Getting data quickly into an iPhone/iPad by scanning barcodes or reading cards with magnetic stripes makes your process mobile. If the card reader doesn’t separate from the iPhone or iPad, this method is perfect for quickly reading data from a card with a magnetic stripe. The iMag came with an adapter that is supposed to allow it to stick more firmly on the iPhone, but this didn’t work with the 4 model. I found that this connection doesn’t remain firmly seated in the iPhone 4, but works well with an iPad. The iMag Pro hardware is attached to the iPhone through the USB connectors at the bottom. This sometimes caused issues with locating the right file, but when switched to the $ sign the callback worked seamlessly. one on the server) used the tilde sign instead of the $ sign, which looks for a file on the device, rather than an already open file. However, in the example, the one that referred to a local file (vs. Luckily CardSwipe has great developer documentation. Issues that arose in this process centered around getting the proper URL. The script that receives the data, using a script parameter in step #2.This script opens the iOS app using the Open URL script step, which has a callback to script #3.A button calls the first script, which has one purpose: Perform script #2.Once again we split the scripts into three separate pieces to assist with any troubleshooting. Credit Card numbers get picked up, so security becomes an issue once you read these, as storing the numbers is never recommended. Characters like “^” often separate key pieces of information. Each card that is read encodes its data differently, so extracting information is a matter of trial and error, and the text parsing process must be coded specifically to each card. Once the card is read by the iMag device, it immediately switches back to FileMaker and runs the “swipe” script, which reads the data. Once the button is pressed, the iPhone (or iPad) switches over to CardSwipe, which is then ready for you to swipe the card. With the swipe action, instead of URL encoding each character, we tried using FileMaker’s native function – GetAsURLEncoded(), and this seemed to have no ill effects. "ccqfm://?" & GetAsURLEncoded ( "fmp://$/" & Get ( FileName ) & "?script=swipe¶m=" ) The script then receives the input from the card. This Open URL step calls the iOS app – in this case CardSwipe – and includes a callback function to the FileMaker database to run a script. A button in the FileMaker database calls an Open URL script step. In principle this is very similar to the barcode method. In this third and last post (see Part 1 and Part 2) we look at pulling data into FileMaker Go using magnetic stripe readers. I have included a small demo file to show this in action.įiled Under: Barcodes Tagged With: Demo file, FileMaker Go, Insert From URL, Web service Scanning Barcodes with FileMaker Go – Part 3 This is still a good option to keep in mind when developing and testing a mobile solution with barcodes. The types of barcodes available also are limited. Given that this is a free service, there is no guarantee how long it will remain available or a free service. Using FileMaker 12’s Insert from URL you can send a query to this web services and insert a barcode image into a container field. It supports a handful of barcodes types, as well as QR codes, and requires a simple URL call. The web service,, is a RESTful service and requires no API or fee. This might be useful if you scan barcodes, and want an alternate method to create barcodes in your FileMaker solution. Recently I came across a web service over at ProgammableWeb that generates barcodes. With barcode scanning now natively supported in FileMaker 13, there are more reasons to use FileMaker Go for inventory tracking and management.įiled Under: Barcodes Tagged With: FileMaker 13, FileMaker Go, Insert From Device Using a Web Service to Generate Barcodes There are currently 16 supported barcode types including QR Codes. The former gets only the contents the latter gets the contents and type of barcode. Once you insert the barcode, you can get information about the barcode using the GetAsText( ) and GetContainerAttribute( ) functions. Select the target field, a container, and from which device you want to insert (music library, photo library, camera, video camera, microphone, and signature). In FileMaker 13, there is a new “Insert from Device” script step. There is no longer any need for the FileMaker Pro URL protocol and extra iOS applications. With the release of FileMaker 13, barcode scanning is now a native feature. A few months ago I wrote a series of articles ( Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3) about barcode scanning in FileMaker Go 12.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |