MICR Font Check Design & Printing Software User Manual

Easily design, create and print bank checks and labels with this WYSIWYG Bank Check Printing Design Application. This product is free to use with the purchase of the IDAutomation MICR Font Advantage Package.

INDEX:

• Installation
• How to create bank checks
• Linking to external data sources and databases
• Creating an embedded data set to enter data manually
• Adjusting the properties of MICR or text objects
• Technical support

IDAutomation's software is built to run on any operating system that supports the Microsoft® .NET Framework. It is compatible with Windows® 98 and above, including Windows Vista, Windows ME, Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows 2003. It is not compatible with Windows 3.1 or Windows 95.

1. Download and open or unzip the package to a folder on the hard drive. It is recommended to download and install WinZip if the computer that is installing the product does not have a zip file extraction tool.
2. Run Install.exe to start the setup application which will also install the required MICR and Security fonts.
3. If the application does not run after installation, or errors are received such as "the application failed to initialize properly" or "MSCOREE.DLL was not found", the .NET Framework is either corrupted or not installed. Remove the .NET Framework if it is installed and either reinstall it (.NET Framework link) or run Windows Update from a computer connected to the Internet.

Installation on a network drive for multiple users
Because this product does not install any DLLs or other components in the system directories, it may be easily installed and used from a network or mapped drive.

1. Start the install utility.
2. When prompted for the location, select the network drive and complete the install process.
3. Create shortcuts on other computers that need to run the application.
4. If errors occur on any of the computers, try performing the steps outlines in the document about setting security rights for .NET applications.
5. Make sure there is a license for each user that has access to the software.

Using the process outlined here, bank checks (also referred to as labels in the software) can be created that include MICR, text and graphics. After the label is created, it can be saved and retrieved for later use. A sample label file is provided in the package and can be viewed by choosing the "Check Design Example" icon.

1. After the label application is installed, open the software from the appropriate program group or icon and choose "Create New Label".
2. At the "Label Options" screen, select the printer that the checks will be printed on, the label stock type, and the preferred unit of measure. Two pre-defined check stock types are available, 3 per page business size with and without a .5" perforation at the bottom. If these pre-defined labels do not work with the selected printer, or if another type of check stock is being used, choose the "Define custom label stock" option. Click Next.
   
3. The selections on the next screen allow the label software to automatically calculate the size of each label. Choose the number of rows and columns of the label sheet and click OK. Most check stock is 3 checks per page, which is 3 rows and 1 column. If there is a perforation on the bottom of the check stock, enter a bottom margin of .5 inches.
   
4. On the next screen, click on the appropriate icon in the toolbar to add text, MICR and graphics "objects" into the design area that is white. If there is a gray border in the design area, this indicates an area where the selected printer is not able to print.
5. Properties of any object may be adjusted by performing a right-click on the object and choosing properties.
6. From the properties window of the MICR icon, choose the Value tab. This determines the value to be encoded in the MICR line. The best method of creating the MICR line is with a VB script formula. The formula will need to assemble the MICR line according their associated characters:
   
   For example, the following formula value creates a MICR line for a pre-printed bank check:
   "C" & 62 * 1000 + L# & "C A763591681A 0710527197C"
   Which produces the following result for check #1:
   C621001C A763591681A 0710527197C
7. Choose the "Calibration Tool" icon from the program group. Print one page with the printer that will be used to print checks and verify that the distance between the middle leftmost "1" and the middle of the rightmost "1" is 4 inches. If it is not, use the MICR Type tab to fine tune and adjust the width.
   
8. During the check design process, it is highly recommended that the security fonts be used for the amount field with a formula in a text object. When these are used, it is no longer necessary to print the written check amounts. For example: "[" & Currency(Field(12),2) & "_USD]" is a formula that converts field 12 of a data source to the format necessary for the security fonts.
9. When the design of the check is finished, choose the print or print preview icon.
10. Verify or select the print range and choose Print. We recommend printing only a few checks at first to verify the alignment to the printer. If the checks do not print accurately, try adjusting the margins and spacing in the Label Stock Properties screen by choosing File - Label Stock Properties.

This software can link to columns in Microsoft® Access, Excel or a CSV text file as a data source for a text or MICR object, which allows printing of labels from data in Excel and Access or from a file export from other software. Our software can also link to a custom embedded data source. Perform the following to link to the data source:

1. Choose Tools - Data Sets - Link External Data.
2. Choose the data type and choose Search to find the file.
3. After the source path is found, choose the appropriate table if applicable.
4. Choose Link Data and there should be a portion of the linked data on the screen.
   
5. After the data is linked, choose Close.
6. To link a column of data to a MICR or text object, click the down arrow next to "Value Type" and select "External DataSource", and click on the source column to link the value. The example window will show what is linked.
7. Increment the "label number" in the design screen to verify the data is linked.
8. When printing, we suggest choosing "all rows data source" as the option, but only after printing a single page first to verify the alignment.
9. When linking to the CSV or Text files, the format should be as follows: "Column1","Column2","Column3"

IDAutomation's label software allows the user to create a database which is embedded in the label data file itself. This allows data entry of several different custom values to be created on labels.

1. Choose Tools - Data Sets - Create Embedded DataSet.
2. By default, three columns are created. Use the buttons at the bottom of the window to add, remove or export the data.
3. Choose the OK button at the bottom of the window when finished.
4. To link an object to the data entered, right click on the barcode, choose properties, choose the Value tab and select external data source as the value type.

Properties of the MICR or text objects may be adjusted by performing a right-click on the object and choosing Properties. The following is a list of the properties and their functions in each tab:

• Position - allows user to manually place the object in the design area and change the orientation.
• Value - this is the data that is encoded in the object.
  • When using the MICR object, be sure to format the data correctly. For example, the following formula value creates a correct MICR line:
    "C" & 62 * 1000 + L# & "C A763591681A 0710527197C"
    Which produces the following result for label #1:
    C621001C A763591681A 0710527197C
  • The global append values will append the prefix or suffix to the value. For example, an incremented value of 101 and a prefix of TX will create TX101 on label 1 and TX102 on label 2.
  • The formula value creates the result from the Visual Basic syntax formula entered. For example, the formula of "C" & 100 + L# will create B101 on check 1 and B102 on check 2.
    • The following is a list of what is supported:
      • Operators:
        / divide
        * multiply
        & concatenate words
        - subtract
        + add
      • Variables:
        L# label number
        T# total number of labels. Example: "This is label " & L# & " of " & T#  produces This is label 2 of 5.
      • External data functions:
        Field(col) returns the value in the linked data source for the column [col] of the current row. Example: Field(1)
        FieldName(name) returns the value in the linked data source for the column according to the current row. Example: FieldName(FirstName). If a header row is linked in and two names are the same, the second name appends a “1”, for example "CompanyName" and "CompanyName1". If one of the columns are blank it will be referenced as F# where # is the column number. The linked Value Table displays the TableName of each item.
• MICR Type - allows selection of the MICR font and fine adjustment of the point size.

If the application does not run after installation, or errors are received such as "the application failed to initialize properly" or "MSCOREE.DLL was not found", the .NET Framework is either corrupted or not installed. Remove the .NET Framework if it is installed and either reinstall it (.NET Framework link) or run Windows Update from a computer connected to the Internet.

Free product support may be obtained by reviewing the MICR Support Troubleshooting Guide, primary font support site and by searching resolved public help desk issues. Priority phone, email and help desk support is provided up to 30 days after purchase. Additional priority phone, email and help desk support may be obtained if the Priority Support and Upgrade Subscription is active.

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