Barcoding

["p. swan" <pswan@JULIAN.UWO.CA>]

I have been involved with three school automation projects, two
elementary and one secondary and I would strongly recommend placing the
barcode on the fron to the book.

1. The students naturally bring the books to the circulation desk face up
   which allows for quick access with the scanner. Automation is supposed
   to save you time and why ask the children to turn the book over or even
   worse why should you have to turn the book to scan it!

2. By placing the barcode on the front of the book you can easily check
   the title of the book with the scanned title to check for accuracy.

3. There is no real difference if the barcode is on the front or the back
   for shelf inventory. When you tip the book from the shelf to scan it, you
   can very easily check the title if the barcode is on the front.


I try to place the barcode near the top left corner. We try our best not
to place it over any part of the title but sometime that is almost
impossible. We have followed this practice for the past five years and
have not had any problems. Remember, automation is supposed to save you
and your students valuable time.

Paul Swan
Medway High School
Arva, Ontario
pswan@julian.uwo.ca