Barcodes for collections Francisco Pando de la Hoz Real Jardín Botánico, Madrid
Barcodes for what Tool for management by making some tasks easier
Different kinds of barcodes (symbologies) The one choosen by herbaria and other collections is called “barcode 39”: No overlaping characters (bars) Allows letters (capitals only) and numbers Available as a “TrueType” font: Escalable Portable Barcodes come in different types
Code 39 Barcode 39 allows: –Produce and use our barcodes ourselves –produce and labels with normal text and barcodes in one step
Barcodes for labels
Barcodes for labels (2)
How we use barcodes What you What there is What we put into the barcode: a unique identifier (in the world)
Barcode reader and its setup PC Barcode reader Duplicator Keyboard Reader sends keystroke codes; the PC does not know if the codes come from the keyboard or the reader No software No configuration
Final remarks It is not needed to have a barcode reader to start barcoding Always add the text in the barcode in human- readable form Test your barcodes before producing them in mass (final size and spacing between characters depens on paper and printer quality, and type of barcode reader)