free barcode app

[zoran]

Which is the best free barcode app one can use for making barcodes to use in the print business?

 

[superscape]

Hi,

A lot of the free barcode software out there tends to be font based which isn't going to be suitable for the print trade since its not going to support things such as bar width reduction (BWR). Also, you need something that's going to output vector artwork e.g. pdf or eps.

You might look at a free online solution such as:

http://www.terryburton.co.uk/barcodewriter/generator/

...or if you want stand alone software then you might take a look at my own product Barcode Basics which is pretty cheap (although not free, admittedly).

https://www.ghostotter.com/mac-barcode-software/

Hope that's of some help.

 

[steve123]

Hi,


...or if you want stand alone software then you might take a look at my own product Barcode Basics which is pretty cheap (although not free, admittedly).

Hello. I went and had a look at your app in the App Store. If I may make a suggestion, would you consider adding support for 2D barcodes (Datamatrix, QR, PDF417, etc) and provide an API so that the barcode generation could be integrated into Filemaker and other apps?

 

[superscape]

Hello. I went and had a look at your app in the App Store. If I may make a suggestion, would you consider adding support for 2D barcodes (Datamatrix, QR, PDF417, etc) and provide an API so that the barcode generation could be integrated into Filemaker and other apps?

Hi, thanks for taking a look. I don't think we'll be supporting 2D in the near future, at least not in Barcode Basics.

As far as APIs go, you've got me thinking... ;-)

 

[zoran]

Hi, A lot of the free barcode software out there tends to be font based which isn't going to be suitable for the print trade since its not going to support things such as bar width reduction (BWR).

What exactly is BWR, what is it helpful for and why is it so important?

Also, you need something that's going to output vector artwork e.g. pdf or eps.

True

...or if you want stand alone software then you might take a look at my own product Barcode Basics which is pretty cheap (although not free, admittedly).

Is there a version for SnowLeopard?

 

[zoran]

Also let me ask, why should one purchase a barcode app and not just use the free online one posted above? Im not against, just want to know the downsides of the online way.

 

[superscape]

Also let me ask, why should one purchase a barcode app and not just use the free online one posted above? Im not against, just want to know the downsides of the online way.

Mainly personal preference, I guess.

Paranoid folks like me would worry that one day they'll need to create a barcode and the site might not be there, or their internet connection might be down, or they'll be at a client's site where internet access is restricted... and sod's law dictates that it'll always be when you have a rush job on.

An app however will always be sat there on your hard drive, ready whenever you need it to be.

Also, the online version I recommended is a bit fiddly. If you want some of the more advanced options such as BWR etc then you need to rummage through the documentation and find out the appropriate option values to type in.

Apps such as Barcode Basics (to continue plugging it shamelessly) have a neater and more user friendly interface.

For comparison, why not try creating a barcode through the online version and one through the demo version of Barcode Basics and see which you find easier. Be sure to include some of the more technical settings such as bar height and BWR. See which you prefer.

 

[superscape]

Bwr

Here's an explanation of BWR:

http://www.ghostotter.com/what-is-barcode-bwr/

I'm afraid there's no version of Barcode Basics for Snow Leopard - that's just too old. Sorry.