Print Labels

Print Label helps librarians prepare barcode labels, spine labels, shelf labels, accession labels, and mixed barcode plus spine labels for collection copies.

Use it when you need to print labels for newly added items, reprint damaged labels, organize shelves, or prepare a batch after import.

Use the Guide action on the Print Label page when you want these steps beside the workspace while preparing labels.

What You Can Do

• Create saved label lists from selected rows in Collections and Periodicals.
• Choose Create label list to open the centered source chooser, then select Collections or Periodicals. The chooser supports keyboard focus, Enter, and Escape and remains balanced on narrow and large windows.
• Reopen, rename, delete, and regenerate saved label lists when labels need to be reprinted.
• Choose a protected starter template or a custom template.
• Preview labels with ideal, short, and long sample data before printing a large batch.
• Set page layout details such as paper, orientation, rows, columns, gaps, margins, and the first label position for partially used sheets.
• Download PDF output from Libcodesk WebApp.
• Use the Standalone app when you need direct printer selection or printer correction.

How The Parts Fit Together

Print Label has four connected parts:

Part	Meaning	Where to learn more
Saved label list	The selected collection or periodical copies that should be printed.	This page, Create A Label List
Label template	The design of one label, including barcode, QR code, text, images, size, safe margin, optional border, and optional cut guides.	Design Label Templates
Page layout	The physical arrangement on paper or roll stock: paper size, rows, columns, margins, gaps, and start position.	Page Layouts
Printer settings	Device-specific correction for the Standalone app: printer selection, offset, scale, rotation, DPI, density, and media detection where supported.	Label Printer Settings

These parts must match. A good barcode template can still print badly if the page layout does not match the sticker sheet. A correct PDF can still print shifted if the PDF viewer or printer driver scales the page. Test one page before printing a large batch.

Create A Label List

1. Open Collection Manager.
2. Go to Collections or Periodicals.
3. Select the rows you want to label.
4. Choose Create label list.
5. Open Print Label and select the saved list.

Saved lists are useful for reprints because you do not need to search and select the same copies again.

Manage Saved Lists

Open Print Label to view saved lists. Select one or more saved lists when you want to generate a combined batch; use the header checkbox to select or clear the visible saved lists. Use the row action menu to open a list, rename it, or remove it when it is no longer needed. Removing a saved label list does not delete collection items or copies; it only removes that saved print batch.

After opening a saved list, review the label list items before generating output. If one copy was selected by mistake, remove that row from the saved list. This only changes the saved print batch; it does not delete the catalog record, copy, accession, barcode, or periodical issue.

Large saved lists may be prepared in pages behind the screen so the workspace stays responsive. Keep the Print Label page open while the list loads and check the final item count before printing a large batch.

Manage Label Templates

Use the Label Templates tab to choose starter templates, copy a starter, edit your own template, set a default, duplicate a design, export a .liblabel backup, or import a trusted template package.

Custom templates can be archived when staff should no longer use them. Archived templates do not appear in the Generate Labels template selector. Open the Archived view to restore a custom template when you need to use it again.

Adjust A Label Design

When editing a custom template, select an element on the label to move, resize, duplicate, delete, or change its layer order. Use the grid, ruler, safe area, snap, and zoom controls to keep the design printable.

Use the Inspector to switch between Elements and Properties. Elements shows every label layer with a Properties action. Properties shows the selected object, unit selector, position, size, binding, image, typography, color, border, opacity, and layer-order controls in one scrollable panel.

For precise placement, select an element and use the arrow keys to move it by the snap size. Hold Shift with an arrow key for a larger move. Use Delete or Backspace to remove the selected element, and use the duplicate and layer actions when you need repeated text, barcode, image, or shape elements.

Choose Output

• PDF is the supported generated file format for normal A4, Letter, and roll label output. Libcodesk names the PDF from the selected label list so it is easier to find later.
• Direct Print is available in the Standalone app when your device supports printer access. Choose the target printer in Printer Settings first; if no printer is selected, the app opens the system print dialog.

After a successful output, the Standalone app remembers whether that staff user last generated a PDF or used Direct Print. Libcodesk WebApp keeps PDF as the generated output option.

When you generate labels, Libcodesk first prepares the saved list as a progress-safe label job. The screen shows the output type, status, processed count, success count, and failed count before the PDF or Standalone print dialog is prepared. In Libcodesk WebApp, the PDF downloads through the browser. In the Standalone app, Save PDF opens a save-location dialog before writing the file. Keep the page open until the progress reaches completion and the file or print dialog is ready.

If you have not selected a saved list yet, the preview uses sample records. Switch between Ideal, Min, and Max samples to check normal labels, very short data, and long text before printing real copies. Use the help icon beside the sample choices when you want a quick reminder of what the checks are meant to catch. Use refresh preview data to rebuild those samples from the current collection records where your setup has enough data. You can save a PDF or, in the Standalone app, print this sample preview before selecting a real saved list. Use the magnify preview action when you need a larger inspection view before generating PDF or direct print output.

A saved list with no items cannot be generated. Add copies from Collections or Periodicals, or choose another saved list.

Page Layout

Use Page Layout before generating a batch. The layout applies to PDF and Standalone direct print.

• Start with a built-in layout preset when it matches your label sheet or roll. Presets include popular A4 and US Letter stock such as 30-up, 21-up, 65-up, 80-up, 84-up, 24-up, 20-up, 14-up, 10-up, and 8-up sheets, plus 50/60/80 mm roll labels. The A4 30-up barcode preset for 66 x 27 mm labels uses 3 columns, 10 rows, 3.2 mm top and bottom margins, 3.2 mm left margin, 2.8 mm right margin, 3 mm horizontal gaps, and 2.1 mm vertical gaps.
• Choose A4, Letter, or a supported roll label size.
• Set portrait or landscape orientation.
• Enter the number of columns and rows for the sheet.
• Set column gap, row gap, top margin, left margin, right margin, and bottom margin in millimeters.
• Use Start position when a sheet is already partly used. For example, enter 5 when the first four label positions are already used.
• Save custom layout templates for label stock you use often. Template actions let you apply a layout for review, copy and modify it, set it as the default page layout, export it, or delete it.

Save the layout after changing it. If labels drift across the sheet, check rows, columns, gaps, and margins before changing printer offsets.

Exact stock presets carry the sheet margins, gaps, rows, columns, and printable label size. Libcodesk places each label into that stock cell and scales the selected label design into the cell so the artwork stays inside the label boundary. For custom layouts without a saved label size, the selected label template size is used. If the selected label size cannot physically fit the requested number of columns or rows on the selected paper, Libcodesk places only the number that fits instead of shrinking the barcode, QR code, or label artwork. Review the preview or test PDF when switching between narrow spine labels and wider mixed barcode labels.

Printer Settings

Use Printer Settings in the Standalone app when a label printer, roll label, or partially corrected sheet needs its own saved profile. Select the physical printer there before printing when you want Libcodesk to send the labels directly to that device. A printer profile can store paper or roll size, orientation, horizontal and vertical offsets, print scale, rotation, media detection style, DPI, print density, mirror printing, and cutting guide preference.

After creating or editing a profile, print the Alignment Test. Measure the printed border, rulers, and center mark at 100% actual size. If the label shifts, adjust the profile offsets or scale, save the profile, and print the Alignment Test again before running a large batch.

Set the correct printer profile as the default before generating labels for that device. The default profile is applied to printable label output, including offsets, scale, rotation, and mirror printing. Cutting guides are off by default; enable them in the template or printer profile only when you need guide marks for testing or trimming. The selected physical printer controls where the Standalone app sends direct print output.

Libcodesk WebApp keeps label preparation focused on saved lists, templates, page layout, and PDF output. Use the Standalone app when you need Printer Settings, saved printer profiles, direct printer selection, alignment tests, or printer-device correction.

Before A Large Batch

• Print one test page first.
• Scan at least one barcode from the printed label.
• Scan any QR code used on a shelf label or custom template.
• Check spine label text at normal shelf distance.
• Confirm margins and start position when using a partially used sheet.

Troubleshooting

If a barcode does not scan, increase label size, use a higher print quality, avoid low-contrast colors, and check that the scanner supports the barcode type. For direct printer alignment, use the Standalone app, save a printer profile for that device, and reprint the Alignment Test after every offset, scale, rotation, DPI, or density change.

If a saved list appears incomplete after reopening, refresh the page and open the list again. For repeated issues in the Standalone app, enable diagnostics before reproducing the problem so support can inspect label-list loading, printer-profile loading, and generation progress.

If the print does not match the label stock, open Page Layouts first and confirm the label size, rows, columns, margins, gaps, paper size, and start position. If the PDF layout is correct but the physical printer shifts everything, use Label Printer Settings in the Standalone app.

For general layout advice, organization admins and librarians can ask in the CodeAchi community and include the label stock size, page layout values, template size, output type, and a non-sensitive photo of the test print. Organization admins may contact CodeAchi support for account, license, billing, cloud access, or product-support issues. Do not share passwords, OTPs, license secrets, private keys, or confidential member data.