It is important to understand that Tag is programmable right from the start.

While there are many important points to make about the ability and utility for TAG, we believe it is critical that everyone understand from the outset that TAG is a programmable interface that you can integrate into existing systems. TagGEN is simply our methodology to allow you to generate a TAG from a web page. Try it. Fill in a web address below and click the button.

Please note that this will only generate a TAG that redirects the user to a website. Other functionality, such as creating a Tag that directs a phone to dial a telephone number or provide contact information, you can find at Microsoft's Tag site.

Internet Explorer

If you are using Microsoft Internet Explorer, when you click the button you should see a dialog like this. You can open the file immediately or save the file as indicated. What program the file opens in depends on your own default settings and this gives you the option of previewing and testing the file before saving it.

 When you open the file on screen, you can use the Tag reader to read the image directly from the screen or print it; however, please see the note below about expiry.

Firefox

Firefox users will see a slightly different dialog the results when they create a Tag. Depending on your browser settings, you may not immediately be able to open the file. However, you do have the option to change the program that opens the file, so you can select a program such as Microsoft PhotoViewer and the file will open.

As with IE when you open the file on screen, you can use the Tag reader to read the image directly from the screen or print it. Again, this Tag has a limited lifetime so please review the note below.

Safari

If you are Safari user, you will not be able to open the file from the dialog because of the addition of an "html" extension. Selecting open, Safari will try to open the file in the browser and the result is not pretty. You can still save the file to a location of your choice and then open it with your preferred graphics viewer. Please see the note below about expiry.

Notes on Expiration

Microsoft Tags can be set to expire in as little as a day or be set to last indefinitely. At present, it is our choice to expire Tags created on this site after seven (7) days since we do not restrict anyone's ability to generate a Tag. Since Tag is still in beta, it is most likely that Tags created through this application may become dysfunctional once Tag moves into full production.

If you need a longer lifetime or require more control over your TAG, you can create your own account at Microsoft Tag and use their interface to create, store and manage your TAGs.