ScoutPalDB will work with any bar code scanner that is advertised as
being fully compatible with any program that runs on the Pocket PC.
Most recently published books will have an EAN-13 bar codes printed
somewhere on them. EAN-13 bar codes are actually the underlying ISBN "transformed" into a 13
digit UPC, and always start with "978".
EAN-13 bar codes can be found on the back cover of most
trade paperbacks, and on the back leaf of dust jackets. Most mass-market
(grocery store) paperbacks will have the EAN-13 bar code
printed on the inside front cover, instead of on the back cover. The
back cover bar code will often be a publisher's SKU for the book. SKU
bar codes are unique and proprietary to each publisher, and cannot be
used when searching or listing with Amazon.
To operate the scanner, hold it about 4 to 7 inches
above the bar code and at a slight angle to avoid having the beam bounce
back into the scanner lens, then press and release the SCAN button. The red
scan light will shoot out
as you hold the button. If the beam is not shining completely over
the bar code, just tilt the scanner, or move it closer or further away,
such that the beam shines completely over the bar code.
Refer to the picture below, showing how the red scan beam should be aimed
to shine completely over the bar code:
(The smaller 5 digit "supplemental" bar code to the right does
not need to be included in your scan. Most scanners will ignore it
anyway.)
You can
scan the EAN-13 bar code either right-side-up, or upside-down, as long as the
beam is shining completely across the bar code as shown.
The instant the scanner detects the bar code, the bar
code digits will appear in the
ISBN entry field. Scanners are usually very flexible, and do not need to be
held at an exact distance or at an exact angle, within
limits, but they will have optimum ways of being aimed. With just a few practice scans, you will learn how to routinely
aim the scanner such that it will accurately, efficiently and quickly capture a wide
array of bar code formats and sizes. Variables to learn with practice
include the angle that you hold the scanner, and the distance from the
scanner to the bar code.
In a nutshell, the basic instructions for scanning in printed merchandise
are:
1) Find and scan the EAN-13 bar code. (Look for a 13 digit bar code that
begins with "978".)
2) Do not scan in the SKU bar code on the back of mass-market paperbacks,
it is not usable except to the publisher. Look for the EAN-13 printed
inside the book.