Using Cacidi BarCodes

BarCodes

BarCodes is a plug-in that can be used to create barcodes directly on your InDesign page. Barcodes created via BarCodes are live objects, which means you can modify the data in the palette at any time and the barcode will be changed dynamically.




Fixed-length barcodes

BarCodes supports a large number of barcodes. UPC-based barcodes such as EAN, JAN, UPC, ISBN and Bookland always contain a certain number of digits. For instance, you need to enter 12 digits to create an EAN-13 barcode (without Add-On) while the 13th digit is calculated by BarCodes. This means that when you enter numbers in the palette, BarCodes will count the number of digits you have entered and create the barcode when you have entered 12 digits.




Variable-length barcodes

BarCodes enables you to create variable-length barcodes such as Codabar, Code 11, Code 25, Code 39, Code 128, MSI/Plessey and PostNet. These barcodes do not contain a fixed number of digits like the UPC-based barcodes, but the data may vary. For instance, a Code 39 may have a random number of digits. This means that BarCodes does not simply create a barcode when a certain number of digits is reached. It requires you to click on the small barcode symbol in order to create your barcode.



Size control

Creating barcodes involves a long list of rules, e.g. there should be a great contrast between background and bars, and the size may only vary between 80% and 200% of the original size (if no BarCode is selected, BarCodes will always be create in 100% size).