Creating and Editing Barcode Masks

There are few elements involved in successfully creating a barcode mask. First of all, whether the barcode is applicable to Borrowers or Resources. Secondly, you must know the format of the barcode when scanned, such as 4 numbers then a letter (e.g. 7564A or 8837E). Lastly, you should know what processing the barcode mask needs to perform. For example, the barcode mask may need to remove the character at the 1st and 3rd positions or it may need to remove any leading zeroes. It could also be a mixture of these depending on the barcodes being used.

·To begin editing an existing mask or adding a new one, open the barcode configuration interface.

·Click New to begin creating a new barcode mask or Edit to amend an existing one

·Enter the settings into each of the fields that follow. These fields are described in detail below.

Option	Description

Description	Enter a description to describe the barcode mask. The barcode masks that come with the system are in the format "MLS (x Digits)". If you are creating a barcode mask for a resource that has come from the School Library Service, you may wish to enter "SLS" or "School Library Service".
Type	From the type combo box, select whether the mask being created/edited is for Resources, Borrowers or Resources and Borrowers.
Mask	In the mask text box, you should enter the format of the barcode that is being scanned. The system uses symbols to represent the characters of the barcode. These symbols are a hash (#), which represents a numeric character and an asterisk (), which represents any alphabetic character. Enter the appropriate symbol at each corresponding position. To assist you in entering the right mask, some examples are included below: Scanned barcode = 004538 Mask = ###### Explanation: The barcode is 6 characters long, and all characters are numeric. The # represents a numeric character so this is used in all positions. Scanned barcode = A7368 Mask = #### Explanation: This barcode is 5 characters, with the first character being alphanumeric. The first part of the mask should therefore be an asterisk (), to represent the letter. The next part should be 4 hashes as the remaining characters are numeric. Scanned barcode = 0499a992 Mask = ####### Explanation: The total length of this barcode is 8 characters, with a letter at the 5th position (*) and numeric characters at every other position (#).
Modification Mask	The modification values configure how the characters should be processed at each position. Similarly to the mask, these settings are defined by symbols; a question mark (?) is to represent any character and percentage (%) to remove the character at that position. Note that this is not a mandatory area. If you do not wish to alter the scanned barcode and to simply output it as it is scanned (e.g. 04955 should be interpreted as exactly that) then this field should be left empty. Some examples are included below: Scanned barcode: A84778 Desired Result: 84778 Modification mask: %????? Explanation: In this example, the first alphanumeric character needs to be removed. To remove a character, we use a % symbol so this forms the first part of the mask. The rest of the barcode should remain unchanged so the remaining characters (all 5 digits) are replaced with ?. Scanned barcode: 02938 Desired Result: 02938 Modification Mask: Nothing! Explanation: The scanned barcode should remain unchanged so the modification mask is not required. Scanned barcode: 002838 Desired Result: 2838 Modification Mask: Nothing! Explanation: If you wish to remove the leading zeroes from the beginning of a barcode, you should use Return the Value (as described below) instead.
Return the Value	Tick this box if you wish to remove any leading zeroes from the beginning of the scanned barcode. Note that this does not affect zeroes that appear in the middle of a barcode. Scanned Barcode: 003948 ...with return the value checked... Result: 3948 Scanned Brcode: 9400048 ..with return the value checked... Result: 9400048 Scanned Barcode: A00039 ...with return the value checked... Result: A00039 Scanned Barcode: A00039 ...with return the value checked... Modification Mask: %????? Result: 39

Remember that barcode masks can only be configured to remove characters. You cannot append characters using a barcode mask.

·Click OK once changes have been made to save