Navigate Switchboard using keyboard / Bar Code Scanner

[CT Witter]

I'm improving a previous database and was looking to enable my users to navigate the switchboard using the keyboard but preferably using the bar code scanner.

For example, the user could scan the number one and it would open switchboard item 1.

I have used a sample template like the one found below. I wasn't sure if there was someone to modify the code to make this happen.

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/templates/TC010184581033.aspx?CategoryID=CT011366681033

 

[Corticus]

Hi CT Witter,

For the most part, scanners work just like a keyboard. Scanning something is the same as typing in a string of text. So anything you can trigger from typing something in you can trigger from a barcode scan.

I'm thinking, have a text box, put the cursor in the text box, and then whatever you scan should be entered as text into the textbox. You can then use the textboxes onchange() event to trigger a select case statement that allows you to specify what to do depending on what they entered. If there are a lot of options, instead of a select case, you could set up a table and relate the name of the form to open (for example) to the code, that way it's easier to keep track of.

 

[CT Witter]

I like the suggestion, but it looks like that will require signifcant changes to the pre-built switchboard.

 

[Corticus]

That is correct. May I suggest making your own switchboard, it's such an easy thing to do. Look under Tools|Startup, and you'll see where you specify what form opens automatically when the db is opened. Make your switchboard and then set it to automatically open when the db opens. Unless you have no knowledge of VBA at all, I think this is a good thing to do. Then you can add your textbox that will receive the value from the scanner.