Physical things

A real object with a tag on it has a page, a place on the map, and a record of where it was last seen; scan the tag and it answers.

What this is

A physical thing is a real object that Rivr knows about: a kettle, a tool, a bicycle, a crate. It carries a tag, and the tag is how it is recognised.

Three kinds of tag work today. An NFC sticker read by a phone. A QR code read by the camera. Or the tag's own number, typed in.

Every thing has a page, a spot on the map where it was last seen, and a list of sightings: who saw it where, and when.

What you see

The Scan page carries two buttons, Read NFC and Scan QR, and a box where you can type a tag instead.

A tag that belongs to a thing opens a card naming it, saying when it was last seen, and offering the buttons It's here, Open and See in XR.

A tag that belongs to nothing yet offers to register it: a box for the name, a choice of who sees it, and a button reading Register here.

A thing's page lists its tags, where and when it was last seen, who can see it, and anything it reports.

On the Map and in XR Earth a thing is a teal coin with a tag drawn on it. Above it hangs its name and how long ago it was seen. The palm menu shows things under Things.

What you can do here

• Read a tag and open what it belongs to. See Scan a tag.
• Give a new tag a name and a place. See Register a thing.
• Record that a thing is where you are standing. See Say a thing is here.
• Walk to a thing in the world. See Find a thing in XR Earth.

How to

Scan a tag

1. Open the XR menu in XR Earth and choose Scan a thing. A thing's own page also carries the link.
2. Press Read NFC and hold the phone against the sticker, or press Scan QR and point the camera at the code.
3. If neither works on your phone, choose the tag type, type the tag, and press Look up.
4. The thing's card opens.

Register a thing

1. Scan a tag nobody has registered.
2. Type a name for the thing.
3. Under Who sees it, choose Everyone, or one of your groups.
4. Press Register here. The thing is placed where your phone is.

Say a thing is here

1. Scan the thing's tag, or open its page.
2. Tick the box agreeing to record your phone's location on the thing's record.
3. Press It's here. The thing moves to where you are standing, and the sighting is kept with your name for an hour.

Find a thing in XR Earth

1. Open XR Earth.
2. Turn a palm up and choose Things.
3. Walk or fly to a teal coin. Its label says when it was last seen.
4. Press it to open its card, then Open to read its page.

What changes for you

Reading NFC works on Android phones in Chrome. Other phones scan the QR code or type the tag.

A thing registered for everyone is public. A thing registered for a group is seen only by that group's members, and appears in XR Earth only with that group as the channel.

Anyone who can see a thing can open its page. Only the people who can change it, its owner and the group's admins, can say it is here and move it on the map.

A sighting names you for one hour. After that the thing keeps its place and the time, and your name is no longer shown with it.

Where this connects

• XR Earth is where things stand and the palm menu filters them.
• The Map shows the same coins on the flat globe.
• Who can see what covers the visibility choices a thing shares with everything else.
• Making things covers posting a 3D object at a spot, which is a different thing from a real one with a tag.