The Details
When SpineOMatic starts, the User Interface is displayed. The features presented are those that are required to perform the basic tasks of scanning bar code labels and printing the resulting spine labels. Many other options and settings are available. These are detailed in Setup Options (below).
SpineOMatic assumes that an item’s barcode number has been entered into Alma early stage in the cataloging process, and that a barcode label with that number has been applied to the item.
A Station Name and an optional User: ID for data for Activity Reports.
Auto Print immediately sends the label to the printer once a spine label has been generated. Review allows the user to inspect the label and make corrections (if needed) before clicking “Send to desktop printer.” (Auto Print becomes Auto Add if batch processing is selected.)
Library name and item title are displayed.
“R” when using RESTful API access; “J” for (deprecated) Java access.
The Scan button clears the input box, if necessary. The box clears automatically when a label is sent to the printer.
Barcode numbers can be typed, scanned, or dragged into the Input Box. The Enter key must be pressed after typing. Scanners can add the “Enter” code automatically, so no manual key press is required.
You can have SpineOMatic parse the call number and holdings, or select the parsing supplied by Ex Libris.
The call number is parsed into the Output Box, and may be manually edited. The label prefix “SYS. REF.” has been added automatically to the top of the label by the Label Prefix feature.
If Review is selected, click the print button or use keyboard shortcut CTRL p to send the label to the printer (or to a batch, if batch processing is selected). The Output Box then clears and the Input Box is readied to receive the next barcode number.
Print from 1 to 99 copies of the label.
Click the arrowhead to recall the last five barcode numbers that have been scanned. Double click a number to reload it into the Input Box. Then press Enter to create the label.
The user interface shown above can be expanded to reveal the setup panels, where all the other features of SpineOMatic are accessed and configured. Click the blue left/right arrowhead or use the keyboard shortcut CTRL a to reveal or hide the setup panels.
Enter a brief name in the “Station:” box that will uniquely identify this workstation in future Activity Reports.
Checking this box forces the user to enter a brief name or number in the “User:” box in the upper right of the User Interface. The Output Box instructs the user to enter their name or ID, and to press the Enter key. The User ID must be eight characters or less.
If no name is entered, the user will not be able to scan or print labels. Names are converted to upper case to ensure consistency from one session to the next. If “Require username” is not checked, the name “[none]” will be assigned in order to provide a default name in the activity log. “User: [none]” will display in the User Interface.
The multi-print option allows you to print from 1 to 99 copies of each label. Click the up/down arrows to increase or decrease the number of labels printed. If more than 1 is selected, the box turns red to alert you that more than one label is being printed.
When this box is checked, a “temp>” feature appears on the User Interface. Clicking “temp>” generates a dummy barcode number that can be dragged to Alma and assigned to an item that does not have a permanent barcode number. Once assigned, the “temp” number can be dragged into the Input Box to retrieve the item from Alma.
If the Show Tips box is checked, hovering the mouse pointer over most labels and text boxes anywhere on the user interface will pop up a brief description of the item under the pointer.
Click “About” to view the copyright statement, contact information, and the latest version of this user’s manual. The manual is a Microsoft Word .doc file that will be downloaded into SpineOMatic’s installation directory (usually “C:\spine”). If MS Word is installed on the workstation, the document will open and display automatically. Clicking the “View License Agreement” button opens the text of the agreement in Notepad on your computer.
