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Barcode Scanning in Action

barcode scanning location qr video walkthrough

Barcode scanning is one of the clearest examples of what MDCollections does better than a plain manual Markdown workflow. These two videos show the app from both sides: first as a fast capture tool for adding a new collectible, then as a practical tool for assigning existing items to physical storage.

If you already manage collections in Obsidian, this is the layer that makes capture and location tracking much less repetitive.

Why this workflow matters

Typing everything by hand works when the collection is small. It becomes much slower when each item needs a title, UPC, image, notes, and a real storage location. MDCollections shortens that path by combining barcode lookup, camera capture, and QR-based location assignment in one workflow.

Adding a New Item with Barcode Scanning

This video shows the full end-to-end flow of adding a new collectible figure using barcode scanning and product lookup.

What the workflow shows:

  1. Open the collection and tap the scan button.
  2. Scan the figure’s barcode — the app sends the UPC to the product API.
  3. Verify the result — confirm the product returned matches the item you scanned.
  4. Edit the fields — adjust any of the auto-filled properties as needed.
  5. Select the API image — choose the product image returned by the lookup.
  6. Scan the front and back of the figure’s packaging using the document scanner.
  7. Scan a location container QR code — assign the item to a physical storage location.
  8. Save the item — everything is written to a Markdown file.
  9. Search for the item — open the search bar and look up the newly added figure to confirm it’s in the collection.

Assigning Items to a Storage Location

This video shows a second workflow: taking figures that are already in the collection and assigning them to a storage container by scanning its QR code.

What the workflow shows:

  1. Open search in the collection.
  2. Scan the product barcode to find the item.
  3. Expand the properties and scroll down to the location container field.
  4. Scan the container’s QR code to assign the item.
  5. Save the item.
  6. Repeat for a second item — same flow, same speed.

This is the kind of workflow that gets faster the more you use it. Once your collections and locations are set up, assigning items to containers becomes scan, scan, save.

Why this works well with Obsidian

If Obsidian is where you organize and browse your notes, MDCollections is a strong companion for the parts that are awkward to do manually on mobile. The files still end up as Markdown that you control, but the capture process is much faster.

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