The default mode for Zebra scanners is HID (Keyboard) mode. This is the easiest and just works out of the box. 90%+ of people just use this.
Next step up is to add preamble/postamble from the scanner to be able to identify the source of the keyboard input. We do this with Ignition for all our scanners. It ensures that the barcode data is prefixed and terminated by control character that someone types. We then use the Sepasoft Barcode Scanner module that can watch for the keyboard events and allow us to process scanner data separately from keyboard data. This also has a big benefit as there need not be any “focus” on fields to provide the needed input.
Going further, you need to start using the Zebra APIs. There a MANY types of interfaces/modes for the scanners. SSI, JPOS, etc. 2D scanners can even perform image capture for some models. With the other modes, you need to implement a module or import the java libraries to make use to read any data from the scanner (it will not just show up as a keyboard anymore). This is certainly tougher, but the API (depending on the mode) gives you much more control of the scanner such as remote triggering, changing configuration, blinking LEDs, etc. We are starting to look into this for our Ignition environment as we are moving most of our shipping operations over to Ignition, but with Perspective on the horizon we may just stick with HID mode as a deeper API integration would only be possible in Vision module.
Best way to get started is to download the API examples and at least play around with the Zebra example application to give you an idea of the capabilities before you try to build anything in Ignition.