disable keyboard

[Guest]

Hello,
I have a form that has one text field. We use a handheld barcode scanner
that is connected to computer. Users need to scan barcodes to this text
field, however sometime they type the barcodes’ digits which we do not want.
So I need to disable keyboard typing but enable scanner to this text field.
Can I do this?
Jim.

 

[James Hahn]

Scanners work by feeding their input to the system as if it is coming from
the keyboard, so the application is not aware of whether the data is being
scanned or typed. So even if Access had a built-in selective input feature
(which it doesn't) it couldn't actually tell whether the operator was typing
or scanning.

You should look at your scanner options and see what is available for
formatting the data. If you could format it with a character that the
operator cannot type, then check for that character (and, presumably, strip
it before storing the data) then you would be able to reject the 'invalid'
keyboard data. You might not even have to use a character that the operator
can't type - it might be enough that the scan includes a hidden character
(which you strip) that the operators aren't aware of.

 

[Arvin Meyer]

Just a guess. There are barcode scanners which work on USB or Serial
connections. If you used one of those scanners and when you opened that form
wrote some code that remapped the numbers on the keyboard, you *might* get
that to do what you want.
--
Arvin Meyer, MCP, MVP
Microsoft Access
Free Access downloads:
http://www.datastrat.com
http://www.mvps.org/access