Barcodes and scanners

So this is probably a really dumb question but... if I buy barcodes and a scanner from your store and affix a label to each book in my collection, how do I associate the book with the barcode? In particular I have tons of journals that I am not able to scan into my collection so I am entering them via universal import. If the "book" that gets the barcode affixed is in my collection (I'm slowly adding them) is that enough? I'm not sure I'm explaining this very well but hope it is clear.
Thanks for your help with this. Those of you answering questions have been amazing. I know I keep asking more.

You can use this page https://www.librarything.com/settings/barcodes to automatically assign sequential numbers to everything you've cataloged so far, and then you just have to make sure you stick the matching barcode sticker on the corresponding physical book.

I would suggest that instead of purchasing the CueCat, you might want to take a look at the scanner I wrote about in https://www.librarything.com/topic/326893#7331948

CueCats are leftovers from a 20-years-ago failed project of another company, and output a weird string of nonsense instead of normal barcode numbers; LibraryThing figured out how to decrypt the nonsense and got a deal on the leftover inventory, so they started selling them many years ago when 'real' barcode scanners could only be had for much higher prices.

Once again thank you Operyx. And a special shout out for the link to the scanner. At that price even if our club doesn't authorize the cost I can donate it. I sure am loving all that Librarything is allowing me to do.

6 dollars is really cheap! I didn't know that they had become that cheap. (I remember playing around with one at job once. (Back when computer screens were expensive!) That one came with a manual containing lots of barcodes and you could program the barcode scanner by scanning some of those special barcodes which I thought was really cool.)

>4 bnielsen: Surprisingly, the $6 scanner has a manual full of barcodes too! I was fine with the way the settings came out-of-the-box, but you can do things like change whether it beeps after a scan, change what it inputs before or after the barcode numbers, turn on motion-sensing instead of having to press the trigger to scan, etc.

>5 Opteryx: Yes, I think doing it all in software is really nice. Might even be the same software in most of the scanners, so they only have to change the brand name (and the price). Ah, maybe that's another setting :-)
I've written a few small programs to output barcodes, so I recognize several of the types on sight. (I can't decode them by sight though, but I have an app on my phone.)
I tried avoiding touching a touch screen to input the pin code for my local library by producing a barcode, but someone had disabled that possibility. If the scanner sees a barcode, it assumes it is a loaner-id and since my pin code is much shorter than the loaner-id it just fails.

Hi - I have scanned all of books in my library that have “regular” barcodes and I’ve set aside the ones that don’t have barcodes and I need to add them. However, I have already “added” them into my catalog either manually or looking them up. How do I connect those with the tiny cat barcodes I purchased? I have 5,000 books scanned in but the barcodes I purchased start at 00001. I have emailed library thing twice but have had no response. Any help you can offer would be appreciated! I did by another type of scanner for patrons to use for check out.

>7 tracylynblue: Sorry, crazy week for me, I have your emails and will be getting to them today! You're first in line. Thanks for your patience.

I have added barcodes to my books in Library thing. I have barcode labels. When I am in Tinycat I can see the correct barcode associate with the correct book. However, when I try to check out a book using my scanner to scan the barcode, the response is book not found. Help?

>9 RenaissanceAcademyMI: Sorry for the trouble. I just tested a few barcode searches on the Check in/out page (https://www.librarycat.org/admin/checkinout), in your library, and was able to bring up the correct records. Is this issue still happening for you? If so:

1. What page are you searching for your barcodes on, can you give me the link/URL?
2. If there are multiple search boxes on the page, which search box are you searching?
3. Which barcodes are you searching and not finding? Are you getting any error message/s when that happens?
4. Finally, what browser and OS (operating system) are you using (e.g. Google Chrome, version 90 and Windows 7, etc.)? Do you have any browser extensions or add-ons enabled in your browser?

okay, here goes! :-)
1. https://www.librarycat.org/admin/checkinout
2. just using the check in/check out box
3. I have only been able to scan in 1001. The rest return the "No items found" result (the number is in the check out/check in box)
4. Using Google Chrome. I have the following extensions on Chrome:

Adobe Acrobat
Boomerang for Gmail
Dashlane — Password Manager
Google Docs Offline
Grammarly

Great details, thank you! A few other questions/suggestions for troubleshooting:

1. Can you tell me what type of scanner/model you're using?
2. Can you disable all of your extensions, clear your browser's cookies/cache, and try scanning another barcode label on the Check in/out page? Or, you could try this in an incognito window.
3. Can you try scanning some barcodes on the Check in/out page in a different browser altogether to see if you're getting the same behavior?

Let me know how the testing in #2 and #3 goes, and if you get any different results or not.

1. I am using Scan Avenger, but it is no different if I hand type the barcode number in or if I scan it in. The results are the same. 1001 works, but I've tried dozens others and none of them work.
2. I used Incognito and got the same result
3. I tried Safari and got the same result

I was really hoping 2 or 3 would work. sigh.

Okay, I'm still able to type in any barcode number, on your Check in/out page ( https://www.librarycat.org/admin/checkinout ) in the "Search for barcode..." box, and the right records are getting added to your Item List. I've tested this for barcodes 2012, 1971, and 1684 just now. I'm a bit stumped on why searching for 1001 would work but for no others.

- Can you check your browser's settings and make sure you have JavaScript enabled?
- Can you tell me which barcodes you've tried searching that are not working for you?
- Can you add items to your Item List on the Check in/out page, if you search by title and/or author (e.g. do you get any results for "the skin I'm in")?
- Are you logged in the Check in/out page as the main admin, or as a staff/volunteer admin user?

Thank you for the suggestions. I've deleted all barcodes and re-entered them. This time, I entered one barcode of 1001. Then I chose "Highest barcode +1" and to add automatic barcodes to those that did not have them. The few barcodes that I have tested seem to work. I am hopeful this will be the solution!

Okay! I'm glad things seem to be working for you now. Still a mystery as to exactly what was wrong, but I will not poke the bear. :)

Let me know if you come up with any other questions.