Detect and create barcode fields with JavaScript

[JR Boulay]

I'd like to know how to detect and create barcode fields with JavaScript.

The documentation does not mention a "type" barcode:

Valid types are:
button
checkbox
combobox
listbox
radiobutton
signature
text

And using this script in the console returns: "text"

console.println(this.getField("Barcode1").type);

How to know if a field is a "barcode" field, and how to create one?

Thank you

[Test Screen Name]

A barcode field *is* a text field. Its additional properties (e.g. PMD dictionary) are  described in here: https://www.adobe.com/content/dam/acom/en/devnet/acrobat/pdfs/adobe_supplement_iso32000.pdf

I rather doubt that JavaScript can see or change the PMD properties needed.

[Thom Parker · Accepted solution]

Barcodes are one of those special (enterprise level) money makers for Adobe. If they really wanted to make a general purpose barcode field, they would have done just that, instead of perverting the text field and blocking use of it in Reader. 

But, because barcodes require a special diversion of the text field to a different field handler, several of the standard text field properties are missing from barcode fields, such as "multiline" and "comb". You can use this to detect barcode fields, i.e. a text field that throws an exception "InvalidGetError" for the "multiline" property.

Of course Adobe could change this at any time, so it is a rather tenous methodology, but so are most things in Acrobat JavaScript 😉  

There is of course, no way to create barcode fields with JavaScript. All Adobe would have to do is add a new values to the style property for the type of barcode, and you could reliably create and detect text fields.  

[try67]

Just a small addendum: If the kind of barcode you want to use has a 1D symbology then you can easily do it with a "normal" text field. You just need to install a font that contains this symbology (like 3-of-9), and then set it as the field's font, and apply a value to it. The nice thing about these fields is that they can be easily edited in Reader, unlike the built-in "barcode" fields, which require a very special (read: expensive) right to become editable in Reader.

[JR Boulay]

Detecting is not a real issue since I can read "barcode" or "codebarre" into field's name.

The main goal was to create a barcode field (QRcode). And so, too bad…

Many thanks to the 3T team (Test, Thom and Try67)

😉