FoxID32 Lite ID Software How-to FAQ

This FAQ covers the most frequent questions we receive that pertain to learning "how-to" use the different features of the Fox engraving software.

1. How do I set up new users for a database and give each person individual levels of permission? Also, can I change an existing user's permission or password?
2. How do I improve image quality when capturing from my camcorder?
3. Can I retrieve the photos stored in the database for another purpose?
4. How do I get a number from the database, such as the Card Number, to print on the card without having to manually change the number in the layout every time?
5. How do I find my product number, version of software and serial number?
6. How do I calculate how much hard disk space my database will need?
7. How can I uniquely allocate a card to a user such that we can control the areas they have access to, or so we know who is borrowing goods, or using a facility?
8. An employee/ member has lost their proximity/ smart/ magstripe card and I need to create a new ID card for them. Can I reuse their existing photo and details and put them into a new record?
9. I want to do a batch print of completed records that have yet to be printed. How do I do this?
10. How do I find records using date information such as print date, expiry date, date of entry, age groups, year of enrollment etc?
11. How do I capture signatures from paper?
12. Every time I print, I have to change the print orientation (portrait/ landscape). How do I make this permanent?
13. How do I print a group of records onto plain paper?
14. How do I insert a logo onto a card layout or report?
15. How do I delete a layout or report?

1. How do I set up new users for a database and give each person individual levels of permission? Also, can I change an existing user's permission or password?

If you have Administrator access to the database, select Administrator from the Settings drop-down menu. To add new users, enter an existing username overwriting the username displayed. Select or deselect permissions from the table then click Update to save the new record. To modify existing user permissions, click Next or Previous to locate the username, make changes to their permissions level then click Update. Note that once you have made any changes under Administrator, to access the database under the new user settings you must first close the database then log back into it under the relevant username. Only then can you change the password from the Settings drop-down menu.

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2. How do I improve image quality when capturing from my camcorder?

First improve the resolution. De pending upon the capture card being used, when you press Capture from the main screen, you are presented with an Image Capture dialog box. You may be presented with a series of buttons aligned vertically to the left of the live image. Click on Settings and find Image Size or Resolution. Use as high a resolution as possible, too high such as 640x480 may produce distorted images so it is recommended that you choose the second highest setting. Also, look for Format and choose YUV 422. If there is a color depth setting, choose 24-bit color. Other things to try include better lighting facing the subject directly. A plain white, gray or blue backdrop. Zoom the camera so that the subject's head fills up most of the viewfinder. Also check that the camera is on auto-focus.

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3. Can I retrieve the photos stored in the database for another purpose?

You may export both personnel data and images from any database. To do this use the Export Data function from the Personnel menu. You will need to specify which fields you wish to export and if you wish to export images in a particular image format. As a minimum, you'll need to export the card number field. Then FoxID32 will prompt you to select the records you wish to export using the Search Criteria window. After you have chosen a location for the export, FoxID32 will generate the images and data and you will be able to review them within Windows Explorer. Note that the images will be named after the Card Number from which they were attached to in the database.

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4. How do I get a number from the database, such as the Card Number, to print on the card without having to manually change the number in the layout every time?

Edit the layout, insert a field onto the layout, select the number field from the drop-down list of fields and save the layout.

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5. How do I find my product number, version of software and serial number?

From the Help menu select About FoxID32. The product number and serial number is displayed in the registration section. The software version number is listed in the Title bar of the window in the top left-hand corner.

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6. How do I calculate how much hard disk space my database will need?

Use the formula below to calculate your specific requirements. The database size will vary depending upon the number of records you anticipate will be stored, and the typical record size. The device used to capture images will affect how large a typical record is, eg. Using a capture card and camcorder or a digital camera. Generally, digital cameras produce much larger image file sizes (typically 60 kb to 300 kb) and it is this image size that contributes to the majority of the record size in the database. When using digital cameras, it is recommended that the camera settings for resolution, color and quality be reduced to the minimum acceptable setting. This will minimize the size of the database and improve its efficiency and speed. Refer to your digital camera manual for instructions. If you're using a capture card and camcorder, expect each record to add approximately 20 kb to the database.
 

Estimated HDD space (Kb)

=

Expected number of records

x

Typical record size for the given system

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7. How can I uniquely allocate a card to a user such that we can control the areas they have access to, or so we know who is borrowing goods, or using a facility?

FoxID32 has several features that can be used to encode your ID cards that can in turn, be used with third party access control, membership or library systems. The simplest method of encoding is the barcode but is the least secure. Any printer using a ribbon with a black pane l can generate a barcode. We recommend using a check digit and a barcode mash if you wish to use barcodes. The magstripe feature can be used with printers containing a magstripe encoder. Magstripes of the Hi Co type are very secure. Smart card chips can be encoded if your printer contains a smart chip encoder. Smart cards are secure and can carry a great amount of information such as a photo, user history and personal details. Another option is the proximity card, these cards are pre-encoded by the card suppliers so FoxID32 cannot interact with them however the operator of the software can enter the user's proximity card number into the FoxID32 database to identify the user.

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8. An employee/ member has lost their proximity/ smart/ magstripe card and I need to create a new ID card for them. Can I reuse their existing photo and details and put them into a new record?

Yes. First go to the record you wish to recreate. In the blue list bar on the left-hand side of the FoxID32 screen, there is a Duplicate button. Click this button and FoxID32 will duplicate the image and data and allows you to enter the new card number. Save the record and print it.

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9. I want to do a batch print of completed records that have yet to be printed. How do I do this?

In the File menu, choose Batch Issue. In the Search Criteria window, choose Image - Is Equal To - Yes; and Card Issued - Is Equal To - 0. This criteria will ensure only those records which have images and have not been printed will be issued. You may further refine the criteria if necessary.

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10. How do I find records using date information such as print date, expiry date, date of entry, age groups, year of enrolment etc?

If you needed to locate records created in a certain period, you could use the Search facility to display those records. Simply click Search, choose say Issue Date from the field dialog box. Next choose the necessary operator such as Is Between, then in the Value boxes, type the start date in the first box and the finish date in the second. Click Add then OK. You will be presented with the results of your search. You could also search for all records that expired prior to the first day of the current month by choosing Is Less Than as the operator.

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11. How do I capture signatures from paper?

There are two ways to do this; one is by capture card in combination with a camera, the other is by scanner. If you are using the capture card method, you will need to set the Signature Capture settings to Video For Windows, VideoVue or Twain (depending upon your capture card). Place the camera on a tripod, point it vertically down and zoom in on the signed sheet. Using a scanner will provide a higher image quality however it is a slower process. In the Signature Capture settings, choose Twain sources. Click capture in the Signature tab. The first time you do this you will need to go to the Source menu in the Signature Capture window, and click Select Source. Choose the scanner. Next, place the signed sheet on the scanner's platen, preview the image, crop the signature, then scan it in using the JPEG image format. If you find the quality to be unacceptable, increase your scanner's contrast and choose greyscale image-type. You may also find that once you have captured the signature into the Signature Capture window, increasing the Gamma adjustment a few notches may make the signature become more prominent.

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12. Every time I print, I have to change the print orientation (portrait/ landscape). How do I make this permanent?

Click on your Windows Start button, choose Settings then Printers. Right-click on the ID card printer installed and choose properties, find the orientation setting and set it permanently.

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13. How do I print a group of records onto plain paper?

This is what is referred to as "Sheet Printing", and is used for creating a catalogue of all or some of the records within a database. The result: records are printed side by side on A4 paper. First, it is necessary to decide what sort of layout you want to use. You can use an existing layout, or you can create a layout specifically for sheet printing so that only some fields are included and general items such as the company logo, can be left out. To do this, choose Sheet Printing from the File Menu. This will bring up a dialog box asking you to choose a layout. Browse to find and select the appropriate layout. Click OK. The Search Criteria dialog box is displayed. Enter search criteria. Refer to the manual or tutorial for more information. You will now see a preview of what is to be printed and in which format. Click the Print button and then OK after you have specified a plain paper printer. You can edit the way the records are displayed on the page by choosing Options from the Settings menu, then selecting sheet printing. Refer to the manual or tutorial for further instructions.

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14. How do I insert a logo onto a card layout or report?

FoxID32 can work with various graphic formats, as long as the image file type is registered in windows. To insert the logo into the layout or report, open up the card or report editor, and select Insert New Object from the Edit menu then Browse to find the logo to be inserted. Modifying the size of the logo within FoxID32 can result in a loss of quality, so it is better to modify the size in third party graphics editing software. Another technique is to open the logo in a graphics application such as MS Paint, then crop the image to the right size, use the Copy command in Paint, and Paste it into the editor in FoxID32.

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15. How do I delete a layout or report?

The only way to delete a layout, report or database for that matter is to use
Windows Explorer. To open Windows Explorer click on the Windows Start Button, select Programs then Windows Explorer. Navigate to the folder where the layout has been saved, by default this location is within the FoxID32 folder, C:\ Program Files\ FoxID32. A report is identified with the file extension *. rpt, a layout is identified with the file extension *. lay, while a FoxID32 database is identified with the file extension *. fox. If the file extensions are not displayed, right click on the file, choose Properties from the menu and confirm that the MS DOS name is *. lay, *. rpt or *. fox. Once you are sure that you have the correct file, select the appropriate report, layout or database and press the delete key on your keyboard.

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