User Exits

User exits give you an easy way to add custom capabilities to ScanTools software. You can initiate actions during scanning that cannot be caused using ScanTools software alone. This gives you greater flexibility to tailor ScanTools software to your applications. Specifically, user exits can alter the scanning operations, post-scan editing, and/or scoring operations.

For scanning, examples of what you can perform with user exits are:

For post-scan editing, examples of what you can perform with user exits are:

For post-scan scoring, examples of what you can perform with user exits are:

For any User Exit work, you must have ScanTools software and you must use a C/C++ compiler that can create Windows Dynamic Link Libraries (DLLs). Scantron has developed and tested user exits using the following development platforms:

NOTE: Languages other than C/C++ are not supported in ScanTools software. User exits that were written for Image ScanTools version 4.2 or earlier or ScanTools II version 1.1 can not run with ScanTools Plus version 6.0 or later. See Rebuilding User Exits.

During ScanTools installation, you must select one (or more) of the User Exit Shell Module components to receive the required source files and Microsoft wizard files that are used for user exit development.

User Exit access within ScanTools software divides scanning and editing operations into distinct stages. Each of these processing stages has a User Exit function call assigned to it. These functions are pre-defined in the user exit shell code that is provided.

The user exit programmer will not be required to create the function calls applicable to these exit points. The programmer will only have to insert code relevant to the desired operation within these pre-defined user exit functions.

The user exits are listed below, including the name, number, function call, and brief description. More details are available in other topics, listed at the end of this topic.

Scanning User Exits Summary

Edit User Exits Summary

Score User Exits Summary

Helper Functions

In addition, the ScanTools user exit library provides a number of Helper Functions. These are functions that are either common to many user exits or that would require an in-depth understanding of the internal ScanTools data structures to write.

User Exits and Grayboxes

CAUTION: User exits are not compatible with applications that contain grayboxes that use absolute Units of Measurement (.001 in, .01 mm, or Hybrid). See Grid Measurement dialog box - Unit of Measurement and Grid Measurement dialog box - Special Cases.

INIT 1	OnExitPointInit	Called one time per scan batchbeforeactual scanning of forms. Used to initialize batch variables, open files, connect to databases, etc.
ACQUIRE 2	OnExitPointAcquire	Called one time per sheetafter the sheet is scanned but before form ID is performed.
DOCCHK 3	OnExitPointDocChk	Called one time per sheetafter the sheet is identified but before grid resolution has been performed.
RESOLVE 4	OnExitPointResolve	Called one time per sheetafter grid resolution for the sheet is performed but before data is examined for edit failures.
PRESCORE 7	OnExitPointPreScore	Called one time per document, on the last sheet,after edit examination for the sheet is performed but before transport string is printed on the last sheet of the document and sheet is stacked. This function is only called if scan-time scoring is enabled.
XPRINT 5	OnExitPointXPrint	Called one time per sheetafter edit examination for the sheet is performed but before transport string is printed on the sheet and sheet is stacked. This is the function call to use for any operation that is to be applied to every sheet scanned without error.
DOCDONE 6	OnExitPointDocDone	Called one time per documentafter all component sheets of the document are processed but before the data record for this document is written to disk. This is the function call to use for any operation that is to be applied to every whole document scanned without individual regard for its component sheets.
PRECONVERTHDR 8	OnExitPointPreConvertHeader	If scan-time conversion is enabled and conversion format is SPSS (Windows) or Delimited ASCII (.DLM, .CSV, or .TXT), this function is called one time at the beginning of the batch after the first document is accepted. This call occurs prior to the creation of the conversion header.
POSTCONVERTHDR 9	OnExitPointPostConvertHeader	If scan-time conversion is enabled and conversion format is SPSS (Windows), this function is called one time after the creation of the conversion header but prior to the writing of the header to disk.
PRECONVERT 10	OnExitPointPreConvert	If scan-time conversion is enabled, this function is called one time per documentafter the document is accepted. This call occurs prior to the creation of the conversion record.
POSTCONVERT 11	OnExitPointPostConvert	If scan-time conversion is enabled, this function is called one time per documentafter the creation of the conversion record but prior to the writing of the record to disk.
PRECORRECT 14	OnExitPointPreOnlineEditCorrect	If online Edit correction is enabled, called just before a record is presented to the Online Editor. This happens asynchronously to the scanning operation and is triggered by a record being queued for Online Edit or by a previously Online Edit record being completed. For this reason, the PRECORRECT user exit point does not appear in the following flow chart or scanning cycle discussion.
DOCLIP 15	OnExitPointDoClip	For Image Scanner Implementation OnlyCalled one time per sheet after the transport print string is printed on the sheet and the sheet is stacked. This is used to do image clipping on the iNSIGHT 2/4 scanner with imaging while the next sheet is being fed, to improve performance. This User Exit point should be used to do clipping for any User Exit which is to be used on both an iNSIGHT 70/150, 5000i, iNSIGHT 20, or iNSIGHT 30 scanner and an iNSIGHT 2/4 scanner. The DOCLIP user exit can be used with iNSIGHT 70/150 and 5000i scanners but is not required.
ONERROR 98	OnExitPointOnError	Called when a scanning error occurs just before the Scanning Error Dialog appears. A scanned sheet can be ignored and treated as if it had never been scanned by returning the IGNORESHEET request. An unscannable sheet can be skipped and treated as if it was scanned successfully by returning the IGNOREERROR request, except in the case of a User Exit Stop, Document Sequence Error, or Key Item Count Error. Any attempt to skip an unscannable sheet with these errors will be ignored.
CLEANUP 99	OnExitPointCleanUp	Called one time at the end of the scanning run. All sheets of the batch are cleared from the bed and the data files are closed.

Edit Setup	EditUserExitSetup	Called at the start of each editing session to allow the Edit User Exit shell code to capture information about the edit session that can be made available to the Edit User Exit. The user should only modify this Edit User Exit code to change the title on the edit screen or to chain to an additional user exit.
Edit Batch Entry	EditAtBatchEntry	Called at the start of each editing session to allow the user to setup/initialize any variables or resources to be used by the Edit User Exit during the edit session.
Edit Document Entry	EditAtDocumentEntry	Called one time per edit failing document after an edit failing document is identified but before any data appears to the user. Used to do pre-editing analysis of the entire output record to be edited. Also used to allow the Edit User Exit to modify any or all of the document’s data prior to editing.
Edit Field Entry	EditAtFieldEntry	Called one time per edit failing field after an edit failing field is found, but before the data or edit failure prompt is presented to the user. Used to modify the field’s data or edit failure prompt. Also used to do special pre-edit verification of the field’s data and signal the edit code to not present this field to the user (skip the field), if this verification indicates it doesn’t need to be edited.
Edit Field Exit	EditAtFieldExit	Called one time per edit failing fieldafter the user has seen the field or the field entry user exit has skipped the field but before the field’s edited data is entered into the document’s data record in memory. Used to carry out special post-edit verification of the field’s edited data and force the field to be re-edited, if the field fails this verification. Also used to force data into the field after it is edited (for example a translation of the data entered by the user).
Edit Document Exit	EditAtDocumentExit	Called one time per edit failing documentafter the user has seen all the edit failing fields on the document which were not skipped by the field entry user exit but before the document’s edited data is sent saved to the data file on disk. Used to carry out special verification of all edited data for the document and force the document to be re-edited, if the document fails this verification.
Edit Batch Exit	EditAtBatchExit	Called at the end of each editing session to allow the Edit User Exit to do any necessary cleanup including freeing any resources allocated during batch entry.

Score Setup	ScoreUserExitSetup	Called at the start of each scoring session to allow the Score User Exit shell code to capture information about the score session that can be made available to the Score User Exit. The user should only modify this Score User Exit code to chain to an additional Score User Exit.
Score Initialize	ScoreInit	Called at the start of each scoring session to allow the user to setup/initialize any variables or resources to be used by the Score User Exit during the score session.
Score Record Entry	ScoreRecordEntry	Called after the data record to be scored is loaded but before the record is scored. Used to change the data prior to scoring or to analyze the data or other information and if desired, cause the record to not be scored.
Score Record Exit	ScoreRecordExit	Called after the data record is scored but before it is written to the disk. Used to capture the scores or to analyze the scores or other information and if desired, cause the scored record to not be written to the disk.
Score Cleanup	ScoreCleanup	Called at the end of each scoring session to allow the Score User Exit to do any necessary cleanup including freeing any resources allocated during score initialize