Printing patron ID cards

Patron ID Cards lets you print identification cards to be carried by the patrons, Rolodex/rotary cards to be kept at the circulation desk, or 3" x 5" cards to be kept in a file drawer.

Important: You must have version 5.0.5 (or higher) of Adobe® Reader® to print cards with barcodes.

How do I print patron ID cards?

Do I need to test them?

What label stock can I use?

How are the labels on the sheet numbered?

What's included on the card?

The printing is not centered on the card. How do I correct this?

How do I print patron ID cards?

1. Open the Patron page of Reports and select Patron ID Cards.
2. If you're a district patrons manager, select a single site from the list.
3. From the Select by list, select a method for identifying the patrons:
   1. To specify a range, select Name, Grade Level, Homeroom, barcode list or one of the User Defined fields:
      • You can leave both boxes blank to include all of the patrons.
      • If you leave the From box blank and enter a name or number in the to box, Destiny includes all those up to and including the name in the to box.
      • If you enter a name or number in the From box and leave the to box blank, Destiny includes that name or number and all those after it.
      • If you enter the same name or number in both boxes, Destiny includes only that one name or number.
      Please note that Destiny does not support the use of wildcards (?, *) in ranges.
   2. To select a range of Homerooms, select Homeroom. Then select the homerooms from the lists that appear, or leave one or both at "Any Homeroom".
      Please note that only homerooms to which patrons are currently assigned appear in the lists.
   3. To use a list of barcode numbers, select Barcode List. You can either browse to an existing file, or create a list here.
      • To select an existing file, click Browse to locate your file.
      • To create a list, place the cursor in the Create a barcode list box and scan the barcodes, or type them in and click .
        To remove a barcode number from the list, highlight it and click .
4. To limit the card printing to specific groups of patrons, clear the appropriate check boxes.
5. To limit the cards to patrons with certain graduation years, select the phrase from the list and enter the year (yyyy).
6. To limit the cards to patrons with certain library card expiration dates, enter the desired range of expiration dates (mm/dd/yy). Click for a calendar.
7. Select any additional information that you want to appear on the cards: the patron's picture, scannable barcode, the eye-readable barcode number, and/or up to three of the eleven additional fields.
8. Select your card stock.
9. To start printing on other than the first card on the sheet, set Start on label to the correct position.
10. When you are ready, click .
11. When the Report Manager opens, click View to open the card report.
12. After positioning the card stock in your printer, use Adobe Reader's Print option to print the actual cards.
    Make sure to clear all the Page Handling options on Adobe's Print dialog.

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Do I need to test them?

If you're including scannable barcodes on the cards, print a few samples on plain paper before printing the cards. Then make sure that your scanner or PHD can read the barcodes. The quality of the printout varies from printer to printer; some older printers cannot produce scanner-readable barcodes.

Also, make sure that the barcode is properly located on the card. Scanners require some white space at either end of the vertical barcode lines.
If the barcode is too close to the edge, adjust the offsets and try again. When you print, Destiny saves the offset settings you used so that you do not have to set them again.

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What label stock can I use?

You can use any of four card stocks. Stock from other vendors may work as well. Make sure to print a test page on plain paper and adjust the offsets as needed.

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How are the cards on the sheet numbered?

Destiny counts cards from left to right, then top to bottom.
To start printing on a card other than the first one on the sheet, set Start on label to the label number where printing should begin.

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What's included on the card?

Each card includes the following information:

• The patron's name
• The patron's picture (if selected)
• The scannable barcode (if selected)
• Barcode number (if selected)
• Up to three of the eleven additional fields (if selected)
• The school name (if you selected the Avery ID Card (5361) or the Avery Large Rotary (5386) card)

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The printing is not centered on the card. How do I correct this?

Use the Printer offsets to fine-tune the alignment of the printing on the cards. The Horizontal and Vertical offsets let you adjust the left and top margins, respectively.

Enter a number between -100 and 100. Each increment is equal to 1/10th of a millimeter.
The offsets needed for each label stock vary from printer to printer. The first time you select a label stock, print a few tests on plain paper to insure that the printing is aligned correctly.

Note: Any offsets you define for patron ID cards are in addition to the unprintable area defined in your printer's properties.

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