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Frequently Asked
Questions
If you have a question and don't find an answer here, please feel
free to contact us at: info@ultraforms.com
Is UltraForms®
easy to use?
Yes. From the point of view of the end-user, UltraForms®
Technology is completely invisible. From a developer
point of view, UltraForms® Technology only needs basic knowledge
of PDF forms, and maybe less than 30 minutes to put a form in production.
Finally, from the process owner point of view,
the data gathering is simple and accurate, since 2D barcodes can
be read by non-skilled operators. Always providing
for 100% accuracy in the data capture process. (back
to top)
What does
the end-user need?
The end-user (the person who fills & prints the form) only needs
to have the free Adobe
Acrobat® Reader installed. That's it! No proprietary
plug-ins, fonts or libraries are needed. (back to
top)
My forms
don't have space for a 2D barcode. What can I do?
You have two options here (although there are more): the first one
is to redesign your form in order to free some space for the barcode.
A lot of times, this can be accomplished just by turning multiple
option questions into combo boxes. A lot of space is saved this
way. However, most of the times you will only have to provide for
space in the first page of the form, leaving the rest unedited.
The second option you have is to place the symbol in a separate
blank page. This way, no changes to the form are needed. (back
to top)
How much
info can a symbol handle?
It depends on the type of data you're trying to encode inside. For
a quick example, we will say that a single PDF417 symbol can hold
up to 1.850 alphanumeric characters (almost 2Kb). But there's more:
up to 99.999 symbols can be "chained" together and read
as if they were a unique file (Macro PDF standard). Almost 175 Mb
can be encoded this way!
For more info about 2D barcodes read our 2D
Barcode Technology Overview. (back to top)
Is it compatible
with XML?
Yes, absolutely. The data embedded inside the barcode can be customized
to fit the needs of any back end system. Any data format can be
used, including XML. The only thing to keep in mind when using a
XML schema is that each symbol can hold a maximum of 1850 characters.
(back to top)
What types of barcode can UltraForms®
generate?
UltraForms® technology is able to generate all
the known types of 1D and 2D barcodes. (back to top)
My forms
have more than one page: where should I place the symbol?
Normally, you would place it in the first page of the form, or in
a blank page. However, there are cases in which "a symbol per
page" is required, containing all the info from that page.
UltraForms® Technology will let you do any kind of combination
of symbols/pages. If needed, the symbols can be chained so they
perform all together as one "big" symbol containing all
the data from the form. (back to top)
Do I have
to be connected to the Internet to use UF?
No. UltraForms® Technology can work locally as well as online.
This means you can hang your forms from Internet, ...or deliver
them in a CD ROM. (back to top)
What are
"control characters"?
When you use an database application, you push different keystrokes
(such as TAB, ENTER, Function keys - F2, F3, etc) to perform certain
actions. For example, you press TAB (or ENTER) to switch to the
next field, etc. UltraForms® Technology can invisibly embed
those keystrokes mixed with the form data in a way that, when the
symbol is read, the data enters the back end system exactly the
same way as if there was someone keying it. But much faster! (back
to top)
Can I choose
the data export format?
Yes. You can choose between predefined standard formats (XML, Tab
Delimited, CSV, etc.), or you can define your own. You can combine
the whole ASCII character set (0-255) in your custom built export
format. UltraForms® Technology lets you choose the data format
that best suits your data capture operation (back
to top)
How long
does it take to embed UltraForms® Technology into a PDF Form?
Once you determine the maximum number of characters for a form and
the desired export format, the required time is less than ten minutes.
(back to top)
Can I use
UltraForms® Technology in my Internet browser?
Yes. UltraForms® Technology runs on the free Adobe
Acrobat® Reader platform. This means that it will
work in any internet browser (Explorer, Netscape, Opera, etc), and
in any platform (PC, MAC, UNIX, etc). (back to top)
What kind
of printer do I need?
UltraForms® Technology is compatible with laser or inkjet common
printers. Though it can work at lower resolutions, 300 dpi is recommended.
(back to top)
How many
people can use my forms?
Once you've licensed UltraForms® Technology for a PDF form,
the number of people allowed to use that particular form is unlimited.
(back to top)
I just
bought my High End data capture system...
Perfect! UltraForms® Technology will help you squeeze the power
of high end data capture systems from firms such as Captiva, Cardiff,
Kofax, Microsystems, ReadSoft, etc. All these top data capture systems
read 2D barcodes, and will for sure perform much better on forms
with UltraForms® Technology embedded. (back to
top)
Why do
high end OCR systems perform better with UltraForms® Technology?
OCR (Optical Character Recognition) systems have never achieved
a read rate that is 100% perfect. Error processing
is always a problem because it delays the completion of the job
entry (and costs a lot of money in HR). Of even greater concern
is the problem of misreading a character (false positives).
This two problems disappear when UltraForms® Technology
is used. The worst thing that can happen to a form generated
with UltraForms® Technology is that the symbol can't be read
because is poorly printed or heavily surface damaged. What will
never occur is an error reading a symbol, or a false positive.
UltraForms® Technology provides for 100% guaranteed
accuracy in the data capture process. (back
to top)
If I fax
the form once printed, will the symbol be read?
Yes. However, faxes are low resolution devices (200dpi). This means
that if you're planning to fax your forms once printed, you have
to choose an adequate symbol resolution at design time. (back
to top)
How do
I read the 2D barcode?
With Software: many high end data capture systems allow
for 2D barcode reading. Besides, there are several standalone applications
that will detect and read 2D barcodes from bitmap images (scanned
documents).
With Hardware: If you only need the form data and don't
need to scan the document, we suggest you use a hand held barcode
scanner. They're very fast and accurate, and are priced (300$ -
1000$) far below more complex data capture systems. Plug one of
these handhelds in the COM port of your computer, and you're done.
Also, there are some document scanners capable of reading barcodes
at runtime through hardware. (back to top)
How do
I embed UltraForms® Technology into my PDF forms?
We have a SDK available that makes easy to create your own custom
developments. If needed, we can also provide this service on request
to clients without an IT infrastructure. (back to
top)
Where do
I purchase UltraForms® Technology?
UltraForms® Technology is available through our sales Team.
You can contact us here. (back
to top)
How much
is UltraForms® Technology?
Our pricing scheme is based upon several parameters: Number of forms,
expected data capture savings obtained, expected number of users,
etc. There are also different special pricing schemes for government
agencies. For further info on pricing, contact our sales Team (back
to top)
What are
the main differences between UltraForms® Technology and the
current technologies that produce 2D barcodes?
Today's technologies are based in libraries, fonts or a combination
of both. This kind of software components must be installed before
they are used.
What makes our technology radically different from these solutions
is that no installation has to be performed at
the end-user desktop. Any user with Adobe Acrobat® Reader installed
in his machine will be able to use, immediately, any form that has
UltraForms® Technology embedded.
Also, the time to market and costs derived from embedding UltraForms®
Technology in a PDF form are insignificant compared to the costs
and time needed to develop and maintain a custom application.
To end, many OCR systems are capable, today, of reading 2D barcodes.
But current technologies do not provide for a barcode generator
flexible enough that could be easily used by the
general public.
UltraForms® Technology is the perfect complement for solutions
that need open platform, massive barcode generation. (back
to top)
Can errors occur in the
reading process?
The attractiveness of 2D barcode technology is that with all the
checks and balances within the symbols, the chance of a misread
character averages about 1 in 10,000,000! Compared to key-entry
systems that have an average of 1 in 300 misreads, barcode scanning
is virtually flawless. (back to top)
What does PDF stand for?
When we refer to a document format, PDF stands for "Portable
Document Format" (Adobe® Systems). If we are talking about
a barcode symbology such as "PDF 417", PDF means "Portable
Data File" (Symbol® Technologies). (back
to top)
Is UltraForms® Technology
compatible with Adobe® Document Server for Reader Extensions
(ADSRE)?
Yes, as long as the rights applied to the document by ADSRE are
the last step in the process. (back to top)
My forms already have document
level scripts (functions). Will this be a problem when embedding
UltraForms® Technology?
No, it will not be a problem. UltraForms® Technology is completely
compatible with any function, validation, calculation and/or formatting
script already present in the PDF form. What is more, after embedding
UltraForms® Technology you can continue adding aditional functions
and scripts. (back to top)
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