New Features

• Add Micro QR code support by @Shane32 in #592

Performance Enhancements

• optimise: remove unnecessary BitArray by @TimothyMakkison in #607
• Reduced some allocations in QRCodeGenerator (NETCORE_APP only) by @gfoidl in #595
• PngByteQRCode: use ArrayPool.Rent to prevent byte[] allocation by @TimothyMakkison in #615
• Optimize compression/decompression and add tests by @Shane32 in #611
• Change PdfByteQRCode to draw rectangles instead of embed JPGs by @Shane32 in #635
• Optimize PDF path algorithm by using RLE by @Shane32 in #650
• Add postscript renderer optimizations by @Shane32 in #651
• Add optimization to GetRawData by @Shane32 in #653
• Add ASCII renderer optimizations by @Shane32 in #652
• Add path-based SVG rendering with RLE encoding to reduce file size and memory usage by @Shane32 in #655
• optimise: fill QRCode with one colour by @TimothyMakkison in #626
• Optimize QRCoder.GetGraphic performance by @Shane32 in #658

Bug Fixes

• Fixed reason length for BezahlCode Generator by @MatzeSch in #603
• Fix vCard bugs; import RFCs by @Shane32 in #621
• Add support for SHA256 and SHA512 algorithms in One Time Password generation by @Shane32 in #620
• Fix: Make BIC optional for Girocode Version 2 by @Shane32 in #622
• Fix ECC level Q for micro QR codes; add various tests to improve code coverage by @Shane32 in #649

Documentation Changes

• fix Build and NuGet Badges by @T0biii in #589
• Fix typo in README.md and clarify some wording by @darkermango in #604
• Transition to Shane32 repo and remove EOL notice by @Shane32 in #608
• Update repo links; use main readme for NuGet by @Shane32 in #619
• Add XML comments on all public members where missing by @Shane32 in #629
• Rewrite README.md by @Shane32 in #660

Refactoring and Other Changes

• Raised version counter to 1.6.1 for next release by @codebude in #572
• Split alphanumeric encoding from QRCodeGenerator, split encoding tables by @Shane32 in #590
• Pin .NET SDK to 8.x for local/CI builds by @Shane32 in #591
• Run CI tests in parallel by @Shane32 in #609
• Update testing to only test .NET Standard and LTS versions by @Shane32 in #614
• Fix #if conditional to match rest of application by @Shane32 in #613
• Simplify WriteScanlines by @Shane32 in #612
• Add PNG benchmarks by @Shane32 in #616
• Review all ifdefs; add net standard 2.1 target by @Shane32 in #618
• Update CI workflow for pushing to master by @Shane32 in #623
• Migrate all assertions to Shouldly syntax; use visual regression checks by @Shane32 in #624
• Hide approval files in Solution Explorer by @Shane32 in #627
• Cleanup project files; configure Directory.Build.props by @Shane32 in #628
• Fix tests & code coverage reporting by @Shane32 in #633
• Enable implicit usings by @Shane32 in #631
• Enable nullable reference types and improve null handling across multiple files by @Shane32 in #630
• Update CI workflows and project files for improved package management and versioning by @Shane32 in #632
• Add bash shell specification for package publishing steps in CI workflows by @Shane32 in #636
• Fix path separator in NuGet push command for GitHub packages by @Shane32 in #637
• Fix CI tests for most frameworks by @Shane32 in #641
• Fix API approvals within CI workflows by @Shane32 in #642
• Make Postscript renderer deterministic by @Shane32 in #643
• Fix transposition problem with small ASCII renderer by @Shane32 in #645
• Reference System.Drawing.Common for all targets by @Shane32 in #639
• Enable recommended analyzers; use invariant culture throughout by @Shane32 in #640
• Add transposition tests by @Shane32 in #644
• Enable SVG tests by @Shane32 in #654
• Add QRCode renderer benchmark; add menu system to benchmarks by @Shane32 in #659
• Update version extraction logic for release workflows by @Shane32 in #662

New Contributors

• @T0biii made their first contribution in #589
• @darkermango made their first contribution in #604
• @TimothyMakkison made their first contribution in #607
• @MatzeSch made their first contribution in #603
• @gfoidl made their first contribution in #595

Full Changelog: v1.6.0...v1.7.0

What has changed

• [Enhancement] Huge performance (runtime and memory) optimization in QrCodeGenerator (PRs #509, #519, #520, #521, #524, #530, #532)
• [Enhancement] Big performance (runtime and memory) optimization in BitmapByteQRCode (PR #566)
• [Enhancement] Added ECC level mismatch detection when using payloads from payload generator (PR #526)
• [Enhancement] Implementation of encoding constraints (EccLevel, EciMode) in SwissQRCode and GiroCode payloads to enforce that the payloads comply with the specifications of the respective standards (PR #533)
• [Enhancement] Added support for trimming (IsTrimmable project property) (PR #539)
• [Enhancement] Added XML comments (code documentation) to all public members (PR #561)
• [Enhancement] Added new/third overload to PngByteQRCode that accepts colors as System.Drawing.Color (PR #564)
• [Enhancement] Updated the Bitmap header from BITMAPCOREHEADER to BITMAPINFOHEADER in BitmapByteQRCode (PR #565)
• [Refactoring] Restructured QRCodeGenerator classes into separate files and partially restructured code for better manageability (PRs #516, #528, #531)
• [Refactoring] Restructured PayloadGenerator classes into separate files for better manageability (PR #556)
• [Refactoring] Restructured the PayloadGeneratorTests into separate files for better manageability (PR #569)
• [Refactoring] Removed category attribute from tests as it is no longer used/useful (PR #568)
• [Refactoring] Improved code documentation by adding comments to generator methods (PR #517)
• [Refactoring] Refactored and cleaned up the (needed for backwards compatibility) Stream- and String extension methods (PR #534)
• [Refactoring] Added nullable reference type (NRT) metadata to all possible members (PR #559)
• [Refactoring] Removed not longer necessary framework overrides in project files (PR #560)
• [Refactoring] Reformatted code and added dotnet format toolchain (PR #562)
• [Note] Added performance benchmark project to ensure that future enhancement don't affect performance negatively (PRs #508, #510)

Breaking Changes

• If the function GenerateQrCode(payload, eccLevel) is called and the payload has set an ECC level "X" that differs from the ECC level from the parameter eccLevel, the QRCoder now throws an ArgumentOutOfRangeException to prevent the contract violation in the context of the payload. (Previously, the EccLevel was taken from eccLevel parameter without further checking, which in the worst case could lead to unreadable payloads.)

Deprecations

• class QRCoder.Extensions.CustomExtensions
• class QRCoder.Extensions.StringValueAttribute

NuGet Package (QRCoder): https://www.nuget.org/packages/QRCoder/1.6.0
NuGet Package (QRCoder.Xaml): https://www.nuget.org/packages/QRCoder.Xaml/1.6.0
Full Release Notes: https://github.com/codebude/QRCoder/wiki/Release-notes
Full Changelog: v1.5.1...v1.6.0

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Special thanks for PRs and support goes to: @Shane32, @gfoidl, @csturm83, @Apflkuacha

What has changed

• [Bugfix] The SupportedOSPlatformAttribute attributes were missing in the 1.5.0 build. Fixed build steps in workflows. (PRs #504, #505)
• [Note] Added automated API approval tests to ensure that all changes to the public APIs are deliberate and documented (PR #504)

NuGet Package (QRCoder): https://www.nuget.org/packages/QRCoder/1.5.1
NuGet Package (QRCoder.Xaml): https://www.nuget.org/packages/QRCoder.Xaml/1.5.1
Full Release Notes: https://github.com/codebude/QRCoder/wiki/Release-notes
Full Changelog: v1.5.0...v1.5.1

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Special thanks for PRs and support goes to: @Shane32 and the GraphQL for .NET project.

What has changed

• [Enhancement] Added support for explicit WPA2 in PayloadGenerator.Wifi (PR #494)
• [Enhancement] Added Linux support for PostscriptQRCode (PR #493)
• [Enhancement] Added Linux support under .NET5 (or greater) for SvgQRCode incl. logo handling (PRs #490, #491)
• [Enhancement] Improved README.MD and the examples in it (PRs #456, #481)
• [Enhancement] Optimized performance of GenerateQrCode-function for payloads of type byte[] (PR #438)
• [Enhancement] Added another overload of GetGraphic() to the ASCIIQrCode-renderer that allows to render smaller representations of the QR code graphic by pressing two rows of modules into one char (PR #384 with inspiration from #430)
• [Enhancement] Added support for UTC DateTimes and DateTimeOffsets in CalenderEvent-payload generator (PR #499)
• [Enhancement] Added support for non-Windows platforms on .NET6+ (or newer) in Base64QRCode (PR #495)
• [Update] Updated the allowed character set for contacts/addresses in PayloadGenerator.SwissQRCode (PR #432)
• [Update] Updated the valid country code list by XK for contacts/addresses in PayloadGenerator.SwissQRCode (PR #497)
• [Bugfix] Changed linebreak behaviour after StrdBkgInf-field in PayloadGenerator.SwissQRCode as it is additional instead of optional since SwissQRCode standard version 2.2 (PR #411)
• [Bugfix] Fixed bug in placement of finder patterns in ArtQrCode-renderer that occured when quietzones should be drawn and a custom finderPatternImage was set at the same time (PR #474)
• [Bugfix] Fixed use of pixelSizeFactor in ArtQrCode-renderer, which had no effect before (PR #408)
• [Bugfix] PayloadGenerator.Url didn't handle upper-case input correctly (PR #447)
• [Bugfix] Fixed bug in ASCIIQRCode renderer that lead to mirrored/false rendering of ASCII QR codes (PR #476)
• [Bugfix] Added missing url encoding of the issuer field in OneTimePassword payload generator (PR #391)
• [Bugfix] Fixed 300 byte limit validator in PaymentOrder payload generator. Now only mandatory fields will be inspected. (PR #498)
• [Bugfix] Fixed bug that lead to wrongly placed logo backgrounds when rendering a SvgQRCode with logo and disabled quietzones at the same time. (PR #502)

NuGet Package (QRCoder): https://www.nuget.org/packages/QRCoder/1.5.0
NuGet Package (QRCoder.Xaml): https://www.nuget.org/packages/QRCoder.Xaml/1.5.0
Full Release Notes: https://github.com/codebude/QRCoder/wiki/Release-notes
Full Changelog: v1.4.3...v1.5.0

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Special thanks for PRs and support goes to: @Shane32, @MarkusG, @PolnerA, @Timwi, @josh-, @doggy8088, @mharen, @Tragen, @HolyOne, @gfoidl, @RamonaFrickCH, @koaqiu, @hbdbim, @gliljas

What has changed

• [Enhancement] Added net6.0 and net6.0-windows as target frameworks to avoid conflicts on applications that use QRCoder while targeting net6.0 on non-Windows platforms. (PRs #358, #359; Commits 2c78d05, 84afafc)
• [Enhancement] Decoupled XamlQRCode from QRCoder-main, to avoid unnecessary Windows-dependencies on non-Windos platforms. (PRs #358, #359; Commits 2c78d05, 84afafc)

NuGet Package (QRCoder): https://www.nuget.org/packages/QRCoder/1.4.3
NuGet Package (QRCoder.Xaml): https://www.nuget.org/packages/QRCoder.Xaml/1.4.3
Full Release Notes: https://github.com/codebude/QRCoder/wiki/Release-notes
Full Changelog: https://github.com/codebude/QRCoder/commits/v1.4.3

What has changed

• [Feature] New renderer called "ArtQrCode" for rendering QR codes with dots and background pictures (PRs #295, #344)
• [Feature] Added new payload generator called "RussiaPaymentOrder", following the 56042:2014-standard, that can be used to generate QR codes for payment purposes. (PR #338)
• [Feature] Support for .NET5 (PR #286)
• [Feature] Added strong-name signing (PR #331)
• [Feature] New parameter/option to render a logo on SvgQrCodes (PRs #281, #346, #347)
• [Enhancement] Added 'organization' and 'organization title' to the ContactData payload generator (PRs #276, #325)
• [Enhancement] Added DataTooLong exception to warn users for too long payloads in combination with too small requestVersion-parameter (Commit 49d5b35)
• [Enhancement] Improved performance and reduced filesize for SvgQrCodes (PR #265)
• [Enhancement] Switched to new Whatsapp url scheme (https:/wa.me/...) in Whatsapp payload generator (PR #333)
• [Enhancement] Added optional parameter to disable HEX-style escpaing in WiFi payload generator (PR #334)
• [Enhancement] Added a new parameter for AsciiQrCode that allows suppression of the quiet zone/border around the code (PR #339)
• [Enhancement] Added a new parameter for PngByteQRCode that allows suppression of the quiet zone/border around the code (PR #350)
• [Enhancement] Improved coding of the Mail/SMS/MMS payload generators (PR #349)
• [Bugfix] In some cases AsciiQrCodes weren't rendered well/lines were missing (PR #339)
• [Bugfix] The parameter iconBorderWith on the QRCode-renderer stopped working (from QRCoder 1.4.0 on). It got fixed and works again. In addition a new parameter called iconBackgroundColor was added, which allows to set the background color of an icon. (PR #351)

NuGet Package: https://www.nuget.org/packages/QRCoder/1.4.2
Full Release Notes: https://github.com/codebude/QRCoder/wiki/Release-notes
Full Changelog: https://github.com/codebude/QRCoder/commits/v1.4.2

[Bugfix] Major bugfix which corrects an error with generation of alphanumeric QRCodes.

[Enhancement] Lowered memory usage and improved performance [Enhancement] Added plugin url part and new ciphersuites for ShadowSocks payload generator [Enhancement] Improved validity checks for QR-IBANs in SwissQRCode payload generator [Bugfix] Fixed checks one the name field of SwissQRCode contacts [Bugfix] Fixed missing linebreak when "Bill information" in SwissQRCode is empty [Bugfix] Fixed and improved ISO-3166-1 (two-letter-code) handling on all target platforms [Bugfix] Updated System.Drawing.Common nuget reference