Laser Barcode Scanners on a Mac

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Level 1

12 points

Laser Barcode Scanners on a Mac

I'm trying to get a USB laser barcode scanner to work on my MacBook Pro (Mac OS X 10.8.2). And for some reasons, it does not work.

First, I bought a Taotronics TT-BS003. When I plug it in, it does make all the sounds it should do. It scans, but it does not write anything in TextEdit.
Looking at the System Information in the USB section, it shows:

WIT 122-UFS V2.00:

Product ID: 0x1010
Vendor ID: 0x05fe (CHIC TECHNOLOGY CORP)
Version: 0.01
Speed: Up to 1.5 Mb/sec
Manufacturer: WIT Electron Company
Location ID: 0x06200000 / 4
Current Available (mA): 500
Current Required (mA): 500

If I plug this scanner on a PC laptop with Windows 7, the reader scans out of the box and puts the code in Word. Back to the Mac, nothing other then the green light for a successful scan and the ok sound.

After talking to their support, it was recommended to return the scanner.

So I bought a “different” scanner from a different vendor. But after receiving that scanner, it seems to be the same scanner just with a different brand name.
Looking at the System Information in the USB section, it also shows:

WIT 122-UFS V2.00:

Product ID: 0x1010
Vendor ID: 0x05fe (CHIC TECHNOLOGY CORP)
Version: 0.01
Speed: Up to 1.5 Mb/sec
Manufacturer: WIT Electron Company
Location ID: 0x04100000 / 4
Current Available (mA): 500
Current Required (mA): 500

So how can I get these scanners to work on a Mac. Some people left feedback that they had it working out of the box. One person wrote:

If using it with a Mac, follow these steps: 1) connect it to a USB port on your Mac (the scanner should beep twice). 2) Go into System Preferences and click on Keyboard. 3) Click "Change Keyboard Type..." which will bring up the Keyboard Setup Assistant. 4) Click Continue and scan a barcode (can be a UPC label from a package / book). 5) Select "ANSI (United States and others) and click Done.

Well, I scan a barcode but I can never reach the section where I can select "ANSI (United States and others).

I’m just losing my mind over this. Any idea? And please, the manual is a joke. The scans do not help.

Peter

Posted on Sep 25, 2012 2:02 PM

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Answer 1

Best reply

The.Gav

Level 1

4 points

Apr 7, 2017 8:33 AM in response to Peter Togel

We were having the same issue and came across and article that told us to scan in 4 barcodes. It didn't act like it did anything but when we scanned a barcode it worked. We are using a Intermac SG20T barcode scanner that is plugged into my USB port.

Plug in the scanner, it should beep a couple times to show the scanner is powered up. It should bring up the Keyboard Setup Assistant, click continue. It asks for you to click the button to the right of the left shift button, just scan the four barcodes (which doesn't seem like it is doing anything) then go to any text field and scan a barcode and it should work.

Here is the link to where we found the solution to this problem with probably clearer instructions than I've given here. Hope this helps. http://hsm.force.com/publickb/articles/HSM_Article/How-to-operate-an-Intermec-Sc anner-with-a-Mac-Book-laptop

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Answer 2

Apr 16, 2013 7:01 PM in response to Peter Togel

I have that exact scanner, worked out of the box for os x.

If it ever asks for keyboard stuff, close keyboard setup and start using the scanner in text edit, pages, your webbrowser, or what ever app you wish to use the scanner for.

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Answer 3

Nov 27, 2013 4:16 AM in response to Ramón Tech

At step 4) above you may feel you are stuck at the keyboard recognition step as it looks for you to select the "key the right of the enter key" however simply scanning a barcode at this step allows you to continue. Note that the scanner light is aways on!

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Answer 4

Aug 12, 2016 5:09 AM in response to Peter Togel

It's been years since this question was asked, but it is still relevant. I found the quoted answer given in the original question did help me select U.S Keyboard - I tried Europe too as I'm in Europe - but Apple always uses U.S. standards.

My Mac recognises the 'keyboard' (the barcode scanner), I scan the Output barcode in the manual, selected a keyboard standard, and it now outputs the EAN number from products into TextEdit, but how do I make it do something else, such as open my default browser and search Google or search a product inventory app for the code? I've seen other barcode scanners do it, so I'm hopeful it's possible with this scanner.

Thanks for your help.

Ian

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Answer 5

Sep 14, 2016 11:56 PM in response to Ian on iTunes

the original question did help me select U.S Keyboard - I tried Europe too as I'm in Europe - but Apple always uses U.S. standards.

Excellent, that helped me getting my Taotronic working somehow. Thank you

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Answer 6

BenG45

Level 1

4 points

Dec 23, 2016 9:32 AM in response to lukas.ebner

Any new developments on this? Seems to be a common problem with barcode scanners and macs. I'm trying to install an eclipse barcode scanner. I get the keyboard setup screen. When prompted to press the key next to shift I scan a barcode and nothing happens. Most forums I've found say that this should cause the assistant to move into the next step but, in this case, it doesn't.

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