How Do I Create and Use Barcodes in Lasernet?

There are two types of barcodes available within Lasernet: Built-in and Symbology Barcodes.

Create a Barcode Profile

To add both Built-in or Symbology Barcodes to a form, firstly a Barcode Profile must be created.

To create a Barcode Profile in the Lasernet Developer, follow these steps:

1. Open your build within the Lasernet Developer application and click the Profiles tab in the Tools menu. 

A new menu will appear, displaying a list of profiles.

2. Click Barcode Profiles to display the Barcode Profiles page.

3. Click the Add button in the Toolbar to display the Add Barcode window. Depending on the scope, create a Built-in or Symbology Barcode Profile.

Built-in Barcodes

1. Choose your Barcode Profile settings from the options presented.

These barcodes utilize Lasernet’s Built-in Barcode fonts. There are options for:

• Code 128

• Code 39

• Code 93

• Codabar

• Interleaved 2 of 5

• Postnet

• UPC-A

• EAN-8

• EAN-13

• UCC128

Along with the 2D barcode options:

• DataMatrix

• MaxiCode

• PDF417

• QRCode

Some of the above symbols will also have extra options that are not displayed. This is especially true with the 2D barcodes, which each have a completely different set of options (which are not covered in this article).

The main consistent options are the Dimensions, Human Readable, and Add Check Digit.

Dimensions: Will change the size of the barcode, the widths of the lines and all the other dimensions.

Human Readable: Will add the value of the barcode below the barcode in a human-readable font. The font and the size used can be changed.

Add check digit: Will add a digit to the end of the barcode so when scanned, a system can use this to confirm if the barcode is correct and complete.

2. Once you have made your choices, click the OK button.

The Built-in Barcode Profile is then displayed on the Work Space.

Symbology Barcodes

These Barcodes use barcode fonts installed in Windows.

Installing a new barcode font can be done through the Windows ® Control Panel. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Download a TrueType barcode font onto the Lasernet server (www.elfring.com is a good resource).

2. Navigate to Control Panel > Appearance and Personalization > Fonts.

3. Drag and drop the font into the Fonts interface and restart the Lasernet server.

This font can now be added as a profile into the form.

4. To create a Symbology Barcode Profile, a few fields need to be filled in:

Name: This is what will be used to select the barcode profile while on the form.

Symbology: This is the type of barcode font the barcode will use. There are four options: 2 of 5 Interleaved, Code 3of9, Code 128, EAN 8/13.

Barcode font: This is the main font that will be used in the barcode.

Error font: This is the backup font that will be used in the case an error occurs with the main barcode font.

5. Click the OK button.

Use Barcodes in a Form

To add a barcode to a form, follow these steps:

1. With your Form open, click the Barcode drop-down button in the left-hadn side Toolbar.

2. Select either a Built-in or Symbology Barcode to add to the Form.

To set up Symbology Barcodes correctly, a profile must be created. To create one, a profile must be selected. To do this, double-click the rearrange and then select the profile from the Choose barcode drop-down menu.

A Built-in Barcode can have a profile created within the form itself. To do this:

1. With a Form open, select the Built-in barcode option in the left-hand side Toolbar using the drop-down arrow.

2. Draw a box for the barcode on the output side of the Form and double-click the barcode box to open the Edit Barcode window.

3. Click the Barcode tab and select the Add button to display two options:

• Add barcode as a profile: This will create a reusable barcode profile.

• Add rearrange embedded barcode: This will create a profile that will only be useable on this form.

4. Select an option from the drop-down menu, enter the required information for the profile, and then click OK.