Welcome to the ID Card Maker Enhanced Online User Documentation
This file contains information about Polaroid ID Card Maker
Enhanced Edition version 5.3 or higher. Some information included
here may not apply to your environment.
Please choose a title below to view the document, or click on the titles
to the left of this page.
ID Card Maker Operator’s Guide
ID Card Maker Administrator’s Guide
Polaroid PCID Printer and Magnetic Stripe Plug-ins
Using the Online User Documentation
Legal Notices
Conventions
Comments? Suggestions?
ID Card Maker Enhanced Version 5 User Documentation
Notices
The design and information contained in these materials is protected
by US and international copyright law.
U.S. Patent No. 6,632,250.
Names and logos in sample projects are fictitious. Any similarity to
actual names, trademarks, or trade names is coincidental.
Polaroid and Polaroid & Pixel are trademarks of Polaroid Corporation.
Adobe and Acrobat are registered trademarks and T ype Manag er is a
trademark of Adobe Systems Incorporated. Microsoft and Windows
are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Pentium is a
registered trademark of Intel Corporation.
All other product names are trademarks of their respective owners.
Portions of this product were created using LEADTOOLS © 1991-
2001 LEAD Technologies, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Portions of the bar code technology of this product are copyrighted by
StrandWare, Inc.
ID Card Maker Enhanced Version 5 User Documentation
Conventions Used in the Online User Documentation
Notes remind or inform you of something you should know before
proceeding.
D
Tips remind
or inform you of
a feature or
method that
could save you
time and energy.
Names of menus, dialog box options, and buttons appear in bold
type.
File names also appear in bold type, and the variable part of the file
name is in bold italics (for example, project name.iwx indicates that
you supply the project name while iwx remains constant).
Names of keyboard keys appear in large and small capit al letter s (for
example, E
Information you enter appears in regular italic type (for example, you
may be instructed to type Admin to log in to an ID Card Maker
application).
Parts of dialog box names that change depending on a name you
supplied appear in brackets [ ].
Blue text indicates a jump (link) to the referenced topic for online
reading. See the document Using the ID Card Maker User
Documentation for tips on reading documents online.
NTER).
ID Card Maker Enhanced Version 5 User Documentation
Comments? Suggestions?
Please send comments, suggestions, or corrections to:
ID Card Maker Information Development
Polaroid Commercial ID Systems
4850 Executive Blvd.
Ft. Wayne, IN 46808
ID Card Maker Enhanced Version 5 User Documentation
Operator’s Guide for
ID Card Maker Version 5
ii
Contents
About the Operator’s Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v
Chapter 1: System Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Introducing the ID Card Maker “Project” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Log In to an ID Card Maker Application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Changing Your User Password . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Using the Welcome Dialog Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Using ID Card Maker Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Opening a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Chapter 2: Using the ID Card Maker Process Application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Using an ID Card Maker Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Entering Information in Text Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Entering Information in Date Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Selecting Information in List Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Using Photo Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Photo from File. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
TWAIN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
TWAIN (Fast). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Video for Windows. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Video for Windows (Fast). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Optional Cameras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Selecting a Different Photo Source . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Cropping and Adjusting Photos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Exporting Images. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Adjusting Photo Backdrop Removal Parameters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Mandatory Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Read-only Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Previewing Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Printing Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Using a Project that is Connected to a Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Changing Information in a Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Entering a New Database Record . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Deleting a Database Record . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
iii
Chapter 3: Using the ID Card Maker Reports Application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Reports Procedure Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Selecting a Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Selecting Records . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Printing Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Chapter 4: Searching the Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Performing a Quick Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Refining the Quick Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Viewing Search Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Navigating Search Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Running a Stored Advanced Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Creating a Stored Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Filter Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Using the Multi-value Constraint List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Adding and Clearing Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Modifying a Constraint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Sort Order Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Manage Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Changing a Stored Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Deleting a Stored Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Search Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Text Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
= Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
IN Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
IS NULL Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
IS NOT NULL Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Numeric Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
= Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
> Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
< Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
BETWEEN Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
IN Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
IS NULL Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
IS NOT NULL Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Date Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
EXACT DATE Constraint Rule. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
SINCE Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
BEFORE Constraint Rule. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
BETWEEN Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
PREVIOUS _ DAYS Constraint Rule. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
PREVIOUS _ MONTHS Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
ID Card Maker Enhanced Version 5 User Documentation
iv
IS NULL Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
IS NOT NULL Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Image Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
All selected fields have data Constraint Rule. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
At least one selected field has data Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
At least one selected field is empty Constraint Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
All selected fields are empty Constraint Rule. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
About the Operator’s Guide
This document is one of three sources of information about Polaroid
ID Card Maker.
• The CD insert tells how to install ID Card Maker software.
• The online help system tells you how to perform ID Card Maker
tasks. You can access the online help system from the Help
menu in each ID Card Maker application or by pressing the F1
key.
• This Operator’s Guide, part of the online User Documentation,
gives additional background information about using the various
features available in the ID Card Maker applications. It also
suggests the order in which tasks shou ld be performed.
v
ID Card Maker Enhanced Version 5 User Documentation
vi
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
1
System Overview
Polaroid ID Card Maker includes four
applications:
ID Card Maker Project lets a System
Administrator create projects that meet your
organization’s specific needs for card designs, report designs, data
entry, and database access.
In some organizations, one person performs all the Project functions.
In others, a graphic artist may be responsible for card designs while a
programmer, database administrator, and/or manager develop the
Production Forms, reports, and connections.
ID Card Maker Process lets you use the projects you create in the
Project application to gather information, access your database, and
print identification cards.
ID Card Maker Reports lets you generate and print image-rich
reports from your database.
ID Card Maker Administrator contains tools to manage user
accounts, monitor security, and configure your ID Card Maker
software.
Introducing the ID Card Maker “Project”
An ID Card Maker project is similar to a folder or directory on a
computer: it is the container that holds information about an
identification implementation.
A project usually contains a Production Form and a card design
(although a card design is not required). Optionally, your project can
contain one or more report designs and one o r more stored searches.
By using field connections, information entered in a Production Form
can be saved in a database, printed on a car d, used in a re port, or a ll
of the above. The Production Form can also be used to query an
existing database so that you can add or change information in the
database or print cards and report s using information in the d atab ase.
ID Card Maker Enhanced Version 5 User Documentation
2 System Overview
Getting Started
The rest of this chapter explains the steps you take to begin using
your ID Card Maker identification software.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
System Overview 3
Log In to an ID Card Maker Application
To begin using ID Card Maker software, double-click the ID Card
Maker Enhanced Process or Reports shortcut icon on your desktop,
or from the Windows Start button select Programs, Polaroid, ID
Card Maker, and then ID Card Maker Enhanced Process.
Process
shortcut icon
Reports
shortcut icon
In the User Login dialog box, type the User Name and User Password
given to you by your System Administrator, and then click the Log in
button.
When you are logged in to an ID Card Maker application, you do not
need to supply your user name and password again to start another
ID Card Maker application.
Changing Your User Password
Each time you log in to an ID Card Maker application you have the
opportunity to change your user password. To change your
password, click the Change Password button any time before
ID Card Maker Enhanced Version 5 User Documentation
4 System Overview
completing the login. The Login and Change Password dialog box
opens, where you must supply your user name, current password,
and a new password. You will also need to type the new password a
second time for verification. Then click the Log in button to complete
the change and log in to the ID Card Maker application.
Using the Welcome Dialog Box
After you have changed your password or enter ed it and clicked Log
in, the Welcome dialog box appears.
From this dialog box you can open an existing project—either a
sample project or one that was designed specifically for your
organization. If the project you want to open is not listed, click Open
projects or More projects to display the Open Project dialog box,
which lists all ID Card Maker projects available to you.
You can also choose not to have the Welcome dialog box display by
clearing the check mark next to Show this window at startup. If you
hide the Welcome dialog box and later want to show it again, from the
menu bar, select View and then Show Welcome on start up. The
selection you make applies only to the Windows user name you used
to log in and only to the application you logged into. Othe r ID Card
Maker applications have separate settings for showing the Welcome
window.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
System Overview 5
Using ID Card Maker Applications
If you are familiar with your Microsoft® Windows® operating system
and typical office applications, such as word processing and
presentation software, ID Card Maker software will feel familiar to
you. ID Card Maker applications let you perform most actions severa l
ways: by selecting menu commands with the mouse, or with the
keyboard, or by clicking a toolbar button, or by clicking the right
mouse button and selecting from the pop-up menu. Key commands
or shortcuts for actions common to many applications—such as cut,
paste, and save—follow Microsoft Office conventions; you do not
have to relearn your favorite shortcuts.
Most ID Card Maker applications have several toolbars, and you can
display or hide toolbars to match the way you prefer to work. When
you rest the mouse pointer on a toolbar button, the name and fun ction
of the button appears.
A status bar at the bottom of the window provides additional
information about the application
view or hide the status bar.
. As with toolbars, you can choose to
Menu bar
Toolbars
Status bar
ID Card Maker Enhanced Version 5 User Documentation
6 System Overview
Opening a Project
To open a project, from the menu bar select File and then Open
Project (either with the mouse or with the keyboard).
The Open Project dialog box opens. Select a project from the list of
projects that are available to you and then click the Open button.
When you open an ID Card Maker project, it appears the way the last
project did when it was closed. For example, if the last project was
closed with the Card Preview showing, the project you select will
open with the Card Preview showing.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
2
Using the ID Card Maker Process Application
This chapter uses the sample projects that came with your ID Card
Maker software to explain your tasks. The projects you will use will be
created to meet your specific needs, but they will probably follow the
same general principles.
Your System Administrator may have configured yo ur computer to
require logging in again if you have not used the Process application
after a certain period of time. If that happens, you will see a dialog
box similar to the following.
ID Card Maker Enhanced Version 5 User Documentation
8 Using the ID Card Maker Process Application
Using an ID Card Maker Project
How your project opens depends on what privileges you have. If you
are allowed to enter new records, the pointer will be in the field that
the designer of the project designated as the starting field. (This is
usually the field in the upper left corner of the window.) If your project
is connected to a database, the New button on the toolbar will be
“pushed in” and there will be a check mark next to the New command
on the Record menu.
You can start entering information immediately. Most fields will have
a prompt that indicates the kind of information you are to enter in the
field. As mentioned, you can move between fields by tabbing or by
clicking with the mouse.
The following sections discuss how to enter information into each
type of field you may find in your project.
If you need to start over with the record and your project is connected
to a database, from the menu bar select Record and then Refresh.
All fields will return to the way they were when you selected the
record from the database.
If you need to start over with the record and your project is not
connected to a database, from the menu bar select Field and then
Clear All. All fields will return to the way they were when you opened
the project.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
Using the ID Card Maker Process Application 9
Entering Information in Text Fields
Most fields will be text fields. You can enter in a text field any
character on your keyboard: uppercase letters, lowercase letters,
numbers, punctuation marks, special characters, or spaces. There
will, however, be a maximum number of characters you can enter in a
text field. If a text field stops accepting characters, it may be that you
have reached the maximum field length. If your project connects to a
database, the maximum field length of text fields is often set to match
the maximum number of characters allowed in the corresponding
database column.
If you enter more characters than the text field entry box can display,
the text might scroll. Y ou can see all the text using the H
ID Card Maker Enhanced Version 5 User Documentation
Text fields
OME, END, left
10 Using the ID Card Maker Process Application
arrow, and right arrow keys. You can also ask the project designer to
make the text field wide enough to display all the text.
Some text fields may appear with characters already entered for you.
For example, an identification number might appear with hyphens
separating groups of digits. These fields have a “mask” applied to
them to make your job easier. As you type data into these fields, the
pointer will skip over the characters that are already there. Some
other ways masked text fields might behave are:
• Converting characters. For example, lowercase characters you
type might automatically be changed into uppercase characters.
• Requiring that you enter something in a field. If you try to print a
card or save a record without entering a value in such a text field,
you will see the message, “Mandatory character not present.”
When you click OK to clear the message, the pointer will appear
in the field you need to complete.
• Requiring a certain kind of character. If you type a letter into a
phone number field that is masked to accept only numeric
characters, the letter will not be accepted and the computer bell
will sound.
Other text fields may be completely filled in for you. If a completed
field has gray text, you cannot change the contents. If the text is any
other color, it was supplied as a convenience to you but you can
change it.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
Using the ID Card Maker Process Application 11
Entering Information in Date Fields
Date fields have separator characters (often slashes or hyphens) in
them. You must enter numbers for the day, month, and year in the
order that was specified when your project was created. If the prompt
for the date field does not tell you whether to enter the month first or
second and you enter it in the wrong position, an error message will
appear when you try to print a card or save the r ecord. You can easily
change the order.
Some date fields also require that you enter a time. The time part of
the date field will appear to the right of the date. You must enter
numbers for the hour, minute, and second part of the time. If your
ID Card Maker Enhanced Version 5 User Documentation
Date field
12 Using the ID Card Maker Process Application
project uses the 12-hour time format, you will also need to enter AM
or PM.
If you make a mistake while entering a date, move the pointer to the
right of the incorrect character, press the B
type the correct number.
ACKSPACE key, and then
Selecting Information in List Fields
List fields
List fields have an arrow at the righ t side of the field. Instead of typing
information in them, you make a selection from the items in the list.
To see all the choices, click and hold on the arrow. Move the mouse
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
Using the ID Card Maker Process Application 13
until the choice you want is highlighted, then release the mouse
button. If you prefer to use the keyboard, the up and down arrow keys
scroll through the list choices. See the online help topic “Select an
item in a list field” for additional ways to use the keyboard to make list
field selections. List fields save you typing and ensure that
information stored in a database is consistent.
Using Photo Fields
Photo field
What happens when you enter a photo field depends on how your
project was set up, whether your system has a camera, and, if so,
what kind of camera it is. The most common behavior is for a photo
capture to begin as soon as you enter the photo field. If no dialog box
ID Card Maker Enhanced Version 5 User Documentation
14 Using the ID Card Maker Process Application
opens, you must start the capture operation. From the menu bar,
select Capture and then Capture.
D
If you need
to select a
source, check
with your System
Administrator.
They may have
forgotten to
assign a source.
Photo from File
The dialog box for the default photo source opens. If an “Unable to
capture photo . . .” message appears, you must select a source for
the photo. From the menu bar, select Capture and then Select
Capture Source or click the right mouse button and select Select
Capture Source from the menu. See the online help topic “Select a
photo source” for step-by-step instructions.
The following paragraphs show the dialog boxes that open for the
photo sources that are available on all ID Card Maker computers.
If the photo source selected is Photo from File, the Open dialog box
opens. You use standard Windows navigation techniques to find the
drive, folder, and file that contains the photograph that should be
used. Your supervisor or ID Card Maker System Administrator will
supply you with the file location and file naming scheme to use. The
Open dialog box “remembers” the last directory you used. If most of
your photo files are in the same directory , you do not have to do much
navigating. When you select a file, a “thumbnail” of the file displays so
you can verify that you have the correct file.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
Using the ID Card Maker Process Application 15
ID Card Maker software supports the following file types:
BMP Windows Bitmap
EPS Encapsulated PostScript
JPG Joint Photographic Experts Group File Interchange Format
(single image per file)
J2K JPEG 2000 File Format
PCT Macintosh PICT Drawing
PCX PC Paintbrush
PNG Portable Network Graphics
PSD Adobe Photoshop® (3.0)
TGA TARGA® Image File Format
TIF Tagged Image File Format (single image per file,
uncompressed only)
WMF Windows Metafile
When you have found the file you want, click Open. The Photo Crop
and Adjust dialog box opens, where you can center the subject or
crop out (eliminate) unnecessary background. See “Cropping and
Adjusting Photos” on page 19.
TWAIN
If the photo source selected is TWAIN, the TWAIN Interface dialog
box opens. (The TWAIN standard specifies how an application, such
as ID Card Maker Process, can activate a scanner, digital camera, or
other image-capturing device.)
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When you click the Select Source button, the Select Source dialog
box opens. It lists all the TWAIN devices installed on your computer.
TWAIN (Fast)
Select the device you want to use and click the Select button. The
Select Source dialog box closes. In the TWAIN Interface dialog box,
click the Acquire Photo button. The software application that is
associated with the device you selected opens.
Because there are many different TWAIN devices made by many
different manufacturers, this document cannot supply explicit
instructions for using your TWAIN d evice. See the document ation that
came with your device, or ask your supervisor or ID Card Maker
System Administrator for step-by-step instructions.
If the photo source selected is TWAIN (Fast), the software
application that is associated with the last TWAIN device used in an
ID Card Maker project (or the only TWAIN device installed on your
computer) starts. Because there are many different TWAIN devices
made by many different manufacturers, this document cannot supply
explicit instructions for using your TWAIN device. See the
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
Using the ID Card Maker Process Application 17
documentation that came with your device or ask your supervisor or
ID Card Maker System Administrator for step-by-step instructions.
Video for Windows
If the photo source selected is Video for Windows, the Video for
Windows Interface dialog box opens. (Video for Windows is a
Microsoft standard interface for storing and playback of video and
audio information. It also lets you capture a single frame to a bitmap
or JPEG file. Single-frame capture is the capability of Video for
Windows that ID Card Maker software uses.)
When you click the Select Source button, the Select Source dialog
box opens. It lists all the Video for Windows d evices installed on your
computer.
Select the device you want to use and click the OK button. The Select
Source dialog box closes.
If the Source list shows a Video for Windows source (possibly
designated VFW) and a Windows Driver Model (WDM) source for
your camera, selecting the Windows Driver Model entry usually gives
better results.
In the Video for Windows Interface dialog box, click the Acquire
Photo button. The Video for Windows Camera dialog box opens.
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When your subject is ready, click Take Photo. The camera captures
the image and the label on the button changes to Retry. If the photo
is unacceptable (for example, if the subject’s eyes are closed), click
Retry. If the photo is acceptable, click OK. The Photo Crop and
Adjust dialog box opens. See “Cropping and Adjusting Photos” on
page 19.
Video for Windows (Fast)
If the photo source selected is Video for Windows (Fast), the Video
for Windows Camera dialog box opens immediately. Y ou d o not have
to select a source.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
Using the ID Card Maker Process Application 19
Optional Cameras
In addition to the photo sources already described, your ID Card
Maker system may include an optional capture device, such as
Polaroid ID Card Maker Image Capture product. These optional
devices have special so ftware that makes them especially easy to
use with your ID Card Maker system. Optional cameras are explained
in their own online documents, which you access through the
Windows Start menu.
Selecting a Different Photo Source
If you have the necessary privilege, you can use a photo source other
than the one specified when your project was created. For example, if
the project is set to automatically start the software for a TWAIN
device, you can close the dialog box that opens automatically. Then,
with the photo field still selected (there will be a border around the
photo field), select a different source for the photo. From the menu
bar, select Capture and then Select Capture Source or click the
right mouse button and select Select Capture Source from the popup menu. See the online help topic “Select a photo source” for stepby-step instructions.
Cropping and Adjusting Photos
If your ID Card Maker project allows you to crop photos, the Photo
Crop and Adjust dialog box will open as soon as you have selected
your photo. Your photo will appear in the image area with four
squares, called sizing handles, around the outside.
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To zoom in on the subject (eliminate unnecessary background), click
and drag any sizing handle, then release the mouse button. The crop
box proportions, set by the project designer, remain constant.
After you have zoomed in, your subject may no longer be centered in
the crop box. To adjust the position of the crop box, move the mouse
until the pointer is inside the crop box. The pointer changes to a fourway arrow. Click and drag the crop box to the position you want, then
release the mouse button.
When the photo is as you want it, click the OK button. The Photo
Crop and Adjust dialog box closes, and the photo appears in the
photo field.
Most of the time, cropping and adjusting is all you need to do to a
photo. But the Photo Crop and Adjust dialog box also offers the
following advanced capabilities.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
Using the ID Card Maker Process Application 21
Rotating Photos
Some previously taken photos may have an orientation d if fer ent from
the one you need. You can compensate for this by rotating the photo
as necessary. Each time you click the Rotate button, the photo
rotates one-quarter turn clockwise.
Any cropping or adjusting you did is lost when you rotate a photo. If
you need to rotate the photo, do that first, then crop an d ad jus t.
Selecting an Exposure
If the subject of the photo has a very light or very dark complexion,
you can improve the quality of the photo to some degree by clicking
the Photo Selection button.
An array of nine different brightnesses appears, with the original
exposure in the center. Select a photo by clicking it with the mouse or
by using the arrow keys to move the selection box.To adjust the
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contrast of the photo, select the More button. You can also select
from nine choices for saturation. At any time you can start over or
select OK or press E
Your selection appears in the image area of the Pho to Crop and
Adjust dialog box.
Remember, the final quality of the image is also affected by the
printer you are using to print your ID cards. Changing lighting and
camera settings should always be the first steps you take to improve
the photo. This selection option will not make up for poor data.
Starting Over
You can undo all your changes (cropping, exposure selection,
rotation) by clicking the Restore Original button.
Cropping and Adjusting Existing Photos
If you have the necessary privilege, you can crop or adjust photos
that have been captured previously. First, locate the database record
that contains the photo you need to change. See chapter 4,
Searching the Database, or go to the online help topic “Find a record
with Quick Search” or “Find a record with Advanced Search”. Select
the photo field and, if necessary, cancel the dialog box that
automatically opens. From the menu bar, select Capture and then
Crop and Adjust Photo. The Photo Crop and Adjust dialog box
opens.
NTER to accept the currently-selected photo.
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Using the ID Card Maker Process Application 23
Exporting Images
You can save photos you see in the Process window for use in other
applications. For example, the editor of your organization’s newsletter
might want to use photos you take. The Capture menu command,
Export, lets you save an image in any of the following formats:
BMP Windows Bitmap
EPS Encapsulated PostScript
JPG Joint Photographic Experts Group File Interchange Format
(single image per file)
J2K JPEG 2000 File Format
PCT Macintosh PICT Drawing
PCX PC Paintbrush
PNG Portable Network Graphics
PSD Adobe Photoshop® (3.0)
TGA TARGA® Image File Format
TIF Tagged Image File Format (single image per file,
uncompressed only)
WMF Windows Metafile
See the online help topic “Export a photo to a file” for step-by-step
instructions.
Adjusting Photo Backdrop Removal Parameters
Your ID Card Maker project may be set to remove the background
from photos of cardholders. This is often done so the card
background shows all around the person . Th e ba ck gr ou n d is
removed as a card is printed. Photos are stored with the background
in place, and the success of the background removal depends on
how evenly-colored the background is on the ph o to.
If your project uses background removal, you must use the Card
Preview to verify that all the background has been removed. (See
“Previewing Cards” on page 26.) If some of the background remains
and if you have the necessary privilege, you can use the Capture
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menu command, Adjust Backdrop Removal Parameters, to
improve the image on the card.
In the Removal Method area, select Remove color from entire
photo if backdrop color is surrounded by another color (for example,
if you can see through the subject’s earrings, as in this photo). Be
aware, however, that if any part of the subject’s face or clothing is the
same color as the backdrop, that feature will also be removed. For
example, if the subject is wearing a shirt that has checks the same
color as the background, the checks in the shirt will be removed.
In the Removal Sensitivity area, select if some of the backdrop is
visible in the Card Preview . Select if some of the subject has been
removed.
After you have made changes to the settings, the results appear in
the large Backdrop Removed area. The original image is shown in the
smaller area next to the Help button.
If you are satisfied with the adjusted image, click OK. The Adjust
Photo Backdrop Removal Parameters - Basic dialog box closes and
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Using the ID Card Maker Process Application 25
the results of your adjustment are shown in the Card Preview. The
adjusted settings are used until you move off the current record. If
you click Cancel, the dialog box closes and your adjustments are
discarded. For additional capabilities, click Advanced Controls.
In the Removal Method area, if you select Remove color from
around the person, you can select from Low, Medium, or High
edge detection sensitivity.
In the Removal Sensitivity area, you increase or decrease the
spectrum of colors that are considered to be backdrop. Three
attributes determine what we think of as a color.
• Hue is described with the words we normally think of as
describing a color (red, yellow, etc.).
• Saturation might be described with words like vivid or pale. It
talks about the dominance of the hue.
• Value deals with lightness or darkness--how much black is in the
color.
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Y ou in crease or decr ease the range for th e attribute by clicking the u p
or down arrow or by using the up or down arrow keys on your
keyboard. When you increase the range, more of the background
color is removed.
You can control the ranges individually or you can select Move all
ranges together to control them as a group. You can also return to
the factory default settings or to the settings y ou last save d by clicking
the appropriate button.
When adjustments are complete, you can choose to use the current
settings for the current image only, for all images in the current
database search results, or for all photos from now on. If you select
Use for all photos, these settings become the ones you would r eturn
to if you clicked the Saved Settings button at some future time.
Mandatory Fields
There may be some fields on your Production Form that require you
to supply information. Project designers often indicate which fields
are mandatory with bold prompts, differently-colored prompts, or an
asterisk or other symbol in the prompt. If you try to print a card or
save the record without completing a mandatory field, a message box
appears. When you click OK to clear the message, the pointer
appears in the mandatory field so you can complete it.
Read-only Fields
There may be some fields on your Production Form that contain
information you cannot change, such as a person’s birth date or the
number of times a card has been printed for that person. Th ose fields
are there for your information only. The pointer will not move to them
when you tab through the form and you cannot click in them to place
the pointer there. Read-only fields will, however, appear in Quick
Search windows if the ID Card Maker project designer specified that
they should. See “Performing a Quick Search” on page 41.
Previewing Cards
If your ID Card Maker project includes a card design ( and almost all of
them do) you can see how the card will look as you are entering
information in the Process window.
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Using the ID Card Maker Process Application 27
To see a preview of the card that will be printed, from the menu bar
select View and then Card preview – front or Card preview – back.
A Card Preview opens. (You can see previews of both sides of the
card by selecting each card preview menu command in turn.)
You can move the Card Preview to a different location by clicking on
its title bar and dragging it to the new location. You can change the
size of the Card Preview by moving the mouse to an edge of the Card
Preview until the pointer turns into a two-way arrow, then clicking and
dragging the edge of the Card Preview until it is the size you want.
The Card Preview will maintain the proper height-to-width ratio. The
computer “remembers” the size of the Card Preview you set from day
to day and from project to project. The next time you select Card
Preview, the Card Preview opens the size you last set.
If your card design includes a barcode and if you enter too much data,
the barcode in the Preview will change to diagonal lines. If you enter
the wrong kind of data in the Production Form field associated with
the barcode (for example, a letter if the barcode type only accepts
numbers), the barcode in the Preview will change to a crosshatch
pattern.
Too much barcode data
Unsupported barcode data
If your card design includes a field that is printed with the topcoat
panel of the printing ribbon, that field will be displayed as white text or
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shape. If the field is a graphic or photo, as in the following illustration,
it will appear as a black-and-white image.
Printing Cards
You may be able to print cards, print multiple copies of a card, reprint
cards, or some combination. Your ID Card Maker System
Administrator determines your card printing privileges.
If your ID Card Maker project is not connected to a database, you
must print each card as you gather the information.
If your project is connected to a datab ase, you can print ea ch card as
you gather the information or you can collect information on a group
of cardholders (saving it in a database) and then prin t the cards in a
batch. Working with databases is explained in th e ne xt section of this
chapter.
Y o u can print cards from either the Production Form view or the Table
view. (See the online he lp topics “Select Production Form View” and
“Select Table View”.) In table view, you can select a subset of records
returned from a search and print cards for only the selected records.
See chapter 4, Searching the Database, starting on page 41, for
more information.
Card printing works the same whether you print cards singly or in
batches:
1 Gather the cardholder information or select the record(s) to print.
2 To print a single card, from the menu bar select File and then
Print Card or click the Print button on the toolbar.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
Using the ID Card Maker Process Application 29
To print cards for all the records you selected, from the menu bar
select File and then Print All or click the Print all button on the
toolbar.
The Print Card(s) dialog box opens.
3 If necessary, select your card printer from the list.
4 If you want to print more than one copy of the card(s), enter the
number of copies you want.
5 If your printer has a magnetic stripe or smart card encoder, you
can choose to print the card, encode the card, or both by
selecting the appropriate check boxes.
6 Click OK. If you chose to print cards for multiple records, the
Batch Print Status dialog box opens.
Clicking the Cancel button stops processing cards. However,
cards that have already been processed will still be sent to the
printer and cards that have been sent cannot be retrieved.
If you print cards in batches and if your ID Card Maker project was set
up to allow it, you can track the progress of your print request after it
has been sent to the printer:
1 From the Windows Start button, select Settings and then
Printers or Printers and Faxes. The appropriate dialog box
opens.
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2 Double-click on your card printer . A window with the name of yo ur
printer opens. For each card in the print queue, the Document
Name column shows the contents of the field that was designated
for print tracking (for example, the Name field ).
3 T o update the list, from the menu bar of th e printer window, select
View and then Refresh.
You can use a Windows printer capability to cancel a print job
that is in the printer’s queue. See Windows help for printers for
more information.
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Using the ID Card Maker Process Application 31
Using a Project that is Connected to a Database
Many ID Card Maker projects are connected to a database. That is,
the information you gather is saved for future use not only by you but
also by other departments in your organization. In other cases, much
of the information was entered into the database by someone else,
and you retrieve it, add to it (perhaps the photograph), and save
changes to the database record.
If your ID Card Maker project is connected to a database, your menu
bar will have a Record menu and your toolbar will include up to
eleven additional buttons and a list box.
Record menu appears when the
project is connected to a database
Additional buttons and list box
appear when the project is
connected to a database
Databases store information in tables. Each row of the table is called
a record, and that is why the new menu on the menu bar is named
Record—it deals with database records. Each column of the table is
known as a field. A column contains a category of information, such
as a name, a telephone number, or a photograph of the person
described in the record. The information you enter in fields in the ID
Card Maker Process window can be stored in and retrieved from
columns in a database table. Searching the database to retrieve
information is explained in chapter 4, Searching the Database.
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Changing Information in a Database
If you have permission to make changes to information in the
database, a Save button will appear on your toolbar and the Record
menu will have a Save command.
To change information in a database:
1 Locate the record you need to change. See chapter 4, Searching
the Database, or go to the online help topic “Find a record with
Quick Search” or “Find a record with Advanced Search”.
2 Click in or tab to the field that needs to be changed and correct
the information.
3 If you need to reverse all the changes you made to the record,
from the menu bar, select Record and then Refresh. The
information returns to the way the record is stored in the
database.
4 When all changes have been made, from the menu bar, select
Record and then Save (or click the button on the toolbar that
looks like a diskette). The changed information is saved in the
database.
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Using the ID Card Maker Process Application 33
To make the same change to multiple database records:
1 Create a search request that finds all the records you want to
change (and only the records you want to change). See chapter
4, Searching the Database, or go to the online help topic “Find a
record” for more information.
2 Change one or more fields in the first record.
3 From the menu bar, select Record and Update All. A
confirmation message appears.
4 Click Yes to change all records in the current group of records.
If you change a photo field, a message will appear saying that the
photo field will be changed on the current record but not any other
records in the group. You will have the opportunity to cancel the
update operation or proceed.
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Entering a New Database Record
If you have permission to create records in the database, a New
button will appear on your toolbar and the Record menu will have a
New command.
To add a new record to a database:
D
Save time
and effort when
entering many
new records.
From the
Record
select
New Record
on Save
record will be
started as soon
as you save the
current new
record.
menu,
Auto
. A new
1 From the menu bar, select Record and then New (or click the
button on the toolbar that has a yellow starburst). All fields are
cleared or set to their default value.
2 Enter data into the fields. See the online help topics “Enter data
into a text field” and related topics, as well as “Take a photo” for
step-by-step instructions.
3 If you need to start over with the record, from the menu bar,
select Record and then Refresh. All fields will return to the way
they were in step 1, above.
4 When all information has been entered, from the menu bar , select
Record and then Save (or click the button on the toolbar that
looks like a diskette). The new record is saved in the database.
An ID Card Maker project can be set up so that a record is
automatically saved to the database each time a card is printed. Ask
your ID Card Maker System Administrator if your project has been set
up this way. If so, you do not have to remember to save each record.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
Using the ID Card Maker Process Application 35
Deleting a Database Record
If you have permission to delete database records, a Delete button
will appear on your toolbar and the Record menu will have a Delete
command.
To delete a record from a database:
1 Locate the record you need to delete (see chapter 4, Searching
the Database, or go to the online help topic “Find a record”).
2 From the menu bar, select Record and then Delete (or click the
button on the toolbar that has an X). A confirmation message
appears.
3 Click Yes to delete the record. The record is deleted from the
database.
To delete multiple records, repeat the procedure above or use
Microsoft Access directly . Another way to delete multiple records is to
create a search request that finds all the records you want to delete
(and only the records you want to delete). See chapter 4, Searching
the Database, or go to the online help topic “Find a record” for more
information. Then, from the menu bar, select Record and Delete All
(if Delete All is available).
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ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
3
Using the ID Card Maker Reports Application
This chapter uses the sample projects that came with your ID Card
Maker software to explain tasks you will perform in the ID Card Maker
Reports application. The projects you use will be created to meet your
specific needs, but they will probably follow the same general
principles.
This chapter gives you background information about using the ID
Card Maker Reports application. While you are using the software
you can get step-by-step instructions on the task you are doing by
pressing the F1 key or by selecting Help Topics from the Help menu.
Reports Procedure Overview
There are four steps for using the ID Card Maker Reports application:
1 Open a project. (See “Op e nin g a Pro ject” on page 6.)
2 Select a report.
3 Select information to fill the report.
4 View or print the report.
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38 Using the ID Card Maker Reports Application
Selecting a Report
Reports for ID Card Maker projects are created in the Project
application. You select a report to view or print from the menu bar or
from the toolbar. See the online help topic “Select a report” for stepby-step instructions.
Select a report from this list
Selecting Records
Most ID Card Maker projects are connected to a database. That is,
the information gathered with the Process application is saved for
future use not only by you but also by other departments in your
organization.
To use ID Card Maker Reports, your project must be connected to a
database. If the project you select is not connected to a database, ID
Card Maker Reports presents a message and closes the project.
Databases store information in tables. Each row of the table is called
a record, and that is why the new menu on the menu bar is named
Record—it deals with database records. Each column of the table is
known as a field. A column contains a category of information, such
as a name, a telephone number, or a photo image of the person
described in the record. The Reports application lets you retrieve
information stored in a database ta ble and view or prin t it on a repo rt.
Searching the database to retrieve information is explained in
Chapter 4, Searching the Database.
Printing Reports
You can print paper copies of your reports from the Production Form
view or from the Table view. See the online help topic “Print a report”
for step-by-step instructions. Report printing uses standard Windows
Print dialogs.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
Using the ID Card Maker Reports Application 39
Y o u can also see a preview of your p rinted report (see the o nline help
topic “Preview a report printout”). While in the print preview window
you can page through the pages of a multi-page report, view two
pages side by side, enlarge the report content (Zoo m In) or reduce it
(Zoom Out), print the report, or close the print preview. Printing the
report or closing the print preview returns you to the view you were
using previously.
You can change the Page Setup for a report. Page Setup includes
settings for paper size, orientation, and mar gins (top, bottom, lef t, and
right). See the online help topic “Change the page setup for a report”
for step-by-step instructions.
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If you change Page Setup properties, the Reports application will ask
if you want the new properties applied to all reports in the project. Any
changes you make to Page Setup properties are used until you make
other changes or until you close the project. When the project is
opened again, the default page setup (specified by the person who
designed the project) is used.
When you print a report, the ID Card Maker Reports application puts
as many records on a page as possible. If you change the pape r size
or margins significantly, fewer (or more) records may fit on a page. If
you change the Page Setup properties so much that no report blocks
will fit on a page, the Reports application warns you.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
4
Searching the Database
Most ID Card Maker projects are connected to a
database.
You get information out of a database by
searching it. There are two methods for
searching the database: Quick Search, for simple or one-time
searches, and Advanced Search, for more complicated searches.
You (or the ID Card Maker project designer) can use Advanced
Search to store search criteria for searches you will perform
repeatedly.
Performing a Quick Search
To perform a simple or one-time search of the database, click the
button on the toolbar that has a magnifying glass on it (the Quick
Search button), or from the menu bar, select Record and then Quick
Search. The Quick Search dialog box opens.
If the Quick Search button and menu command do not appear on
your ID Card Maker window, you do not have permission to search
the database or you are restricted to running stored searches.
Contact your ID Card Maker administrator to gain permission to
search the database.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
42 Searching the Database
Scroll bars
The Quick Search dialog box contains a field for each searchable
field in your Production Form. For example, you may see fields for
First Name and Last Name. You search on these fields by entering a
full or partial name. If necessary, use the scroll bars to see all of the
searchable fields. You can also change the size of the dialog box by
dragging one of the lower corners.
Y ou will never see a photo field in a Quick Search dialog box because
you cannot enter search criteria for photos. In addition, the project
designer may have excluded some Production Form fields from the
Quick Search dialog box to keep it simple.
The kind and amount of information you enter in the Quick Search
dialog box determines how many records the database system finds
for you. If you click the Quick Search button without entering
anything in any of the fields, the database system shows you all the
records in the database. For example, if a database for a project has
15 records, clicking the Quick Search button without making any
entries in the dialog box results in 15 records.
Refining the Quick Search
Selecting all the records in the database is fine to demonstrate how a
search works on a small sample database. But it is no t practical when
your database contains hundreds or thousands of records. You can
reduce the number of records displayed by entering more specific
information in one or more search fields and by using wildcard
characters. For example, in the IDCM Sample Project - Association,
the following Quick Search dialog box returns two records—all the
records of people in the database whose last names start with S.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
Searching the Database 43
This search uses the % (percent) wildcard character. It stands for any
number of characters after the S. You can also use the _
(underscore) wildcard character to substitute for a single character.
For example, entering Jo_n would find John and Joan but not
Johann.
Wildcard characters do not work in date fields or in fields attached to
number fields in the database. You must enter exact values in these
types of fields.
If you enter data into more than one search field, the database
system looks for records that match all fields.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
44 Searching the Database
Viewing Search Results
You can view the results of your database searches in two ways.
Production Form view presents the infor mation one record at a time in
a graphical presentation. While in Production Form view you navigate
the search results as described in “Navigating Search Results” on
page 46.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
Searching the Database 45
Table view presents a screenload of records at a time in the form of a
table or chart. Table view may be useful if your search results in more
than one or two records. (See the online help topic “Select Table
View”.)
To change the width of a column, place the
pointer between columns, and then click and
drag the column boundary.
Use scroll bars to see
additional information.
While in Table view you navigate the search results using the same
techniques you use navigating Windows Explorer. You can also
select records in Table view the way you select files in Windows
Explorer. If you select a single record and then switch to Production
Form view (see the online help topic “Select Production Form view”),
the record you selected appears in the Production Form view. If you
select more than one record and then switch to Production Form
view, the last record you selected appears in the Production Form
view.
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46 Searching the Database
Navigating Search Results
When a database search finds multiple records, the title bar of the ID
Card Maker application window changes to describe which record is
currently visible and the total number of records that met the
specifications of the search. Also, the Next and Last buttons on the
toolbar become available for use (as well as the Next and Last
commands on the Record menu). If you click the Next button, the
title bar changes to “Record 2 of ...” and the First and Previous
buttons on the toolbar (as well as the First and Previous commands
on the Record menu) also become available for use. You can also
use the P
AGE DOWN and PAGE UP keys to move through records.
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Running a Stored Advanced Search
Stored searches ar e useful if you perform the same search
repeatedly. Instead of typing the search information in the Quick
Search dialog box every time, you simply select the name of the
stored search from a list. Because stored sear ches are cre ated using
the Advanced Search feature, you can search for additional kinds of
records, such as records that still need a photo. See “Creating a
Stored Search” on page 47.
To run a stored search:
1Select Record and then Run Stored Search. A menu listing the
available stored searches appears to the right of the Record
menu.
2 Select the stored search to run. The search results appear in the
project window , and the name of the store d search appears in the
title bar of the window.
To repeat a stored search, simply click the Run Stored Search
button on the toolbar.
Creating a Stored Search
To create a stored search, click the button on the toolbar that has a
magnifying glass over a form (the Advanced Search button) or , from
the menu bar, select Record and then Advanced Search. The
Advanced Search dialog box opens. It has three tabbed pages and a
common area at the bottom that contains a display of the SQL search
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48 Searching the Database
string in its current state, a Search button for executing the search,
and Close and Cancel buttons.
Filter Tab
Pressing E
dialog box is the same as clicking the Search button: the dialog box
closes and the search results appear in the ap plication window. If you
reenter the Advanced Search dialog box, it appears as it was when
you executed the search. The ID Card Maker software continues to
“remember” your last search until you close the project.
NTER on your keyboard while in the Advanced Search
On the Filter tab, Production Form field name lists all fields on the
current project’s Production Form that are directly co nn ected to a
database table column. Composite fields are not listed. When you
select a field from the list in Production Form field name, the
prompt for that field appears in Production Form prompt and
possible selections become available in Constraint rule. When you
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
Searching the Database 49
select a constraint rule, appropriate Field Constraint and Constraint
Detail selections become available for the current rule. Constraint
rules available for each Production Form field type, constraint values
required for those rules, and other details are gi ven in “Search Ru les”
on page 54.
Definitions of potential selections in the Field Constraint area are:
Include NULL values — If selected, records with null values in the
field (no information in the database column) will be included in the
search results.
Match text case-insensitive — Access always selects text caseinsensitive. You can ignore this option.
Exclude constraint detail — If selected, all records that do not
match the Constraint value will be included in the search results.
Use this option when it is easier to define records that should not be
included.
In the Constraint Detail area, you may be required to ente r
information in Constraint value only, in Constraint value and
Ending constraint value, or in the Multi-value Constraint List area. If
the Production Form field you selected is connected to a date type
database column, the Constraint value and Ending constraint
value have an arrow at the right side of the field. You can click the
arrow to select a date from a calendar or type a date in the field.
Using the Multi-value Constraint List
To select records that match any of a number of criteria (for example,
to select records for employees living in New York, London, or
Amsterdam), select the IN constraint rule. The Insert button in the
Multi-value Constraint List area becomes available. When you click
Insert, the Constraint List dialog box opens. Here you enter
constraint criteria (for example, Amsterdam to select employees living
in Amsterdam). When you click OK, the Constraint List dialog box
closes and the constraint you entered appears in the list of
constraints. You can insert as many constraints as necessary. You
can change or delete constraints in the list by selecting them and then
clicking Edit or Delete.
Access does not support wildcard characters for entries in the Multivalue Constraint List.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
50 Searching the Database
Adding and Clearing Constraints
When you have entered the required constraint detail for the
Production Form field and constraint rule you selected, the Add
Constraint button becomes available. When you click Add
Constraint, the constraint is added to the search string displayed at
the bottom of the dialog box, becoming part of your search when
executed.
Clear Constraint and Clear All Constraints are always available.
Clear Constraint removes from the search string the constraint
information for the Production Form field curren tly selected; Clear All
Constraints removes all constraint information from the search
string.
Modifying a Constraint
If you need to change a constraint, select the field you want to
change. The Constraint rule and Constraint values display the current
settings for that field. After making your changes, click Add
Constraint. The constraint is updated in the search string displayed
at the bottom of the dialog box.
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Searching the Database 51
Sort Order Tab
The Sort Order tab lets you control the order in which records are
presented. For example, you might want records shown in
alphabetical order by last name. The Sort Order tab allows for a twolevel sort, as shown in the example above. Specifying a sort order is
optional. If you do not select a sort order, search results will be
presented in an order determined by the database system.
In the Primary Sort area on the Sort Order tab, Production Form
field name lists all the text, list, date, auto sequence, and print count
fields on the current project’s Production Form. When you select a
field, the prompt for that field appears in Production Form prompt
and the buttons for selecting ascending or descending order become
available. The Secondary Sort area also becomes available, with the
remaining Production Form fields eligible for sorting listed in
Production Form field name.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
52 Searching the Database
When you have selected a field name in the Primary Sort area, the
Add Sorting button becomes available. When you click Add
Sorting, the sort order you specified is added to the search string
displayed at the bottom of the dialog box. Clicking Clear Sorting
removes all sort order information from the search string.
Manage Tab
The Manage tab lets you save your searches by name. It also lists
any existing stored searches for the curren t proj ec t an d giv es you a
way to change them.
If you entered search criteria on the other tabs of the dialog box
before clicking the Manage tab, “New Search” appears in the
Manage Opened Search area, as in the previous example. When you
click Save or Save As, the Store Advanced Search dialog box opens,
where you type the name you want to use for the stored search. After
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
Searching the Database 53
an advanced search is named, clicking Save saves any changes you
made under that name.
Stored search names can be up to 25 characters long. They can
include spaces but they cannot contain any of the following
characters: \ / : * ? “ < > |
Stored search names ar e case-insen sitive and must be uniqu e within
the project. That is, if your project has a search named Needs Photo,
you cannot name a new search NEEDS PHOTO.
The current search criteria will remain active until you open another
search or close the project. To prevent accidentally losing your
changes, you can choose to have your search permanently saved in
its current form each time you select Search by selecting
Automatically save changes on Search.
If you click New, any search criteria you entered is cleared and you
can start over with a new search.
Changing a Stored Search
To change a stored search, select the search from Stored searches
for this project and then click Open. The name of the search you
selected appears in the Manage Opened Search area. Make the
necessary changes on the Filter and Sort Order ta bs and then return
to the Manage tab of the dialog box. Click Save to save your changes
permanently or click Save As to choose a different name and keep
the original search.
Deleting a Stored Search
To delete a stored search, select the search from the Stored
searches for this project list and then click Open. The name of the
search you selected appears in the Manage Opened Search area.
Click Delete and then click Yes to permanently delete the search.
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54 Searching the Database
Search Rules
The rest of this chapter lists the constraint rules available for each
type of Production Form field, gives the required Constraint Detail for
each field type-constraint rule combination, and explains how the
Field Constraint options affect the constraint. Use this information for
reference if your searches do not return the results you expect.
Text Fields
Possible constraints for Production Form text fields or list fields
connected to a text database column are:
Supported Options
Constraint Rule Required Detail
= A value Yes N/A Yes
Exclude Case Insensitive NULL
IN Multi-value
Constraint List
IS NULL None No N/A No
IS NOT NULL None No N/A No
* Excludes entire list.
Yes
*
N/A Yes
= Constraint Rule
Use the = rule to create a single-value text match. It supports using
the SQL wildcard characters % and _. If you do not choose any o f the
options described below, the = rule is equivalent to the support
offered in the Quick Search dialog box. If you use a wildcard
character, the actual query will contain a LIKE operator. Example:
where EMPLOYEE.LASTNAME LIKE ‘Jon%’
If you do not use a wildcard character, the query will contain an =
operator. Example: where EMPLOYEE.LASTNAME = ‘Jones’
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Exclude Option
If you select Exclude constraint detail, the search will return all the
values that do not match the constraint detail. Example:
where EMPLOYEE.LASTNAME <> ‘Jones’
Case Insensitive Option
This option has no effect because Access databases provide this
option natively.
NULL Option
The Include NULL values option provides a way to include records
when the field has no entry in addition to the other values you are
searching for. Example: where ((EMPLOYEE.LASTNAME = ‘Jones’)
OR (EMPLOYEE.LASTNAME IS NULL))
You can use the Include NULL values option with either or both of
the other options.
IN Constraint Rule
Use the IN rule when you need to match several distinct values.
Example: where EMPLOYEE.LASTNAME IN (Jones, Li, Garcia)
Exclude Option
If you select Exclude constraint detail, the search will return all the
values that do not appear anywhere on the list. It applies an SQL
NOT to the constraint. Example: where EMPLOYEE.DEPARTMENT
NOT IN (‘Engineering’, ‘Marketing’, ‘Sales’)
Case Insensitive Option
This option has no effect because Access databases provide this
option natively.
NULL Option
The Include NULL values option provides a way to include records
when the field has no entry in addition to the other values you are
searching for. Example: where (EMPLOYEE.DEPARTMENT IN
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56 Searching the Database
(‘Engineering’, ‘Marketing’, ‘Sales’)) OR (EMPLOYEE.DEP ARTMENT
IS NULL)
You can use the Include NULL values option with either or both of
the other options.
IS NULL Constraint Rule
Use the IS NULL rule to find records when the field has no entry.
Example: where EMPLOYEE.LASTNAME IS NULL
No options are available with the IS NULL constraint rule.
IS NOT NULL Constraint Rule
Use the IS NOT NULL rule to match everything but NULL values for
this field. Example: where EMPLOYEE.LASTNAME IS NOT NULL
No options are available with the IS NOT NULL constraint rule.
Numeric Fields
Possible constraints for Production Form auto sequence fields, print
count fields, list fields, and text fields connected to a numeric
database column are:
Supported Options
Constraint Rule Required Detail
= A value Yes No Yes
> A value Yes No Yes
< A value Yes No Yes
BETWEEN Two values Yes No Yes
IN Multi-value
Constraint List
IS NULL None No No No
IS NOT NULL None No No No
* Excludes entire list.
Exclude Case Insensitive NULL
*
Yes
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
No Yes
Searching the Database 57
= Constraint Rule
Use the = rule to match an exact value. Example:
where EMPLOYEE.DNMBR = 716
Exclude Option
If you select Exclude constraint detail, the search will return all
records with values that do not match the value you entered.
Example: where EMPLOYEE.DNMBR <> 716
NULL Option
If you select Include NULL values, the search will return all records
with NULL values in addition to records that contain the value you
entered. Example: where ((CARD.PRINTCOUNT = 0) OR
(CARD.PRINTCOUNT IS NULL))
You can use the Include NULL values option with the Exclude
constraint detail option.
> Constraint Rule
Use the > rule to find records with values greater than the value
entered (that is, more positive). Example: where EMPLOYEE.AGE >
65
Exclude Option
If you select Exclude constraint detail, the search will return all
records with values less than or equal to the value you entered.
Example: where EMPLOYEE.AGE <= 65
NULL Option
If you select Include NULL values, the search will return all records
with NULL values in addition to records that contain values greater
than the value you entered. Example: where ((EMPLOYEE.AGE >
65) OR (EMPLOYEE.AGE IS NULL))
You can use the Include NULL values option with the Exclude
constraint detail option.
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58 Searching the Database
< Constraint Rule
Use the < rule to find records with values less than the value entered
(less positive). Example: where EMPLOYEE.AGE < 18
Exclude Option
If you select Exclude constraint detail, the search will return all
records with values greater than or equal to the value you entered.
Example: where EMPLOYEE.AGE >= 18
NULL Option
If you select Include NULL values, the search will return all records
with NULL values in addition to records that contain values less than
the value you entered. Example: where ((EMPLOYEE.AGE < 18) OR
(EMPLOYEE.AGE IS NULL))
You can use the Include NULL values option with the Exclude
constraint detail option.
BETWEEN Constraint Rule
Exclude Option
NULL Option
Use the BETWEEN rule to find records with values between two
bounding values (and including the bounding values). Example:
where EMPLOYEE.AGE BETWEEN 18 AND 65
If you select Exclude constraint detail, the search will return all
records with values outside the bounding values you entered. It
applies an SQL NOT to the constraint. Example:
where EMPLOYEE.AGE NOT BETWEEN 18 AND 65
If you select Include NULL values, the search will return all records
with NULL values in addition to records that contain values between
the values you entered. Example: where ((EMPLOYEE.AGE
BETWEEN 18 AND 65) OR (EMPLOYEE.AGE IS NULL))
You can use the Include NULL values option with the Exclude
constraint detail option.
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IN Constraint Rule
Use the IN rule to match multiple values. Example:
where EMPLOYEE.DNMBR IN (716, 729, 766)
Exclude Option
If you select Exclude constraint detail, the search will return all the
records with values that do not appear anywhere on the list. It applies
an SQL NOT to the constraint. Example: where EMPLOYEE.DNMBR
NOT IN (716, 729, 766)
NULL Option
If you select Include NULL values, the search will return all records
with NULL values in addition to records that contain values you
entered. Example: where ((EMPLOYEE.DNMBR IN (716, 729, 766))
OR (EMPLOYEE.DNMBR IS NULL))
You can use the Include NULL values option with the Exclude
constraint detail option.
IS NULL Constraint Rule
Use the IS NULL rule to find records when the field has no entry.
Example: where CARD.PRINTCOUNT IS NULL
No options are available with the IS NULL constraint rule.
IS NOT NULL Constraint Rule
Use the IS NOT NULL rule to match everything but NULL values for
this field. Example: where CARD.PRINTCOUNT IS NOT NULL
No options are available with the IS NOT NULL constraint rule.
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60 Searching the Database
Date Fields
The display and entry format for stored search dates is controlled by
the Short date style setting in the Regional Settings Properties
dialog box of the Control Panel. Setting the Short date style to use a
two-digit year may result in a year with a century that is not what the
user expected. To avoid this possibility, select a Short date style
setting that uses a four-digit year.
Possible constraints for Production Form date fields are:
Supported Options
Constraint Rule Required Detail
EXACT DATE A date Yes No Yes
SINCE A date Yes No Yes
BEFORE A date Yes No Yes
BETWEEN Two dates Yes No Yes
Exclude Case Insensitive NULL
PREVIOUS _
DAYS
PREVIOUS _
MONTHS
IS NULL None No No No
IS NOT NULL None No No No
An integer (1 - 31) No No No
An integer (1 - 12) No No No
EXACT DATE Constraint Rule
Use the EXACT DATE rule to match an exact date value. Because
time may not be specified for the field but may be stored in the
database, this constraint is turned into a BETWEEN constraint for the
entered date between 00:00:00 and 23:59:59. Example:
where EMPLOYEE.HIREDATE BETWEEN 2000-11-16 00:00:00
AND 2000-11-16 23:59:59
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Exclude Option
If you select Exclude constraint detail, the search will match any
date other than the one you entered. It applies an SQL NOT to the
constraint. Example: where EMPLOYEE.HIREDATE NOT
BETWEEN 2000-11-16 00:00:00 AND 2000-11-16 23:59:59
NULL Option
If you select Include NULL values, the search will return all records
with NULL values in addition to records that contain the date you
entered. Example: where ((EMPLOYEE.HIREDATE BETWEEN
2000-11-16 00:00:00 AND 2000-11-16 23:59:59) OR
(EMPLOYEE.HIREDATE IS NULL))
You can use the Include NULL values option with the Exclude
constraint detail option.
SINCE Constraint Rule
Use the SINCE rule to match any date greater than the entered date
(that is, going forward in time). Because time may not be specified for
the field but may be stored in the database, the time 23:59:59 is
added to the date. Example:
where EMPLOYEE.HIREDATE > 2000-11-16 23:59:59
Exclude Option
If you select Exclude constraint detail, the search will match any
date less than or equal to the one you entered. Example :
where EMPLOYEE.HIREDATE <= 2000-11-16 23:59:59
NULL Option
If you select Include NULL values, the search will return all records
with NULL values in addition to records that contain dates greater
than the date you entered. Example:
where ((EMPLOYEE.HIREDATE > 2000-11-16 23:59:59) OR
(EMPLOYEE.HIREDATE IS NULL))
You can use the Include NULL values option with the Exclude
constraint detail option.
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BEFORE Constraint Rule
Use the BEFORE rule to match any date less than the entered date
(that is, going backward in time). Because time may not be specified
for the field but may be stored in the database, the time 00:00:00 is
added to the date. Example:
where EMPLOYEE.HIREDATE < 2000-11-16 00:00:00
Exclude Option
If you select Exclude constraint detail, the search will match any
date greater than or equal to the one you entered. Example:
where EMPLOYEE.HIREDATE >= 2000-11-16 00:00:00
NULL Option
If you select Include NULL values, the search will return all records
with NULL values in addition to records that contain dates less than
the date you entered. Example: where ((EMPLOYEE.HIREDATE <
2000-11-16 00:00:00) OR (EMPLOYEE.HIREDATE IS NULL))
You can use the Include NULL values option with the Exclude
constraint detail option.
BETWEEN Constraint Rule
Use the BETWEEN rule to find records with dates between two
bounding dates (and including the bounding dates). The Constraint
value must have a date earlier than Ending constraint value. To
search for dates in the future, s e t the Ending constraint value first
and then the Constraint value. Because time may not be specified
for the field but may be stored in the database, the time 00:00:00 is
added to the date you enter in Constraint value and 23:59:59 is
added to the date you enter in Ending constraint value. Example:
where EMPLOYEE.HIREDATE BETWEEN 1995-11-11 00:00:00
AND 1995-12-31 23:59:59
Exclude Option
If you select Exclude constraint detail, the search will return all
records with dates outside the bounding dates you ente red. It app lies
an SQL NOT to the constraint. Example:
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where EMPLOYEE.HIREDATE NOT BETWEEN 1995-11-11
00:00:00 AND 1995-12-31 23:59:59
NULL Option
If you select Include NULL values, the search will return all records
with NULL values in addition to records that contain dates between
the dates you entered. Example: where ((EMPLOYEE.HIREDATE
BETWEEN 1995-11-11 00:00:00 AND 1995-12-31 23:59:59) OR
(EMPLOYEE.HIREDATE IS NULL))
You can use the Include NULL values option with the Exclude
constraint detail option.
PREVIOUS _ DAYS Constraint Rule
This constraint offers a relative date. When you open the search, the
starting date is calculated as Current Date - x Days where x is the
Constraint value you entered (from 1 to 31). Because time may not
be specified for the field but may be stored in the database, this rule
expands to use a > clause with time set to 00:00:00. Example: (query
opened on March 17, 2000, with Constraint value set to 1)
where CARD.ISSUEDATE > 2000-03-16 00:00:00
No options are available with the PREVIOUS _ DAYS constraint rule.
PREVIOUS _ MONTHS Constraint Rule
This constraint offers a relative date. When you open the search, the
starting date is calculated as the same day x months ago where x is
the Constraint value you entered (from 1 to 12). If the current day
does not exist in the starting month, the highest valid date for the
month is used. Because time may not be specified for the field but
may be stored in the database, this rule expands to use a > clause
with time set to 00:00:00. Example: (query opened on March 31,
2000, with Constraint value set to 1)
where CARD.ISSUEDATE > 2000-02-29 00:00:00
This behavior matches the operation of the Windows Explorer Find
File function.
No options are available with the PREVIOUS _ MONTHS constraint
rule.
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IS NULL Constraint Rule
Use the IS NULL rule to find records when the field has no entry.
Example: where EMPLOYEE.HIREDATE IS NULL
No options are available with the IS NULL constraint rule.
IS NOT NULL Constraint Rule
Use the IS NOT NULL rule to match every record without NULL
values for this field. Example:
where MEMBER.TERMDATE IS NOT NULL
No options are available with the IS NOT NULL constraint rule.
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Image Fields
Image field constraints are more complicated than other field types
because you can specify how an image field is treated as part of a
collection of image fields.
Possible constraints for Production Form photo fields are:
Supported Options
Constraint Rule Required Detail
Exclude Case Insensitive NULL
All selected fields
have data
At least one selected
field has data
At least one selected
field is empty
All selected fields are
empty
If there is only one image field in your project—or if you need to query
only one of the image fields in your project—selecting either All
selected fields have data or At least one selected field has data
gives the same result. Similarly, selecting either At least one
selected field is empty or All selected fields are empty gives the
same result.
If your project has more than one image field and you need to
examine more than one of them for a search, the image fields that
share the same rule are grouped.
If images are stored as files, the existence constraint rules check for a
path in the database, not the actual file. If a file is moved, renamed, or
deleted, the Process user will receive a “file not found” message
when the operator attempts to view the record.
None No No No
None No No No
None No No No
None No No No
No options are available with any of the image field constraint rules.
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66 Searching the Database
All selected fields have data Constraint Rule
Use this rule to find records where an image exist s for all image fie lds
that share this rule. Example: where (EMPLOYEE.FRONT IS NOT
NULL AND EMPLOYEE.RIGHT IS NOT NULL)
At least one selected field has data Constraint Rule
Use this rule to find records where at least one of the specified
images does not exist. Example: where (EMPLOYEE.FRONT IS
NULL OR EMPLOYEE.RIGHT IS NULL)
At least one selected field is empty Constraint Rule
Use this rule to find records where at least one of the specified
images exists. Example: where (EMPLOYEE.FRONT IS NOT NUL L
OR EMPLOYEE.RIGHT IS NOT NULL)
All selected fields are empty Constraint Rule
Use this rule to find records where none of the specified images
exists. Example: where (EMPLOYEE.FRONT IS NULL AND
EMPLOYEE.RIGHT IS NULL)
ID Card Maker Version 5 Operator’s Guide
Index
Symbols
% wildcard character 43
< constraint rule, numeric database
field 58
= constraint rule
numeric database field 57
text field 54
> constraint rule, numeric database
field 57
_ wildcard character 43
A
Administrator application
definition 1
Advanced Search
Filter tab 48
Manage tab 52
running 47
search rules 54
Sort Order tab 51
All selected images exist constraint rule 66
Any of the selected images do not exist
constraint rule 66
Any of the selected images exists
constraint rule 66
B
barcode field
errors in Process application 27
BEFORE constraint rule 62
BETWEEN constraint rule
date field 62
numeric database field 58
C
card
previewing 26
printing 28
constraints
applying and clearing 50
multi-value constraint list 49
D
database 31
adding a record in Process
application 34
changing information in Process
application 32
deleting a record in Process
application 35
database, using
Reports application 38
searching
advanced search 47
for all records 42
quick search 41
wildcard characters 43
viewing records 46
date field
BEFORE constraint rule 62
BETWEEN constraint rule 62
entering information in Process
application 11
EXACT DATE constraint rule 60
IS NOT NULL constraint rule 64
IS NULL constraint rule 64
PREVIOUS _ DAYS constraint rule 63
PREVIOUS _ MONTHS constraint
rule 63
search constraints 60
searching in database 43
SINCE constraint rule 61
E
EXACT DATE constraint rule 60
ID Card Maker Enhanced Version 5 User Documentation
68 Index
I
image field
All selected images exist constraint
rule 66
Any of the selected images do not exist
constraint rule 66
Any of the selected images exists
constraint rule 66
None of the selected images exists
constraint rule 66
search constraints 65
See also photo field
IN constraint rule
numeric database field 59
text field 55
IS NOT NULL constraint rule
date field 64
numeric database field 59
text field 56
IS NULL constraint rule
date field 64
numeric database field 59
text field 56
K
keyboard shortcuts 5
L
list field, selecting from 12
log in 3
M
manage Advanced Search 52
mandatory field on Production Form 26
mask, text field 10
mouse, using in ID Card Maker 5
Multi-value Constraint List 49
N
None of the selected images exists
constraint rule 66
numeric database field
< constraint rule 58
= constraint rule 57
> constraint rule 57
BETWEEN constraint rule 58
IN constraint rule 59
IS NOT NULL constraint rule 59
IS NULL constraint rule 59
search constraints 56
O
opening a project 6
P
page setup for reports 39
password
changing 3
photo
adjusting 19
capturing with TWAIN device 15
capturing with Video for Windows
device 17
cropping 19
cropping (existing) 22
exporting 23
removing backdrop 23
rotating 21
selecting 21
source, selecting in Process
application 19
photo field
See also image field
using in Process application 13
photo from file, using in Process
application 14
pop-up menu 5
previewing cards 26
previewing reports 39
PREVIOUS _ DAYS constraint rule 63
PREVIOUS _ MONTHS constraint rule 63
print preview 39
printing reports 38
ID Card Maker Ver sion 5 Operator’s Guide
Index 69
printing cards 28
tracking print requests 29
Process application
definition 1
entering information 9
moving around in 8
printing cards 28
taking photos 13
using a database 31
Production Form view 44
Project application definition 1
project
definition 1
using in Process application 8
Q
Quick Search 41
R
read-only field on Production Form 26
records, selecting 38
report, selecting 38
Reports application
using a database 38
reports, page setup 39
right-click menu 5
S
search constraints
date field 60
image field 65
numeric database field 56
text field 54
search rules 54
searching database
quick search 41
stored search 47
wildcard character 43
SINCE constraint rule 61
sort order for Advanced Search 51
stored search
changing 53
creating 47
deleting 53
managing 52
running 47
valid name 53
T
Table view
navigation 45
text field
= constraint rule 54
entering information in Process
application 9
IN constraint rule 55
IS NOT NULL constraint rule 56
IS NULL constraint rule 56
mask 10
toolbars 5
topcoat
TWAIN
V
valid name
Video for Windows
W
Welcome dialog box 4
wildcard characters in database
27
device, using in Process
application 15, 17
interface standard 15
stored search 53
standard interface 17
searches 43
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ID Card Maker Ver sion 5 Operator’s Guide
Administrator’s Guide for
ID Card Maker Version 5
ii
Contents
About the Administrator’s Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii
Chapter 1: System Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Introducing the ID Card Maker “Project” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Logging In to an ID Card Maker Application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Changing Your User Password . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Using the Welcome Dialog Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Using ID Card Maker Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Working with Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Inserting Fields. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Selecting Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Sizing Fields. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Arranging Fields. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Changing Field Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Cutting, Copying, and Pasting Fields. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Developing a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Create the ID Card Maker Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Create the Card Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Create the Production Form. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Create the Report Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Specify a Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Tie It All Together. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Try It Out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Implement Card Production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Chapter 2: Plan and Create the Card Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
What Is a Card Design? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Card Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Orientation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Topcoat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Types of Card Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Text Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Photo Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Date Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Barcode Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
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Magnetic Stripe Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Variable Graphic Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Static Text Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Static Graphic Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Non-Printable Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Rectangle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Ellipse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Common Card Field Characteristics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Alignment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Sample Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Position/Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Fonts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Text Field Colors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Arranging Fields on the Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Printing Sample Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Printing Cards in the Process Application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Card Design Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Chapter 3: Plan and Create the Production Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
What Is a Production Form? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Production Form Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Types of Production Form Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Text Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Text Field Masks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Photo Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Date Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
List Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Composite Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Print Count Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Auto Sequence Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Static Text Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Static Graphic Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
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Common Production Form Field Characteristics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Alignment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Sample Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Position/Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Fonts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Text Field Colors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Field Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Arranging Fields on the Production Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Changing the Tab Order of Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Creating a Production Form from a Card Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Adding Fields to a Production Form Created from a Card Design . . . . . . . . . . 68
About the Created Production Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Chapter 4: Plan and Create the Report Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
What Is a Report Design? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Report Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Report Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Report Block Layout. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Header and Footer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Page Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Types of Report Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Text Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Photo Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Date Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Barcode Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Variable Graphic Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Static Text Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Static Graphic Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Common Report Field Characteristics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Alignment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Sample Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Position/Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Fonts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Text Field Colors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Arranging Fields on the Report Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Previewing and Printing Sample Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
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Chapter 5: Using Databases with ID Card Maker Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Supported Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Connecting to Multiple Tables in a Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Database Login . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Data Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Controlling Database Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Database Design Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Understanding Database Errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
BLOB-related Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
File Name Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Creating a Database from ID Card Maker Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Adding Fields to a Database Created from ID Card Maker Project . . . . . . . . . . 93
About the Created Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Importing Data from a Text File to an Access Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Exporting Data from an Access Database to a Text File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Chapter 6: Connecting Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
What Is the Field Connector? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Field Connections Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Data Source Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Production Form Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Production Output Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Connect and Disconnect Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Restrictions on Connections to Database Columns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Restrictions on Connections to Card Design Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Restrictions on Connections to Report Block Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
v
Chapter 7: Working with Capture Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Photo from File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
TWAIN Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Video for Windows Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Optional Capture Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Configuring Optional Capture Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
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Chapter 8: Working with Printer Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Introducing Printer Plug-ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Specifying Plug-ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Printing Multiple Copies of Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Printing Graphics with the Card Printer’s K-panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Field Properties Print Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Override Field-level Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Printing Order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Specifying the Print Queue Path . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Chapter 9: System Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
ID Card Maker Security Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Managing Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Changing the Admin User Name Password. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
User Privileges. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Requiring Login after Inactivity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Tracking Activity with the Audit Log . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Viewing the Audit Log . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Exporting the Audit Log . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Windows Security Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Installing and Uninstalling ID Card Maker Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Locating Project Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Protecting Project Files from Modification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
ID Card Maker Version 5 Administrator’s Guide
About the Administrator’s Guide
This Administrator’s Guide, part of the online User Documentation,
explains why you might want to use the various features available in
the ID Card Maker applications. It also suggests the order in which
tasks should be performed.
Other sources of information about ID Card Maker applications are:
This document is one of three sources of information about Polaroid
ID Card Maker.
• The CD insert tells how to install ID Card Maker software.
• The online help system tells you how to perform ID Card Maker
tasks. You can access the online help system from the Help
menu in each ID Card Maker application or by pressing the F1
key.
• The Operator’s Guide, also part of the online User
Documentation, guides users of the Process and Reports
applications through the tasks they perform.
• The online User Documentation also contains documents about
printer plug-ins available for use with ID Card Maker Enhanced.
vii
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ID Card Maker Version 5 Administrator’s Guide
1
System Overview
Polaroid ID Card Maker includes four
applications:
ID Card Maker Project lets you create projects
that meet your organization’s specific needs for
card designs, report designs, data entry, and database access.
In some organizations, one person performs all the Project functions.
In others, a graphic artist may be responsible for card designs while a
programmer, database administrator, and/or manager develop the
Production Forms, reports, and connections.
ID Card Maker Process lets an operator use the projects you create
in the Project application to gather information, access your
database, and print identification cards.
ID Card Maker Reports lets an operator generate and print imagerich reports from your database.
ID Card Maker Administrator contains tools to manage user
accounts, monitor security, and configure your ID Card Maker
software.
Introducing the ID Card Maker “Project”
An ID Card Maker project is similar to a folder or directory on a
computer: it is the container that holds information about an
identification implementation. In fact, when you create an ID Card
Maker project, the software creates a folder on your hard drive with
the name you give the project. And, just as you can have many
folders on your computer, you can have many ID Card Maker
projects. The only limitation is your disk capacity.
A project usually contains a Production Form and a card design
(although a card design is not required). Optionally, your project can
contain one or more report designs and one o r more stored searches.
By using field connections, information entered in a Production Form
can be saved in a database, printed on a car d, used in a re port, or a ll
of the above. The Production Form can also be used to query an
existing database so that you can add or change information in the
database or print cards and report s using information in the d atab ase.
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2 System Overview
Security
An identification program is not secure if the computer system that
gathers information and produces the ID cards is not secure. ID Card
ID Card Maker Version 5 Administrator’s Guide
System Overview 3
Maker Enhanced identification software gives you a number of ways
to ensure the security of your identification program.
Using the ID Card Maker Administrator application, you authenticate
users with individual, password-protected accounts. User account
privileges can be tailored to allow access to specific applications,
activities, and projects. Significant user actions, such as logging in,
opening projects, and printing cards, create entries in an audit log.
You can review and print the audit log using the ID Card Maker
Administrator application.
You can track changes ID Card Maker users make to your database.
In ID Card Maker Project you specify whether changing a Production
Form field is to be recorded in the audit log.
See “System Security” on page 119 for complete information.
Getting Started
The rest of this chapter explains the steps you take to begin using
your ID Card Maker identification software.
Logging In to an ID Card Maker Application
To begin using ID Card Maker software, double-click the ID Card
Maker Project shortcut icon on your desktop.
In the User Login dialog box, type your User Name and User
Password, and then click the Log in button.
The default User Name and User Password are Admin and Admin. If
you have not already done so, change the password for the default
user account and create a user account with System Administrator
privileges for yourself. See “Changing the Admin User Name
Password” on page 120 for more information.
When you are logged in to an ID Card Maker application, you do not
need to supply your user name and password again to start another
ID Card Maker application.
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4 System Overview
Changing Your User Password
Each time you log in to an ID Card Maker application you have the
opportunity to change your user password. To change your
password, click the Change Password button any time before
completing the login. The Login and Change Password dialog box
opens, where you must supply your user name, current password,
and a new password. You will also need to type the new password a
second time for verification. Then click the Log in button to complete
the change and log in to the ID Card Maker application.
Passwords can be 1 to 10 characters long and can include any
character you can type from the keyboard. Passwords are not case
sensitive. That is, ADMIN, admin, and AdmiN are all treated as the
same.
Using the Welcome Dialog Box
After you have changed your password or enter ed it and clicked Log
in, the Welcome dialog box appears.
From this dialog box you can start a new project (see “Create the ID
Card Maker Project” on page 11) or open an existing project. If the
project you want to open is not listed, click Open projects or More
projects to display the Open Project dialog box, which lists all ID
Card Maker projects loaded on your computer.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Administrator’s Guide
System Overview 5
You can also choose not to have the Welcome dialog box display by
clearing the check mark next to Show this window at startup. If you
hide the Welcome dialog box and later want to show it again, from the
Project menu bar , select View and then Show Welcome on startup.
The selection you make applies only to the Windows user name you
used to log in and only to the Project application. Other ID Card
Maker applications have separate settings for showing the Welcome
window.
Using ID Card Maker Applications
If you are familiar with your Microsoft® Windows® operating system
and typical office applications, such as word processing and
presentation software, ID Card Maker software will feel familiar to
you. ID Card Maker applications let you perform most actions severa l
ways: by selecting menu commands with the mouse, or with the
keyboard, or by clicking a toolbar button, or by clicking the right
mouse button and selecting from the pop-up menu. Key commands
or shortcuts for actions common to many applications—such as cut,
paste, and save—follow Microsoft Office conventions; you do not
have to relearn your favorite shortcuts.
Most ID Card Maker applications have several toolbars, and you can
display or hide toolbars to match the way you prefer to work. When
you rest the mouse pointer on a toolbar button, the name and fun ction
of the button appears.
A status bar at the bottom of the window provides additional
information about the application
view or hide the status bar.
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. As with toolbars, you can choose to
6 System Overview
Status bar
Working with Fields
Every element on a Production Form, card design, or report block is
considered a field. Every field has a name. The Project application
names fields as you insert them, but you can change the systemsupplied name (T ext Field 1, for example) to a more descriptive name
(such as FirstName). Giving fields descriptive names will help you
when you are using the field connector to associate Production Form
fields with card or report block fields and database table columns.
These fields show
sample data
ID Card Maker Version 5 Administrator’s Guide
System Overview 7
Field names can be up to 100 characters long an d can contain any
character you can type on your keyboard.
If you will connect your ID Card Maker project to an existing
database, consider giving your ID Card Maker Pr oduction Form fields
the same names as the database table columns with which they will
be associated.
Using the View menu, you can choo se to ha ve th e fie lds in yo ur
Production Form, card design, and report block show either field
names or sample data (which you provide) as you work in the ID Card
Maker Project application.
Inserting Fields
To insert a field, from the menu bar, select Insert and then the type of
field you want to add to your Production Form, card, or report block.
You can copy and paste fields within a project component and
between a card and report block. You cannot paste fields between
the Production Form and a card or report block. You can, however,
create Production Form fields from card fields. See the online help
topic “Add fields to a Production Form from a card design”.
The types of fields you can insert depend on whether the Production
Form, card design, or report block is active. Some field types, such as
list fields, can be inserted only in a Production Form. Others, such as
a magnetic stripe field, apply only to a card design.
Selecting Fields
When a field is inserted, it is automatically selected, meaning that you
can make changes to it. A field that is selected has a border of
diagonal lines and six or eight squares (called sizing hand les) around
the border, dep ending on the type of field. In addition, when a single
field is selected, the status bar reports the field name, field type,
component name, and component type (card, Production Form, etc.).
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8 System Overview
Text fields have six sizing handles.
Graphics fields have eight sizing handles.
To select a field that was previously inserted, position your mouse
pointer over the field you want to change and click.
You can also select two or more fields at a time. Position your mouse
pointer over one of the fields you want to select and click. Hold down
the S
HIFT or CTRL key while clicking on the additional fields.
When multiple fields are selected, you can move them as a group,
align them, or make them the same size.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Administrator’s Guide
System Overview 9
Sizing Fields
With a few exceptions, you can change both the width and height of
any field in an ID Card Maker project. The easiest way to change the
width of a field is to drag a sizing handle until the field is the size you
want. You can also change the height of graphic-oriented fields by
dragging a sizing handle. Graphic-oriented fields include photos,
graphics, and shapes. See the ID Card Maker Project online help
topic “Size a field proportionately” for infor m atio n on avoi d ing
distortion of graphics.
To change the height of a Text field or Static Text field, change the
size of the Font. See “Changing Field Properties” on page 10.
Arranging Fields
When you insert a field, the Project application places it near the
upper left corner of the Production Form, car d design, or re port block.
To move a selected field, place the mouse pointer over the field. The
pointer changes to a four-way arrow . Hold down the lef t mouse button
while you move the field to its new location and then release the
mouse button.
As mentioned, you can select multiple fields and then move or align
them. For example, to make your Production Form look consistent,
select all the fields in the first row and then (using the Format or right
mouse click menu) align the fields using the Bottom selection.
Repeat with each row. The n select the left-most field in each row, and
align them using the Left selection. See the ID Card Maker Project
online help topic “Align fields” for additional options.
If fields overlap, you may need to arrange them by using the stacking
order. To understand the stacking order, imagine that each field you
place on the Production Form, card design, or report block is on a
separate sheet of clear plastic. The first field you place is on a plastic
sheet next to the object’s background; the second field is on a sheet
in front of the first sheet, and so on. When you select a field, you can
bring that field all the way to the front of the stacking order, bring it
one position toward the front, send it all the way to the back of the
stacking order , or sen d it one position towar d the back. Commands to
change the stacking order of fields are available on the Format menu
of the menu bar.
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Changing Field Properties
In addition to changing a field’s size and location, you can change
other properties of the field in the Edit Field Properties dialog box. To
access the Edit Field Properties dialog box, with the field selected,
from the menu bar select Edit and then Field Properties.
The Edit Field Properties dialog box changes depending on the type
of field you have selected. The illustration above shows the Edit Field
Properties dialog box for a date field on a Prod uction For m. Chap ters
2 (for card design fields), 3 (for Production Form fields), and 4 (for
report block fields) describe the properties of each field in detail.
You can format the text properties of multiple text-based fields at one
time. See the online help topic “Format text properties for multiple
fields” for step-by-step instructions.
Cutting, Copying, and Pasting Fields
You can use standard Windows oper ations to delete a selected field
from your Production Form, card design, or report block, copy a
selected field to a clipboard, and paste a copy of a field that is on the
clipboard into your Production Form, card design, or report block.
Y ou cannot copy and p aste fields between the Production Form and a
card or report block.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Administrator’s Guide
System Overview 11
When you cut a field, it is placed on the clipboard. It stays on the
clipboard until it is replaced by a different field or you close the
project.
Developing a Project
An ID Card Maker project typically involves a Production Form, a card
design, connections between the Production Form and card design,
and, optionally , rep ort s and connectio ns to your data base. It does not
matter which part of the project you start with. This document
describes card designs first because many people find it easiest to
think about a card—something you can hold in your hand. If your
main interest is in how your identification system uses your existing
database, you might want to start your design with database
considerations.
Furthermore, ID Card Maker applications support an iterative design
process. You can start with a card design, move to the Production
Form, use the field connector to associate Production Form fields
with card fields and database table columns, and then go back and
refine your card design or make changes to the Production Form.
Create the ID Card Maker Project
You create a new project in the ID Card Maker Project application.
You can either create a project from scratch or start with one of the
sample projects provided with the ID Card Maker software. And after
you have completed your first ID Card Maker project, you can use it
as a starting point for subsequent projects.
To create a new project from scratch, either select Create a new
project on the Welcome dialog box when you log in or select File and
then New Project from the Project menu bar. See the online help
topic “Create a new project” for step-by-step instructions.
If you use one of the sample projects that includes a database as a
starting point, follow the step-by-step instructions in the online help
topic “Modifying a sample project” to ensure that your database will
not be overwritten if you need to reinstall your ID Card Maker
software.
Each project has a set of properties that applies to the project as a
whole. You can set which database (if any) your project will connect
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12 System Overview
to and whether your project will use fonts installed in the printer in
addition to fonts available with Windows. Using databases with ID
Card Maker projects is explained in the Operator’s Guide. See the
Project online help topic “Use printer fonts” for more information on
that subject.
Create the Card Design
See Chapter 2, Plan and Create the Card Design for complete
information.
Create the Production Form
See Chapter 3, Plan and Create the Production Form for complete
information.
Create the Report Design
See Chapter 4, Plan and Create the Report Design for complete
information.
Specify a Database
Tie It All Together
Chapter 5, Using Databases with ID Card Maker Projects explains
database considerations.
If you do not have a database of cardholder information, you can
create one using the ID Card Maker Project application. See
“Creating a Database from ID Card Maker Project” on page 92.
Chapter 6, Connecting Fields explains what you need to do to retrieve
information from your database, save information to your database,
and print information on cards and reports.
ID Card Maker Version 5 Administrator’s Guide
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