I always put tape on my barcode (labels printed on a deskjet) - what to do if it rains or otherwise gets wet? the ink just disappears into a great big puddle of nothing readable. I've never had a package returned or a customer complain and I've shipped alot using Paypal/eBay shipping label creators. I've also used USPS to print labels and done the same thing. Never any complaint - not even from the postal workers who took my pre-posted packages.