Tip, February 2004 Using DB/TextWorks (or CS/TextWorks) and your barcode reader for stocktaking If you are using DB/TextWorks or CS/TextWorks in conjunction with barcodes in a library or information centre, and you need to carry out a stocktake of your collection, you can make your stocktake faster and more accurate by following the steps below. Collect the barcode numbers Read in all barcode numbers of the items to be checked and save them in a file. The procedure will be slightly different according to whether you have a portable or a fixed barcode reader: Fixed Reader:
Portable Reader:
Prepare your textbase Use the following instructions to add a field to your TextWorks textbase to indicate which items have been recorded during the stocktake. This will be an Automatic Date field and it can be removed once the stocktake is completed, if you wish. Use the textbase that contains individual records for every copy of each item. This will normally be the Loans textbase, unless you have made duplicate records in your catalogue for multiple copies of items.
Import the barcode numbers Import the file of recorded barcode numbers, which will automatically update the Stocktake field, as follows:
When the process is complete, all those items which were found during the stocktake will have the current date entered in the Stocktake field. In records for missing items this field will be empty. The import operation will also create an exception file containing a complete list of all the barcode numbers that were rejected. This exception file will be useful to you as it contains the barcode numbers for all of the barcodes in your collection that do not actually have a corresponding record in the textbase. (The exception file will carry the file extension .xnn where nn is a running number. If you create only one exception file, its extension is .x01. If you have to import the barcode file twice, the second exception file will have the extension will be .x02, and so on.) Using the Stocktake field You may not wish to retain the field added for this procedure once your stocktake is complete, or you may choose to retain the field but change the field type from Automatic Date, so that the date does not get changed when other updates are made on the records. Here are some suggestions: Transfer the information to another field:
Retain the Stockbase field, but change the field type:
More information on barcodes and TextWorks For more detailed information on how barcodes work in TextWorks, click here to read our popular tip page on barcodes. Maxus Australia Pty Ltd -
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