So, for the past 12 months we’ve basically had a whirlwind of different “solutions” to the problem of contact tracing. The common theme amongst them seems to be they’re all technical-based, and they all assume people carry a smartphone, registered with one of the two major app stores, and made in the last few years.

Quite simply, if you’re carrying an old 3G brick from 2010, you don’t exist to these “apps”. Our own federal government tried its hand in this space by taking OpenTrace (developed by the Singapore Government and released as GPLv3 open-source) and rebadging that (and re-licensing it!) as COVIDSafe.

This had very mild success to say the least, with contact tracers telling us that this fancy “app” wasn’t telling them anything new. So much focus has been put on signing into and out of venues.

To be honest, I’m fine with this until such time as we get this gift from China under control. The concept is not what irks me, it’s its implementation.

At first, it was done on paper. Good old fashioned pen and paper. Simple, nearly foolproof, didn’t crash, didn’t need credit, didn’t need recharging, didn’t need network coverage… except for two problems:

1. people who can’t successfully operate a pen (Hmm, what went wrong, Education Queensland?)
2. people who can’t take the process seriously (and an app solves this how?)

So they demanded that all venues use an electronic system. Fine, so we had a myriad of different electronic web-based systems, a little messy, but it worked, and for the most part, the venue’s system didn’t care what your phone was.

A couple, even could take check-in by SMS. Still rocking a Nokia 3210 from 1998? Assuming you’ve found a 2G cell tower in range, you can still check in. Anything that can do at least 3G will be fine.

An advantage of this solution is that they have your correct mobile phone number then and it’s a simple matter for Queensland Health to talk to Telstra/Optus/Vodaphone/whoever to get your name and address from that… as a bonus, the cell sites may even have logs of your device’s IMEI roaming, so there’s more for the contact tracing kitty.

I only struck one venue out of dozens, whose system would not talk to my phone. Basically some JavaScript library didn’t load, and so it fell in a heap.

Until yesterday.

The Queensland Government has decided to foist its latest effort on everybody, the “Check-in Queensland” app. It is available on Google Play Store and Apple App Store, and their QR codes are useless without it. I can’t speak about the Apple version of the software, but for the Android one, it requires Android 5.0 or above.

Got an old reliable clunker that you keep using because it pulls the weakest signals and has a stand-by time that can be measured in days? Too bad. For me, my Android 4.1 device is not welcome. There are people out there for whom, even that, is a modern device.

Why not buy a newer phone? Well, when I bought this particular phone, back in 2015… I was looking for 3 key features:

1. Make and receive (voice) telephone calls
2. Send and receive short text messages
3. Provide a Internet link for my laptop via USB/WiFi

Anything else is a bonus. It has a passable camera. It can (and does) play music. There’s a functional web browser (Firefox). There’s a selection of software I can download (via F-Droid). It Does What I Need It To Do. The battery still lasts 2-3 days between charges on stand-by. I’ve seen it outperform nearly every contemporary device on the market in areas with weak mobile coverage, and I can connect an external antenna to boost that if needed.

About the only thing I could wish for is open-source firmware and a replaceable battery. (Well, it sort-of is replaceable. Just a lot of frigging around to get at it. I managed to replace a GPS battery, so this should be doable.)

So, given this new check-in requirement, what is someone like me to do? Whilst the Queensland Government is urging people to install their application, they recognise that there are those of us who cannot because we lack anything that will run it. So they ask that venues have a device on hand that can be used to check visitors in if this situation arises.

My little “hack” simply exploits this:

# This file is part of pylabels, a Python library to create PDFs for printing
# labels.
# Copyright (C) 2012, 2013, 2014 Blair Bonnett
#
# pylabels is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the
# terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software
# Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or (at your option) any later
# version.
#
# pylabels is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY
# WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR
# A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the GNU General Public License for more details.
#
# You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with
# pylabels.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.

import argparse
import labels
import time
from reportlab.lib.units import mm
from reportlab.graphics import shapes
from reportlab.lib import colors
from reportlab.graphics.barcode import qr

rows = 4
cols = 2
# Specifications for Avery C32028 2×4 85×54mm
specs = labels.Specification(210, 297, cols, rows, 85, 54, corner_radius=0,
        left_margin=17, right_margin=17, top_margin=31, bottom_margin=32)

def draw_label(label, width, height, checkin_id):
    label.add(shapes.String(
        42.5*mm, 50*mm,
        'COVID-19 Check-in Card',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=12, textAnchor='middle'
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        42.5*mm, 46*mm,
        'The Queensland Government has chosen to make the',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=8, textAnchor='middle'
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        42.5*mm, 43*mm,
        'CheckIn QLD application incompatible with my device.',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=8, textAnchor='middle'
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        42.5*mm, 40*mm,
        'Please enter my contact details into your system',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=8, textAnchor='middle'
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        42.5*mm, 37*mm,
        'at your convenience.',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=8, textAnchor='middle'
    ))

    label.add(shapes.String(
        5*mm, 32*mm,
        'Name: Joe Citizen',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=12
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        5*mm, 28*mm,
        'Phone: 0432 109 876',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=12
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        5*mm, 24*mm,
        'Email address:',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=12
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        84*mm, 20*mm,
        'myaddress+c%o@example.com' % checkin_id,
        fontName="Courier", fontSize=12, textAnchor='end'
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        5*mm, 16*mm,
        'Home address:',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=12
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        15*mm, 12*mm,
        '12 SomeDusty Rd',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=12
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        15*mm, 8*mm,
        'BORING SUBURB, QLD, 4321',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=12
    ))

    label.add(shapes.String(
        2, 2, 'Date: ',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=10
    ))
    label.add(shapes.Rect(
        10*mm, 2, 12*mm, 4*mm,
        fillColor=colors.white, strokeColor=colors.gray
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        22.5*mm, 2, '-', fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=10
    ))
    label.add(shapes.Rect(
        24*mm, 2, 6*mm, 4*mm,
        fillColor=colors.white, strokeColor=colors.gray
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        30.5*mm, 2, '-', fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=10
    ))
    label.add(shapes.Rect(
        32*mm, 2, 6*mm, 4*mm,
        fillColor=colors.white, strokeColor=colors.gray
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        40*mm, 2, 'Time: ',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=10
    ))
    label.add(shapes.Rect(
        50*mm, 2, 6*mm, 4*mm,
        fillColor=colors.white, strokeColor=colors.gray
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        56.5*mm, 2, ':', fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=10
    ))
    label.add(shapes.Rect(
        58*mm, 2, 6*mm, 4*mm,
        fillColor=colors.white, strokeColor=colors.gray
    ))

    label.add(shapes.String(
        10*mm, 5*mm, 'Year',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=6, fillColor=colors.gray
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        24*mm, 5*mm, 'Month',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=6, fillColor=colors.gray
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        32*mm, 5*mm, 'Day',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=6, fillColor=colors.gray
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        50*mm, 5*mm, 'Hour',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=6, fillColor=colors.gray
    ))
    label.add(shapes.String(
        58*mm, 5*mm, 'Minute',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=6, fillColor=colors.gray
    ))

    label.add(qr.QrCodeWidget(
            '%o' % checkin_id,
            barHeight=12*mm, barWidth=12*mm, barBorder=1,
            x=73*mm, y=0
    ))

# Grab the arguments
OCTAL_T = lambda x : int(x, 8)
parser = argparse.ArgumentParser()
parser.add_argument(
        '--base', type=OCTAL_T,
        default=(int(time.time() / 86400.0) << 8)
)
parser.add_argument('--offset', type=OCTAL_T, default=0)
parser.add_argument('pages', type=int, default=1)
args = parser.parse_args()

# Figure out cards per sheet (max of 256 cards per day)
cards = min(rows * cols * args.pages, 256)

# Figure out check-in IDs
start_id = args.base + args.offset
end_id = start_id + cards
print ('Generating cards from %o to %o' % (start_id, end_id))

# Create the sheet.
sheet = labels.Sheet(specs, draw_label, border=True)

sheet.add_labels(range(start_id, end_id))

# Save the file and we are done.
sheet.save('checkin-cards.pdf')
print("{0:d} cards(s) output on {1:d} page(s).".format(sheet.label_count, sheet.page_count))

That script (which may look familiar), generates up to 256 check-in cards. The check-in cards are business card sized and look like this:

That card has:

1. the person’s full name
2. a contact telephone number
3. an email address with a unique sub-address component for verification purposes (compatible with services that use + for sub-addressing like Gmail)
4. home address
5. date and time of check-in (using ISO-8601 date format)
6. a QR code containing a “check-in number” (which also appears in the email sub-address)

Each card has a unique check-in number (seen above in the email address and as the content of the QR code) which is derived from the number of days since 1st January 1970 and a 8-bit sequence number; so we can generate up to 256 cards a day. The number is just meant to be unique to the person generating them, two people using this script can, and likely will, generate cards with the same check-in ID.

I actually added the QR code after I printed off a batch (thought of the idea too late). Maybe the next batch will have the QR code. This can be used with a phone app of your choosing (e.g. maybe use BarcodeScanner to copy the check-in number to the clip-board then paste it into a spreadsheet, or make your own tool) to add other data. In my case, I’ll use a paper system:

The script that generates those is here:

# This file is part of pylabels, a Python library to create PDFs for printing
# labels.
# Copyright (C) 2012, 2013, 2014 Blair Bonnett
#
# pylabels is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the
# terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software
# Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or (at your option) any later
# version.
#
# pylabels is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY
# WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR
# A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the GNU General Public License for more details.
#
# You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with
# pylabels.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.

import argparse
import labels
import time
from reportlab.lib.units import mm
from reportlab.graphics import shapes
from reportlab.lib import colors

rows = 4
cols = 2
# Specifications for Avery C32028 2×4 85×54mm
specs = labels.Specification(210, 297, cols, rows, 85, 54, corner_radius=0,
        left_margin=17, right_margin=17, top_margin=31, bottom_margin=32)

def draw_label(label, width, height, checkin_id):
    label.add(shapes.String(
        42.5*mm, 50*mm,
        'COVID-19 Check-in Log',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=12, textAnchor='middle'
    ))

    label.add(shapes.Rect(
        1*mm, 3*mm, 20*mm, 45*mm,
        fillColor=colors.lightgrey,
        strokeColor=None
    ))
    label.add(shapes.Rect(
        41*mm, 3*mm, 28*mm, 45*mm,
        fillColor=colors.lightgrey,
        strokeColor=None
    ))

    for row in range(3, 49, 5):
        label.add(shapes.Line(1*mm, row*mm, 84*mm, row*mm, strokeWidth=0.5))
    for col in (1, 21, 41, 69, 84):
        label.add(shapes.Line(col*mm, 48*mm, col*mm, 3*mm, strokeWidth=0.5))

    label.add(shapes.String(
        2*mm, 44*mm,
        'In',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=8
    ))

    label.add(shapes.String(
        22*mm, 44*mm,
        'Check-In #',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=8
    ))

    label.add(shapes.String(
        42*mm, 44*mm,
        'Place',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=8
    ))

    label.add(shapes.String(
        83*mm, 44*mm,
        'Out',
        fontName="Helvetica", fontSize=8, textAnchor='end'
    ))

# Grab the arguments
parser = argparse.ArgumentParser()
parser.add_argument('pages', type=int, default=1)
args = parser.parse_args()

cards = rows * cols * args.pages

# Create the sheet.
sheet = labels.Sheet(specs, draw_label, border=True)

sheet.add_labels(range(cards))

# Save the file and we are done.
sheet.save('checkin-log-cards.pdf')
print("{0:d} cards(s) output on {1:d} page(s).".format(sheet.label_count, sheet.page_count))

When I see one of these Check-in Queensland QR codes, I simply pull out the log card, a blank check-in card, and a pen. I write the check-in number from the blank card (visible in the email address) in my log with the date/time, place, and on the blank card, write the same date/time and hand that to the person collecting the details.

They can write that into their device at their leisure, and it saves time not having to spell it all out. As for me, I just have to remember to write the exit time. If Queensland Health come a ringing, I have a record of where I’ve been on hand… or if I receive an email, I can use the check-in number to validate that this is legitimate, or even tell if a venue has on-sold my personal details to an advertiser.

I guess it’d be nice if the Queensland Government could at least add a form to their fancy pages that their flashy QR codes send people to, so that those who do not have the application can still at least check-in without it, but that’d be too much to ask.

In the meantime, this at least meets them half-way, and hopefully does so which ensures minimal contact and increases efficiency.