FAQ: Flic laser barcode scanner

How do I install and use the Flic laser barcode scanner?

The Flic scanner you received can be installed quite easily. It only requires 3 AAA batteries and one free USB port on your computer.

First insert three fresh AAA batteries in the scanner. After the third battery is inserted a beep will sound indicating the scanner is now working.

Next, connect the cables that came with the scanner :

push together the two plugs that contain 9 pins (male and female)
plug the 3.5 mm jack into the back of the scanner
download and install the drivers for the cable; make sure to download the correct drivers
Plug in the USB connector; the best way is to use a USB port directly on the computer

The scanner can now be used in the Collectorz.com software. Start up e.g. Book Collector, and through the menu Tools | Find Scanner let the software know you intend to use the scanner for putting in barcodes.

Just scan a barcode and the program will open the add automatically screen. This screen will help you to search online for more information and add the item to your collection.

My Flic barcode scanner is not working properly, can you help?

Flic laser scanner If your Flic scanner is not working properly after installing it, please follow these steps to find out why:

No scan beam?
When you press the scan button on the scanner you see no red line or beam.

Disconnect the scanner from the cable.
Make sure that the batteries are inserted correctly
Replace batteries with fresh ones. Try to avoid older rechargeable batteries which may have a lower voltage output

Still no normal scan beam?
Please Contact us here, and include the serial number of the scanner (found inside the battery compartment).

Normal scan beam but scanner does not scan?
So the laser beam looks normal, but the scanner does not 'recognize' the barcode ?

Make sure to use the Flic scanner as the manual leaflet explains :
- scan about 4 inches (=10 cm) away from the barcode
- scan at a slight angle, tilt the scanner when scanning.
Scan the Enable All Beeps and Return to Factory Defaults barcodes in the manual leaflet.

Still no beep or blink when scanning?
Please Contact us here, and include the serial number of the scanner (found inside the battery compartment)

The scanner seems fine, but no barcodes appear in the software?
If you see a normal scan beam and the scanner picks up on the barcode (beeps), but the barcode is not showing in your Collectorz.com program, please check that :

The scanner also scans when the plugs and cables are all connected. If not, you may have to make sure that the computer you are using is connected to properly grounded sockets.
If the scanner scans both connected as well as disconnected, please first make sure that:
- the drivers for your serial-to-USB cable are installed. These are listed on our Download page
- if you are using a serial-to-USB cable that was not purchased from us, please contact the manufacturer for drivers. Not all brands of cables available will work with our scanner and software
- the cable is recognized and installed properly on your computer. Compare with this image.
- the scanner was initialized before using it : use the menu Tools | Initialize Flic Scanner

The scanner does not initialize?
If the scanner has a normal beam, beeps when a barcode is scanned and the cable is installed properly, there can be a few reasons a scanner will not initialize:

first and most common : you have a PDA (Palm, or any other kind) or Mobile phone installed. Such devices use syncing software. Syncing software can block communication to the scanner, by using up the required port to the scanner. Try shutting down such software before using the scanner.
you have already initialized the Flic scanner in an other Collectorz.com product or using the wedge software. The scanner can only be used by one program at a time.
the cable can be malfunctioning, even if it seems installed properly
Try to avoid using a USB hub, such as on a Mac keyboard. Please plug the cable directly into a USB port on your computer.

You are sure no other software is the interfering?
A good way to test this is to try a different computer.

If on a second computer the same problem comes up, Contact us here, and try to include a detailed discription of what you are experiencing.

All the above seems fine, the problem is that not all barcodes appear?
When you scan a single barcode, it will show. But when you scan a few, not all are displayed in the software. You can solve this by trying two steps:

firstly, scan the barcode called "reset to factory defaults". You can find that barcode in the manual leaflet that came with the scanner.
secondly, try changing the com port settings. For some computers, a setting of 38400 works better than the default 9600
use the menu Tools | Options, and check the option to initialize the scanner on program setup
as a final step close the program and restart it

Still not all barcodes come up, some come up twice?
Please Contact us here, and include the serial number of the scanner (found inside the battery compartment)

My scanner does not scan the book's ISBN correctly?

ISBNs start with 978 or 979. Not all barcodes you see on a book are necessarily the ISBN.
On paperbacks, scan the barcode on the inside front cover and not the one on the back cover.

What is the Flic protective boot?

The Flic protective boot is a great investment to protect your scanner.

The boot is made of durable flexible synthetic black rubber. Just pop your scanner in and it fits like a glove. You don't have to worry anymore to drop your scanner while you're busy scanning.

And the beauty is: it has a built in loop for attaching a lanyard or rectractable keychain.

You can see what the boot looks like here.

You can order the boot in our webshop as a separate item or extra product to your order.
Note that the Boot comes without a lanyard.

Do you have a serial to USB converter cable for Mr. Flic?

The Flic laser scanner comes with 2 cables: a jack to serial cable and a serial to USB converter cable.
If you have lost the second cable, you can order it again in our webshop.

I have an ROV scanner, will that work with your software?

You can not use the ROV Scanner in the same way as the classic Flic scanner.
However as a work around if you order the Plug and Play USB cable with the ROV you can mimic what the classic Flic scanner was doing and use the software as you normally would.
Except you wouldn't have to initialize the scanner, it is Plug & Play.
The cable would do all the work once you plugged it in and scanned a couple of setup bar codes.

Can I use Book Collector and the scanner(s) you offer with ISBN-13 barcodes ?

Yes, both our scanners as well as Book Collector will handle ISBN 13 barcodes correctly. Online searches are done based on the correct version of the ISBN as well (so either ISBN 10 or 13).

What else can I use the scanner(s) for?

We sell two types of scanners, the Flic laser-scanner and the Cuecat scanner. Both types of scanner allow you to do a lot :

Scan DVDs, Books, CDs, and Games and find information online
Scan and find the item in your own collection
Make loaning and returning items a joy and not a chore

The Flic scanner is great with our software, but it even has a purpose beyond that.

Using the Wedge Software, which is free, you can use the Flic in a lot of ways.

When the Wedge Software is installed, the Flic scanner will pretend to be a keyboard. This means that you can scan into almost all other Windows programs. Excel, Word or even a website ! This will even work in batch mode, when you have more than one barcode in the scanner's memory.

The Cuecat scanner we sell, has a more limited use outside the Collectorz.com software.

This scanner sends its barcode information to our software in a coded way. Our software can decode this, but most other software can not. So if you try scanning in other software (for example Windows notepad) you will see jibberish appear.

Can I print barcode labels using Collectorz.com software?

No, printing barcode labels can not be done with our software. To print barcode labels you will need other (third party) software.

Printing barcodes requires special barcode fonts. Such fonts are expensive, and can only be used if you are licensed to use them. So far we have not seen a manageable way to incorporate such fonts .

I lost the Operator Guide of my Flic scanner.

Yes, the Operator's Guide can be downloaded here.