MSR Software
for the Symbol MSR 3000 for the
Symbol SPT17xx and SPT18xx

Users Guide

Version 1.0
December 2003

Introduction

MSR3000 software is software designed to read credit card information on PalmOS systems from Symbol Technologies, using the MSR (Magnetic Stripe Reader) 3000 unit from Symbol. The MSR 3000 hardware can actually read any kind of magnetic stripe, but the MSR3000 software is designed specifically to read credit card information (name, card number, and expiration date) for use by POS programs such as Take An Order! software from Stevens Creek Software.

Installing MSR3000 in Your Symbol SPT17xx or SPT18xx

Whether you downloaded the software from our Web site or received it in the mail, you should have a file called MSR3000.prc on your desktop or laptop computer (on the hard disk or on a floppy diskette). If you have a file named MSR.ZIP, that is not the proper file; that's a compressed or "zipped" file that you must uncompress with standard "unzipping" software (which we do not provide).

There is also a file named MsrMgrLib.prc, which is the "library" file provided by Symbol to actually operate the MSR unit. You may have already obtained a copy of this file from Symbol along with your hardware, or it may in fact already be installed in your unit. The copy we provide should be used if neither of these is the case.

If you do not have the file MSR3000.prc, you cannot proceed. If you do have MSR3000.prc, here's how to install it on your handheld unit:

From a Macintosh:

Run your HotSync Manager software, and from the HotSync menu, select Install Handheld Files. Drag the file MSR3000 into the window (or use the Add to List button to accomplish the same thing), repeat the process with MsrMgrLib.prc if appropriate, quit the HotSync Manager, and perform a HotSync.

From Windows:

Double-click on the file MSR3000. If you are offered a window asking use to "Select a user", do so. Repeat the process with MsrMgrLib.prc if appropriate. Click Done on the Install Tool window which appears and perform a HotSync.


Starting the Application, Licensing the Software

Select the MSR3000 icon from your Home screen, which looks like this:

and you'll see the main screen of the program which looks like this:

Before you have registered the software, you will see a License button in the lower-right hand corner of the screen. You can use MSR3000 on 5 different days without a license. During that time, if you decide to use the software permanently, you can purchase a license and obtain a serial number. Once you do, tap on the License button and enter the serial number on the screen which appears in order to license the software. If the serial number is correct, the License button will disappear. If your company has purchased a site license version of MSR3000, then the License button will simply not appear because your software will be automatically be licensed.

If you run into a problem, this probably means that when you provided your Palm "HotSync name" (also known as your Palm user name) to Stevens Creek Software, you did so incorrectly. Check the name in the Enter Serial Number screen, and write it down exactly and email it to Stevens Creek Software technical support at supportmail@stevenscreek.com and wait for a new serial number to be provided to you.

Using the Software

When you run MSR3000 directly by tapping on its icon and obtain the screen shown above, you can simply swipe a credit card through the unit and see the result of the swipe displayed on the screen. You can use this mode for just testing the software, but it isn't really the normal way in which you will be using the software. Instead, MSR3000 is meant to be used as a "helper program" by other software such as Take An Order! software from Stevens Creek Software. From Take An Order!, when you select a Credit Card payment, the software will launch MSR3000. At first, a screen reading "Activating MSR3000" will be displayed (the MSR3000 is not left "on" all the time, because it drains power from your SPT17xx or SPT18xx if it is). Once the MSR3000 has activated, you'll see this screen:

This screen is hopefully self-explanatory! Either swipe a card, or tap Cancel if something is wrong. Once you swipe the card, you will not see the results of the swipe; instead, the captured information is sent back to the calling software (like Take An Order!) where it is used in that software just as if the information had been entered by hand.

Error Messages

Problem activating MSR3000: For some reason, the hardware isn't responding.Perhaps the SPT is not actually plugged into the MSR3000? The program will exit after displaying this message, since it cannot be used in these circumstances.

MSR Library couldn't be opened; have you installed the MsrMgrLib.prc file?: Almost certainly, as the message suggests, you haven't installed the MsrMgrLib.prc file. Follow the installation instructions above in this manual to do so.

Invalid credit card read: In "direct mode" only (when you run MSR3000 directly from its icon), the software will display this message either when it has a problem reading the credit card, or when it reads properly but the magnetic strip you swiped does not contain credit card information (e.g., it was a driver's license) - MSR3000 is designed specifically to read credit card information. In "indirect mode" (when MSR3000 is run from another program like Take An Order!), no error message is displayed in these circumstances; instead, the unit will simply "beep" to indicate a bad read.

UNLICENSED SOFTWARE: Before the software is licensed, it will read both the credit card number and the name, but it was append the words "UNLICENSED SOFTWARE" to the end of the name. This will of course disappear once the software is licensed.

For Support

If you have any problems using MSR3000, you can contact Stevens Creek Software in one of the following ways:

On the web: http://www.stevenscreek.com/palm/support.html
By email: supportmail@stevenscreek.com

If you lose your serial number, you can obtain a reminder online on our support page.If the serial number you were provided is incorrect, DO NOT CALL. First visit the support web page above, which will be the quickest way to solve your problem; as an alternative, email supportmail@stevenscreek.com with your request.

Copyright 2003 by Stevens Creek Software
All Rights Reserved.