Method for printing data on an information carrier and hand-held printer for this purpose

The invention relates to a method for printing data on an information carrier by means of a hand-held printer (1, 33) which has a thermal printing plate (8, 29), a computing and control unit (19), and an input unit (5). The hand-held printer (1, 33) is placed by hand with its thermal printing plate (8, 29) on a printable surface of the information carrier and a relative movement is carried out between the hand-held printer (1, 33) and the information carrier in such a way that the thermal printing plate (8, 29) engages with sliding friction on the information carrier, but can be removed from the information carrier at any time by lifting the hand-held printer (1, 33), during which engagement time the data are printed onto the information carrier by direct thermal printing or thermal transfer printing. The hand-held printer is distinguished by the fact that it no longer has an integrated information carrier, and that it can be inserted in a stationary receiving unit (20) which has an integrated information carrier (23) which is moved by means of a feed device (28) of the receiving unit (20).