from the shop's scanner and the till knows exactly what you have picked. Then in zips Quincy the QR Code, fresh faced and full of energy, who can hold whole words, messages and even a link to a website, and can be read any way up thanks to the three big squares in his corners.

A warm, giggly first look at how barcodes and QR codes work, in the gentle Mr Men style of the Colin the Computer series. Each page pairs a few simple sentences with a bright, full page illustration, and the book ends with a "What did we learn?" page, a code hunt to try at home, and a free online quiz.

Written for primary school, ages 4 to 11. Read aloud at four, read alone at seven, and the ideas still land at ten. Book 4 in the Colin the Computer series.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1911912038
• ISBN13: 9781911912033
• Release Date: September 2026
• Publisher: Small Endian Press
• Length: 44 Pages
• Weight: 0.28 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.1" x 8.5" x 8.5"
• Age Range: 4 to 11 years
• Grade Range: Preschool to Grade 6