translation request PDF::API old barcode call to new PDF::API

[madizen]

I have some legacy code for a public library app to generate codabar barcodes to PDF for on-demand inventory labels. The old code made a call to $pdf->barcode() but that method is deprecated. Old code in question:

sub makebarcode { 
  # given a string, return encoded codabar as image
  my $code = shift(@_);
  my $img = $pdf->barcode(
    -type => $type,
    -font => $pdffont,
    -code => $code,
    -quzn => $quzn,
    -umzn => $umzn,    
    -lmzn => $lmzn,    # fontsize at bottom
    -zone => $zone,
    -ofwt => $owft,
    -text => $label,
    -fnsz => $fnsz,
    -spcr => $spcr,
  );
  return $img;
}

Codabar functionality in PDF::API2 has moved to PDF::API2::Resource::XObject::Form::BarCode::codabar but I can't figure out how to give it these same args (input string, all those zoning params, etc. Admittedly this is probably due to a density issue in my own gray matter. I tried PDF::Report->drawBarcode which takes similar args, but that module's use of PDF::API2 also seems to be obsolete. Can someone please offer a translation for the new PDF::API2?

[idsfa]

To say that the documentation on this package is terrible would falsely imply that it existed at all ... A meditation or two have tried to gather some info on this package, but neither is this deep in the PDF::API2 tree.

That said, I'll dig in a little. The pod contains a promising function, and diving into the guts shows that it will take all of your options except -type and -text. I don't know if you will need them to get the output you are looking for. Maybe the following will help:

use PDF::API2;

my $pdf = PDF::API2->new(-file => 'barcode.pdf');
my $bc = $pdf->xo_codabar(
    -font => $pdffont,
    -code => $code,
    -quzn => $quzn,
    -umzn => $umzn,    
    -lmzn => $lmzn,    # fontsize at bottom
    -zone => $zone,
    -ofwt => $owft,
    -fnsz => $fnsz,
    -spcr => $spcr,
);
$pdf->save();

Updated: So naturally, another example appears the next day. Doesn't directly help with this problem, but I'm adding the link here just to keep track of it.

[madizen]

Documentation? er... what's that? ;) The -type arg is obviously not needed anymore and I think I can add back the -text label (it is important) just by sending that to the pdf document separately from the barcode, as I have working examples of sending text to the document. However... while pdf->xo_codabar() now returns something, I need to place it on the page at a specific location. This used to be like this:

# encode string $code as codabar image $bar
my $bar = makebarcode ($code);  # Working! Thank you!

# Place it at x,y page coordinates with scale and frame options.
# Doesn't work. 
$gfx->barcode($bar, $x, $y, $scale, $frame);

# Don't work neither.
$gfx->xo_codabar($bar, $x, $y, $scale, $frame)

Now I get: Can't locate object method "what_I_tried" via package "PDF::API2::Content" Well, that's progress anyway. Just acquiring the barcode image was 80% of my battle. I will mull the meditations offered, but if you or anyone can just throw me the required "output $bar at coordinates" incantation, I have the rest of my legacy issues already wrapped. I found and tried:

$gfx->image($bar, $x, $y, $scale);

But $bar is not an image? (Anyway I get a blank document, which is better than an error message). Found it!

# Works! 
$gfx->formimage($bar, $x, $y, $scale);

[djlerman]

Hey there.. Do you have a full example of this code? I am trying to do almost the exact same thing. What I need to do is create and print individual barcodes that will print onto Avery labels. Thanks, ~Donavon