Technology can bring the dead virtually to life

Chen Hui, director of Nanshan Cemetery in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, said only one tombstone had a QR code and that marks the resting place of Li Dexin, former Party chief of Hangzhou.

"It still needs time for the public accept new things," Chen said.

Zhang Minfang, a 57-year-old Shanghai resident, said the idea is innovative, but she finds the concept unsettling.

"It is a serious thing to sweep tombs, but scanning tombstones with cellphones might be regarded by some as showing disrespect to the dead," Zhang said.

Wang Yuguang, a student in Beijing, has other concerns.

"Tomb sweeping is a private affair for families, but QR codes are a public service that may leak private information about the family or the decreased," Wang said.

But Hu said a password, to protect access to information, can protect privacy.

Zhang Zhaolin, general manager of waheaven.com, an online cemetery information site in China, said the lack of network coverage in most graveyards may be another factor.

"Most graveyards in China are located in areas which have weak or no network coverage," Zhang said.

Hu agreed the network coverage is a barrier to market development, but he insisted that the technology will be widely accepted.

The machine-readable barcode, invented by Japanese car manufacturers to represent web links in graphic form in the early 1990s, is now widely used for product tracking, document management and marketing purposes.

QR codes aside, technology is making inroads in other areas.

By just a few mouse clicks, visitors to certain websites can deliver condolence letters, light candles and even burn incense and paper offerings to the virtual tombs of the dead.

Tomb-Sweeping Day traditionally sees families cleaning tombs and graves and leave offerings.