How to ?

Design a Custom HoloKote^TM logo

Introduction

The Magicard Rio and Tango printer family are shipped with a built-in HoloKote™ "Ultra Secure" watermark which provides full protection against tampering, but only limited protection against card counterfeiting.

For maximum protection against counterfeiting a HoloKote™ Custom Key should be used, and the following sections show you how to specify your own unique security logo.

For enhanced visibility of the HoloKote™ feature, using our special HoloPatch™ card stock, and selecting this feature via the driver can highlight one of the logos.

We recommend that you choose our Standard HoloPatch™ cards, which will highlight the logo in position 6 (or 19 if you reverse the card).

However, if you really need a custom HoloPatch™ position, then you need to specify this using the Custom HoloPatch™ form below. This form can also be used to specify the HoloPatch™ position to be used for customer supplied prox cards.

Magicard HoloKote^TM Custom Key Setup

To utilize the custom HoloKote™ logo, the printer requires an appropriately programmed Custom Key to be inserted into the dedicated socket on the printer.

A charge is applied for new Custom Key artwork set-ups. We will keep the custom artwork order on file for a minimum of three years to allow authorized customers to reorder additional or replacement keys through their dealer with no artwork set-up fees applied.

To order a new custom logo or to re-use a previously set up logo, the HoloKote^TM Custom Key Programming Data form must be submitted to your dealer with your order.

Logo data must fit within a 158 pixel by 149 pixel "tile". This data can be repeated (tiled) across the entire card-face (recommended), or it can be used only once and positioned on the face of the card where needed.

The Custom Key logo must be specified as "portrait" or "landscape". This is because the Custom Key logo can only be inverted (180 degree rotation) in the driver. It cannot be rotated through 90 degrees.

Logo data can be submitted in two ways:

(Preferred) In digital format submitted by email, or on a floppy disk. Data must be PC readable and can be in BMP, Targa, GIF, JPEG, or TIF formats.
Camera-ready artwork submitted by mail: will be scanned and used as received.

Logo Design

BOLD-SIMPLE-UNCLUTTERED DESIGNS give the best visually acceptable results! Details in complicated designs with fine lines and/or small text cannot be clearly reproduced.

Do not use grey scale, long thin lines of text, or text exceeding 6 characters per line.

The built-in Ultra Secure™ logo is a good example of a simple yet complete and effective design.

A HoloKote^TM Custom Key Programming Data form must accompany your order.

Please download and print the appropriate PDF fax back form and fax to your dealer with your order.

A HoloPatch^TM stamping data form must accompany your custom HoloPatch^TM card order.

Please download and print the appropriate PDF fax back form and fax to your dealer with your order.

Print a HoloPatch card using windows NT, 2000 or XP operating systems.

Your Magicard printer is already capable of fully protecting your finished cards against tampering using the built-in HoloKote^TM Ultra Secure^TM watermark.

Using these free sample HoloPatch^TM cards, you can also print cards with distinctive foil security seal.

For the ultimate in security you can also specify your own custom HoloKote^TM logo, by ordering a custom key.

Instructions for producing your own HoloPatch^TM cards: (Windows NT, 2000 and XP operating systems)

Insert the HoloPatch cards into the feed hopper with the gold patch in the front-right position.

Go to file, drop down and select print.
In the print dialogue box, select Magicard printer series option from the drop down menu under name.
Select properties, select Advanced, then printing options, then front.
Select Overcoat, then properties and make sure that Overcoat is enabled and that UltraSecure^TM is selected in the Security Options box.
Click OK then select Yes in the HoloPatch box, followed by position. For the standard HoloPatch^TM cards supplied, select position #6 and check the color hole box, click close.
Click on 180degrees rotation then select Front.
Click OK and you'll be back in Printer Properties, then click OK again.
Select Current Page in the Print box.
Click Ok and the print job wil start.

You should now have your card design with a HoloPatch "UltraSecure" logo in the output hopper.

If you already have your own "Custom key" inserted, then you should see your logo on the foil.

Print a HoloPatch card using windows 98 and ME operating system.

Your Magicard printer is already capable of fully protecting your finished cards against tampering using the built-in HoloKote^TM UltraSecure^TM watermark

Using these free sample HoloPatch^TM cards, you can also print cards with distinctive foil security seal.

For the ultimate in security you can also specify your own custom HoloKote^TM logo, by ordering a custom key.

Instructions for producing your own HoloPatch^TM cards: (Windows 98, and ME operating systems)

Insert the HoloPatch cards into the feed hopper with the gold patch in the front-right position.

Go to file, drop down and select print.
In the print dialogue box, select Magicard Printer Series option from the drop down menu under name.
Select properties, select Ribbon, then Overcoat and make sure that UltraSecure^TM is selected and that Tile Rotate is switched off in the Security Options box. In the Overcoat Area Selections box, select Overcoat Enabled, Click OK then select HoloPatch cards supplied, select Position #6 and check the Color Hole box if printing a card with a color background in the HoloPatch area, click close.
Click OK and you'll be back in print.
Select Current Page in the print box.
Click OK and the print job will start

You should now have your card design with a HoloPatch "UltraSecure" logo in the output hopper.

If you already have your own "Custom Key" inserted, then you should see your logo on the foil.

How to care for Card Stock

The quality of the card surface directly affects the quality of the finished print. Good quality, well cared for cards will help to reduce batch printing times and wasted materials, and will prolong the life of the printers' thermal printhead.

To obtain good quality prints the card must be:

Free from dirt and grease.
Free from surface contamination e.g. finger prints, dust, hairs, cloth fibres etc.
Free from pits and bumps in the surface.
Free from burrs at the edge of the card.
Completely flat.

PVC/PET cards are Electro-static dust magnets, therefore:

We recommend that cards should not be removed from their packaging until immediately pRior to being fitted in the card hopper.
Cards should be handled as little as possible and should be gripped only by their edge - try not to touch the printable surface.
Where handling cannot be avoided, try wearing white, lint-free gloves.
Discard any cards that have been dropped on the floor or left on the desk for a long peRiod.

How to create an ISO 7811 Magnetic Encoding data string

All magnetic encoding has to be applied to the cards' magnetic stripe in a format that can be read by the swipe card reader.

There are many different formats that can be used, but 99.9% of all card swipe readers operate on the ISO 7811 Magnetic Swipe Standards. The ISO 7811 format is as follows :-

ISO 7811 Format

Track 1:	210 bits per inch (BPI), 7 bits per character (MPC), maximum of 79 Alpha Numeric characters.
Track 2:	75 bits per inch (BPI), 5 bits per character (MPC), maximum of 40 Numeric characters.
Track 3:	210 bits per inch (BPI), 5 bits per character (MPC), maximum of 107 Numeric characters.

Start and end characters must be appended to the beginning and end of the data to be encoded. These are slightly different depending on the track to be encoded

Track 1:	start sentinel = %	end sentinel = ?
Track 2:	start sentinel = ;	end sentinel = ?
Track 3:	start sentinel = ;	end sentinel = ?

The encoding data can be sent to the printer either from the encoding set-up of a dedicated badge printing application, or as a line of text (a text string) in the image.

As an example of a text string, to encode the word "MAGTEST" on Track 1 at 210 bits per inch (BPI) on a Hi-Co card the data added to the image should be as follows: -

~1,BPI210,MPC7,COEH,%MAGTEST?

Please note

The encoding string must start with a Tilda Symbol (~) and the track number (1, 2, or 3). This informs the printer driver that this information is to be encoded on the mag stripe and is not to be printed on the card.
Either Hi-Co or Lo-Co Magnetic Cards can be encoded. So the command - COEH - is used to inform the printer that the cards are Hi-Co, or alternatively - COEL - for Lo-Co cards.
All data to be encoded must be in upper case characters and only True Type fonts may be used.
All three tracks can be encoded simultaneously with any combination of data.
Encoded data can be verified before the card image is printed, to avoid card wastage.

Further examples: -

To encode the numbers "0123456789" on Track 2 at 75 bits per inch (BPI) on a Lo-Co card the data added to the image should be as follows:
~2,BPI75,MPC5,COEL,;0123456789?
To encode the numbers "9876543210" on Track 3 at 210 bits per inch (BPI) on a Hi-Co card the data added to the image should be as follows:
~3,BPI210,MPC5,COEH,;9876543210?