Barcode Education

The principle behind scanning a 2D or linear bar code symbol is very much the same. The difference, however, lies in the amount of data that is transferred from the bar code scanner to the software or database application. Since most businesses can easily add 2D symbols to the documents and labels that already exist, the only crucial implementation issue left unanswered is ÒHow do I process all of that data?Ó

A linear (1D) bar code encodes an index into a record of a database. In other words, the value of a linear bar code symbol generally corresponds to an input field of the software application. Therefore, pre-processing of the scanned input before it is sent to the software application is usually not required. With 2D symbols, however, an entire record of a database can be stored in a single bar code. If a 2D symbol is employed, data processing (i.e. parsing, editing, formatting, re-ordering, etc.) is necessary to extract the appropriate information from the 2D symbol. Therefore, the existing software application will have to be modified in order to support the 2D symbol. For all practical purposes, however, the 2D symbol should complement a businessÕ current system and not be the driving force to change or modify the software application.

A single 2D symbol can easily hold specific corporate information as well as information that is unique to each department. Each department can then in turn process the data from the 2D symbol differently. With the ability to process the data after it has been scanned and before it enters the software application, major changes to departmental applications and operational procedures are eliminated. Often, the 2D software solutions can even be configured to process the data differently depending upon the information contained inside the symbol.