3. Creating Your Own Database

This procedure requires that the Quest user has a USB cable connected between the Quest and a PC. The reader should be available in Windows XP under My Computer, and in Windows Vista and Windows 7 under Computer, as a Removable Disk. Please make yourself familiar with how to find and interact with this resource before attempting the following steps.

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The following describes the process for creating a custom data file for the i.d. mate Quest. Quest users may have up to 100 *.DAT files existing on their card at a given time. They must be named BARCODES##.DAT in sequential order (example: BARCODES01.DAT, BARCODESO2.DAT, etc.).

Barcodes are subject to these criteria:

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• Barcodes and description fields may be comprised of any ASCII character except for comma, semi-colon, and quotes.
   

• The actual printed barcodes must match exactly what you put into your barcode filed. Include any leading and trailing zeroes and spaces. There should be no duplicate barcodes in a BARCODES.DAT file.
   

• Barcode ID mode only reads the first 21 characters. We recommend a maximum length of only 20 characters (though more can be accommodated outside of the Barcode ID function).

Creating the Custom Database

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1. Prepare Data: Note: For all options below, there must be at least one description field in addition to the barcode field, and multiple description fields will be navigable when scanning the barcode. Barcodes may be comprised of any ASCII character except for comma, semi-colon, and quotes. Barcodes can be in any order. It is necessary to remove any duplicate barcodes.
    

   • Option 1: Enter data manually - The first field should always be the record's barcode, followed by a semi-colon (;) and then the descriptive fields separated by semi-colons.
      

   • Option 2: Use Inventory Mode – Open inventory.dat in another program. (This file is comma delimited, quote text qualified, the barcode column should be “text” not general format.) Remove the quantity field/column, modify the descriptions if necessary. Save As BARCODES##.DAT
      

   • Option 3: Acquire manufacturer or retail data - Treatment of barcode data received from a manufacturer may need to be handled on a case-by-case basis. Be sure to import the barcode column into the first field.
      

2. Within your data fields, replace all commas (,) and semi-colons (;) and quotes (“) with spaces or with periods. This will assure that data is uploaded to the Inventory file correctly. (This is a comma delimited, text enclosed by quotes file). A period will create a pause in the speech like a comma or semi-colon. We recommend replacing all double spaces with single spaces to reduce size of file. Repeat until no replacements are reported.
    

3. Make your file into a semi-colon delimited file and save as text. Download this text file (right click and save to your Quest's removable disk storage) to see an example of the final format in Notepad.
    

   • Option 1: Export from Access. When exporting from Access, choose to export as "text files." On the first screen, choose "delimited". On the second screen, choose "semicolon". Also make sure to indicate {none} where it asks if you want Text Qualifiers. Save the file as: BARCODES01.DAT
      

   • Option 2: Convert Excel file to semi-colon delimited file using Notepad:
      

     • Select File > Save As.

     • Change "Save as type" to CSV (comma delimited) *.csv.

     • If prompted that the selected file type does not support workbooks that contain multiple sheets, click OK. Then if prompted that the file may contain features that are not compatible with CSV (comma delimited) - "Do you want to keep the workbook in this format?" - choose Yes. Select File > Close. When prompted to save changes, choose No.

     • Open the file in Notepad or a similar text editor.

     • Using Edit > Replace, replace all commas (,) with semi-colons (;).

     • Save the file using File > Save (or Ctrl + S) Name: BARCODES01.DAT
        

   • Option 3: Change Regional Options and use Notepad. If your file is very large, the replacement function above may take too long. Here is another way of doing it: Before saving your .csv file, change your computer's regional settings: Go to Start > Control Panel > Regional and Language Options > Customize (from the numbers tab), then under the List Separator, choose the semi-colon (;). This will make any .csv files semi-colon delimited instead of comma delimited. Return to the Excel file and save as a .csv file format. In your file window rename file BARCODES01.DAT.
      

4. No further processing is necessary!
    

5. Copy the BARCODES01.DAT file to the root directory of the unit's card. RESTART before beginning to use your new database. You may have multiple databases co-exist. The "official" En-Vision America BARCODES.DAT file should remain named as it is. Your custom barcodes files should be renamed with a sequencing number with the following pattern: BARCODES01.DAT, BARCODES02.DAT, etc. up to BARCODES99.DAT
    

6. Order of Announcements: Enumerated DAT files are queried in numerical order before BARCODES.DAT. You can tell if the product announcement is an En-Vision America product by the preceding announcement of "Product" or "Artist" or "Title" before the data is spoken. If Google product search is enabled you will hear a small beep indicating the search/replay of Google data.
    

7. Notes During Use:
    

   • Because the software will not be doing a searched based on sort order, the time elapse between scan and found records is longer than if you just had En-Vision America's database on your unit.
      

   • If you want to scan another item quickly, press the erase button to "reset" the scanner.
      

   • NEW! Inventory mode will be able to pull down your description field from your self-made databases.

For further technical assistance, contact En-Vision America at 1-800-890-1180 and ask for help creating a custom barcode database.