Barcode
- How to Create
- Features

Barcode

WorkXpress offers two typse of barcodes: 1D and 2D.

2D Barcodes come with pros and cons. The positive is that you can encode 30x more information than in a 1D barcode. The primary negatives are that the label is less likely to be readable in the event of even minor damage, and the data readers are sometimes more expensive. Bottom line, unless you are absolutely certain you need the 2D system, its better to use the 1D system.

Remember that there is nothing particularly secret about a barcode just because we humans can't read it. Choosing to hide the barcode text does not make the information in any way more secure; anyone with a simple reader can decode it.

Pixel Height of a 1D Barcode is relevant not just for aesthetics. The larger the printed barcode label, the more of it that can get ripped off and still be legible to a reader.

If you want to use an Action to set the Barcode value, be sure to set the setting to “Enter Here”. If you set “Lookup the Value”, the Barcode Field will not look in its native storage location, which is presumably where your Action placed the value (It will instead look in the locations set in the Expression Builder).

Also, be sure to set the Field as “View Only”, otherwise, a user may overwrite the value set by the Action.

The fundamental question about whether to use an Action (Enter Here) or the Expression Builder (Lookup Value) to set the value of a Barcode is whether you wish to pre-calculate the value or calculate the value on demand. In both cases, you will use an Expression Builder to create the result. Pre and post calculation of the value is a performance issue (see articles on Performance in the WorkXpress Library).

Because your barcodes can be composed by an Expression Builder, it is common to append several values together in the barcode. For example you can append item number and warehouse location into a single value and use that value to generate your barcode.

Then, later when reading the barcode, you can use the Expression Builder to strip out each component value and act accordingly.

Barcode fields show up in reports as the actual barcode.

How to Create

Barcode Type (required) - Choose 1D - Code 39 for a standard one-dimensional barcode or 2D - PDF417 for a two-dimensional barcode using the PDF 417 standard. The settings listed below will vary based on your choice:

1D - Code 39 Barcode Settings:

Would you like to enter the value or look it up from another Field? (required) - Select the method you wish to use to populate the 1D Barcode Field. From the selection box, choose “Enter Here” or “Lookup The Value”. Note: This setting applies to 1D Barcode Fields only.
- If you choose Enter Here, when the Page containing the Field is opened in Add or Edit Mode, your users will be able to enter the value for the Field in a text entry box. This value will be converted into a barcode by the Barcode Field.
  - You may also use Actions to populate a 1D Barcode Field, however, this will only be relevant if you've chosen “Enter Here”.
- If you choose Lookup The Value, you will be given an Expression Builder. Use the Expression Builder to lookup data and build the value for the 1D Barcode Field. If you choose this method, Barcode images will be generated on demand, and will not reference the value stored in this Field.
Hide the Barcode Text - Check the box to hide the text value for the Barcode Field and display only the barcode itself. This only applies in view mode, and in any reports that display the barcode.
Height (In Pixels) - If desired, configure the height, in pixels, of the displayed barcode.

2D - Data Matrix Settings:

* Would you like to enter the value or look it up from another Field? (required) - Select the method you wish to use to populate the 1D Barcode Field. From the selection box, choose “Enter Here” or “Lookup The Value”. Note: This setting applies to 1D Barcode Fields only.

If you choose Enter Here, when the Page containing the Field is opened in Add or Edit Mode, your users will be able to enter the value for the Field in a text entry box. This value will be converted into a barcode by the Barcode Field.
- You may also use Actions to populate a 1D Barcode Field, however, this will only be relevant if you've chosen “Enter Here”.
If you choose Lookup The Value, you will be given an Expression Builder. Use the Expression Builder to lookup data and build the value for the 1D Barcode Field. If you choose this method, Barcode images will be generated on demand, and will not reference the value stored in this Field.

2D - PDF417 Barcode Settings:

2D Data Codeword 1-30 - Configure up to 30 data codewords to encode into the two-dimensional barcode. Because of the common usage of a 2D barcode, an Expression Builder is provided for each data element.