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3. Select the desired column hole reading
format by pressing either the 80 COL or 51
COL portion of the 80 COL/51 COL
button on the card reader panel. The
lighted half of the indicator displays the
selected condition. Mixing of 80-or 51-col
umn cards are not recommended.
4. Press the RESET button on the card reader
panel. The RESET indicator will go out,
indicating to the operator that the check
condition (empty input hopper) has been
removed and the card transport motor will
automatically be set in motion. The card
reader is online and ready to read cards.
Standard Power-Down Procedures
To power-down the card reader:
1. When the input hopper runs out
o~
cards,
the card transport motor will automatically
come to a stop; the RESET indicator will
illuminate, indicating that the card reader is
now in a standby (offline) state.
2. Remove cards from the output hopper, and
if no more cards are to be run, first press
STOP and then the POWER button on the
card reader panel. The card reader is now
completely powered-down.
Mark Sense Operation
Standard power-up/power-down procedures
also apply to card readers having the added
capability of reading mark sense cards. Mark sense
operation is the same as normal operation except
mark sense cards are used and the following
controls must be set accordingly.
1. Press the MARKS/STD button on the card
reader panel to MARKS (STD for standard
operation). The lighted half of the indica
tor displays the selected condition.
2. The 40 COL or 80 COL portion of the 40
COL/80 COL button on the card reader
panel is selected. The lighted half of the
indicator displays the selected condition.
Data may be punched or marked, or may
consist of both punches and marks, intermixed.
To read both punches and marks on the same
cards, it is only necessary to use mark sense cards
and to enter all data in the same format, i.e., all
80-column format or all 40-column format cards
are read in the MARKS mode.
CARD READER DEVICES
Marking The Cards
Mark sense cards may be marked with any
medium that is sufficiently nonreflective. The
marks should be clear and legible. A standard
number 2 lead pencil gives reflectance readings of
about 3 percent and is ideal for marking the cards
because of its general availability and the ease
with which mistakes in marking may be cor
rected. When marking the cards, it is not neces
sary to scrub back and forth over a mark to make
it appear big and black. In fact, such a technique
is likely to cause problems rather than prevent
them. It is the clarity and positioning of the mark
that is more important than the apparent inten
sity of the mark to the eye.
If a mark is placed outside of a marking area,
it should be erased and placed in the proper area
instead of being widened until it extends into the
proper area.
Cards must be kept reasonably clean.
If
the
desired marks are allowed to become smudgy or
smeared, erroneous data may result.
Card Loading
Prior to input hopper loading, cards should be
checked visually for appearance and condition.
They must be excellent condition free of nicks
and buckles. The use of old and abused cards can
cause a card jam resulting in a communications
break. The proper handling and storage of cards
will reduce this problem (see paragraph entitled,
Care And Handling Of Cards).
1. The input hopper is capable of holding up
to 500 cards (approximately three inches).
It is recommended when loading the input
hopper to full capacity that the deck of
cards be divided into two separate stacks of
one and one-half inches. This enables the
operator to handle the cards more effi
ciently, thereby reducing the chances of
incurring a card jam during card reader
operation.
2. When selecting a stack of cards for loading,
fan or riffle the cards, looking for nicked,
worn or abused cards. Remove and replace
defective cards in the stack. Now take the
stack of cards and on a firm, flat surface
such as a table or the top of the card
reader, joggle them. Make sure that the
edges on all the cards are even before they
are loaded into the input hopper.
3. Remove the card follower from the input
hopper (see Figure 3-8) and place, do not
drop the cards into the hopper. Cards are
3-8
AT04
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