README

ScannerMApp

A QR code and barcode scanner app built with Delphi and FireMonkey, using ZXing.Delphi for decoding and TFrameStand for the views.

It started in 2017 as a sample for TFrameStand (blog post). It now builds with RAD Studio 13 and runs on recent Android versions and on the iPhone, with a dark UI. What changed, nine years later: ScannerMApp, nine years later: ZXing.Delphi 4, TFrameStand and Android intents.

Scans	Scan result	Formats	About

The screenshots come from the Windows build; on Android the bottom bar has Gallery instead of Open.

Status

Features

• Live scanning from the camera, with a square viewfinder, the points found by ZXing, a torch button and the zoom (pinch, or a 1×/2×/4× button; back to 1× on every scan). The frames are decoded in the background (ScanAsync), so the preview stays smooth. A code that is found but cannot be read yet shows a hint: hold the phone still, or move closer.
• Scanning from a picture in the photo library (Android, iOS) or from a file (Windows, macOS): every code in the image is read. On Windows an image can also be passed on the command line ("Open with").
• Every format ZXing.Delphi 4 reads automatically: QR code, Micro QR, Data Matrix, Aztec, PDF 417, MaxiCode, Code 39/93/128, EAN, UPC, ITF, Codabar, GS1 DataBar… The result card outlines the code in the frame.
• Formats to read: fewer formats make scanning faster and save battery. The choice is kept.
• A sound (a soft chime, Sounds\scan.wav) and a vibration (mobile) when the camera reads a code; no sound in silent mode, and on Android the sound follows the media volume. Each can be turned off in the settings.
• A list of the scans, kept between runs: the same code scanned again increments its counter. Delete all (in the header, with a confirmation) empties it.
• A result card with the scanned frame (pinch, double tap or mouse wheel to zoom, drag to pan) and Copy, Share and Delete.
• Open what a code contains: a link in the browser, a phone number in the dialer, an e-mail or SMS ready to send (also MATMSG, SMSTO), a location in the maps app (geo:), a contact (vCard, MECARD) or an event (iCalendar) in the app that adds it. Only these kinds of content are offered; anything else can be copied or shared.
• Android: images shared with ScannerMApp (one or more, from Gallery, Photos, a chat…) or opened with it are scanned right away, also while the app is running.
• Android: the camera is the only permission the user is asked for (VIBRATE, for the feedback, needs no consent), adaptive launcher icon (also themed), the Back key closes what is open and then leaves the app, edge-to-edge (Android 15+) with the content clear of the system bars.

Requirements

• RAD Studio 13 Florence (Delphi 13).
• Android 64-bit: min SDK 24, target SDK 36. Win32 and Win64 build too (scanning from a file; the camera has not been tested on Windows).
• iOS and macOS: the iOS device, macOS ARM and macOS Intel targets compile and link from Windows (with the SDKs imported in RAD Studio); running them needs a Mac with PAServer. On iOS the app asks for the camera permission before it creates the camera (Forms.Main.StartCamera).
• ZXing.Delphi 4.0 or later, included as a git submodule in ThirdParty\ZXing.Delphi (branch 4.0). Version 3.x does not build: the app uses IScanManager and ScanAsync.
• TFrameStand v.2.4 or later, installed in the IDE (see below). It is not part of this repository: the project finds it through the IDE library path.

Building

Clone with the submodules, so that ZXing.Delphi lands in ThirdParty\ZXing.Delphi:

git clone --recurse-submodules https://github.com/andrea-magni/ScannerMApp.git

In a clone made without it, run git submodule update --init.

TFrameStand must be installed in RAD Studio, so that its source folder is in the library path of every platform you build (Tools ▸ Options ▸ Language ▸ Delphi ▸ Library):

• with the setup of the latest release, or with TMS Smart Setup (tms install andreamagni.tframestand);
• or from a clone of the repository (v.2.4 or later): open packages\13Florence\FrameStand.groupproj, install the design-time package and add the source folder to the library path.

The version matters: the app needs the interactive gestures of the frames registered with the hosting form (#121), available since v.2.4. With v.2.3 or earlier the app builds and runs, but pinch and double-tap zoom on the scanned frame do nothing on Android.

To move ZXing.Delphi to the latest commit of its 4.0 branch: git submodule update --remote ThirdParty/ZXing.Delphi, then commit the new submodule commit.

Then open ScannerMapp.dproj, pick the platform and run.

For Android:

• In Tools ▸ Options ▸ Deployment ▸ SDK Manager, the Android SDK must have a JDK (the Java tab). Without it, the deployment stops because java.exe is not found.
• The app asks for the camera permission the first time you tap Scan; no storage permission is needed.

Project structure

Privacy

ScannerMApp collects nothing: no account, no ads, no analytics, and the Android release build has no internet permission. See the privacy policy.

Google Play Store

ScannerMApp is on Google Play as eu.andreamagni.scannermapp2 (the app published until 2020 as eu.andreamagni.ScannerMapp was removed and cannot be updated). The Release configuration of Android 64-bit builds the App Bundle (.aab) for Google Play. The store listing (English and Italian), the graphics, the answers to the Play Console forms and the signing steps are in docs/play-store.

License

Apache License 2.0.

Related links

Embarcadero Delphi is a modern, powerful and effective language and development tool. Learn more about it at the following links:

• https://www.embarcadero.com/
• https://learndelphi.org/