I am looking for a cheap tool (less than 20$) that can print a barcode
on a piece of paper. If I scan the piece of paper in, it could be able
to recognize the barcode on the paper and in some way output the
information encoded in the barcode.

It has to be possible to automate the tool (meaning that it can be
controlled from Command Line under Windows or integrated into Java).

If the tool is under open source, it needs to be under a licence that
is compatible with commercial software.

The information that needs to be encoded into a barcode is simply a
six digit number.

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Clarification of Question by travelinsurance-ga on 26 Apr 2005 02:52 PDT

Thank you for the comment.

What I need is a tool that can also read these barcodes from the piece
of paper. Let's say that the tool has to be cheaper than 50$ instead
of 20$ as originally stated.

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Clarification of Question by travelinsurance-ga on 27 Apr 2005 02:49 PDT

Thanks again for you comment. I understand that I have to clarify
something. I did not mean a barcode scanner, I meant that I will scan
in a piece of paper with a normal scanner, which creates a picture
file of it (jpeg, tiff etc.). I What I need is the tool that can
recognize the barcode.

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Clarification of Question by travelinsurance-ga on 03 May 2005 00:01 PDT

Thanks a lot. You have now answered the major part of the question. I
have reduced the amount for this question with 5$. A fully
satisfactory answer to this question is the following string:

Jadajadajada.

Thanks again!

Most bar codes can be purchased as a font for a few dollars.  Just
install the font and you can print bar codes just like printing Times
New Roman or any other font.  You can use any number of tools to print
the bar code on a piece of paper, including Excel, Access, Word, VB,
or any tool that allows you to place text and send documents to the
printer.

If you do a search on the Interent there are a plethora of low cost
barcode readers, many below the cost you specified.  I don't work with
any of them so can't suggest any from personal experience.  Just keep
in mind that there are several different types of barcode, so make
sure that the reader you purchase reads the same type of barcode
characters you print.  Most barcode readers insert the characters they
read into the keyboard buffer so no special software is needed to go
with the hardware (besides the hardware driver of course).

This page lists some possibilities:

[ http://windowsmarketplace.com/results.aspx?bCatID=478&av=14-1628 ]

Reading bar codes and performing OCR on paper forms that have been
scanned is commonly referred to as "forms processing."  Usually this
is high end software and the user configures zones on the forms where
OCR, barcode reading and imaging is to be performed.

There is plenty of software that does this sort of thing.  Here's one
place you can browse for a product that fits your needs:

http://dmoz.org/Computers/Software/Document_Imaging/Automated_Forms_Processing/

Commenters may not post to the Answer area of questions and do not
receive compensation for their contributions.  I was glad to help and
wish you luck.