Printing Intelligent Bar codes

[Jim Asman]

--------------- Original Message ---------------
At 04:02P Wed Sep 11 2013, Nancy Palmquist wrote:
> 
> I am trying to setup a filepro Application to print the Intelligent 
> barcodes.  Has anyone successfully set this up on a Windows platform and 
> could provide some support.  I downloaded the fonts and Encoding 
> software but I can not seem to get either to work using their instructions.
> 
> My first issue is just getting something to print right.
> 
> I made a print code:
> 
> $1b *c32545D %"UC23HL.FNT" $1b *c5F
> 
> I expect that should upload the font file calling the font 32545.
> 
> Then
> 
> $1b (3254X     should be the code I would put prior to the data that 
> needs to be printed in this font.
> 
> I got a sample barcode string:
> 
> FDFFFATTTADDADAFFTFTDAFTDFFDTDAATFFDDTTFADTTFTDDDFFFFTTATAAFDDAAA
> 
> That should print a barcode.
> 
> It does not seem to work.
> I understand the basics.  I need some kind of encoder that I can use to 
> feed data (I guess the zipcode) and will get back the crazy kind of 
> string that I can print.  Since I can not compile the civp.exe file as 
> they instruct, I am unable to get that wokring yet.  I thought I would 
> see if the bar code will print but that does not work either.
> 

Hi Nancy,

I set this up for someone a year or so ago.

The printing, the font, and the associated PCL code is quite trivial,
and Bob R's assessment of your immediate problem was probably correct.

But as I said, the PCL part of this is very elementary. The hard part
is generating the 31 char print string.

I recall that I eventually wrote a small C program to control the
operation that would be run from a system call in filepro. Much of
this is dependent on the data being encoded. The work that I did was
only based on the zip; i.e., 5, 9,or 11 characters. As I understand it,
the post office gives you a better rate the more that is, but of course
you would probably need to be a LARGE mailer for it to be worthwhile to
encode  more than the zip.

It is tough sledding going through the material from the USPS, especially 
as I recall that it came from a Canadian consulting firm,

Is this about converting an existing customer address list or some kind
of direct mail scheme where it is a new list each time.

In my case it was simply a regular monthly billing, so I wrote a batch
process to update the entire customer file, and then all that was needed
was an IUA subroutine for new customers and revisions.

Good luck.


Jim 
--
jlasman at telus.net                      Spectra Colour Services Ltd.
Phone: (604)584-0977                   Surrey, BC  CANADA            
 Cell: (604)619-0977                   www.spectracolorservices.com