5,887
edits
Specimen Barcode and Labeling Guide: Difference between revisions
Specimen Barcode and Labeling Guide (view source)
Revision as of 12:21, 6 February 2015
, 6 February 2015→Definition
| Line 9: | Line 9: | ||
A [[Media:LabelAndBarcodeSurvey.pdf|survey]] to collect information from collections staff was sent out in early November, 2014 to the idigbiodigi-l listserv, with a 15% response rate, the [[Specimen Barcode and Labeling Survey Results|verbatim results are here]]. | A [[Media:LabelAndBarcodeSurvey.pdf|survey]] to collect information from collections staff was sent out in early November, 2014 to the idigbiodigi-l listserv, with a 15% response rate, the [[Specimen Barcode and Labeling Survey Results|verbatim results are here]]. | ||
==Definition== | ==Definition & Scope== | ||
From the perspective of biodiversity specimen collections and this guide, a barcode is an optical machine-readable encoding of a unique identifier that is attached to a specimen record. A barcode is used to efficiently manage specimens and to quickly locate them in the specimen database. | From the perspective of biodiversity specimen collections and this guide, a barcode is an optical machine-readable encoding of a unique identifier that is attached to a specimen record. A barcode is used to efficiently manage specimens and to quickly locate them in the specimen database. | ||
A barcode reader scans the encoding and because the barcode is part of the specimen database record, the record can be called up and used in collection management tasks, for example, when re-locating specimens or processing loans. Additionally, using a barcode reader to enter the code into a new database record, or to query for an existing record means that mistakes in barcode entry are essentially eliminated. | A barcode reader scans the encoding and because the barcode is part of the specimen database record, the record can be called up and used in collection management tasks, for example, when re-locating specimens or processing loans. Additionally, using a barcode reader to enter the code into a new database record, or to query for an existing record means that mistakes in barcode entry are essentially eliminated. | ||