Scanning & Digitising for Museums, Libraries and Record Offices
Digitising & CD Production for Organisations Care of old documents	Old books, registers, documents and manuscripts, etc. can be scanned and digitised, and the images supplied to you on CD. In certain circumstances it may be possible to digitise collections of material free of charge for Museums, Libraries and Record Offices, Council Cemetery Departments, etc. We don't claim that digital data is an archival quality medium. It isn't. As we all know, paper is a much better medium for archiving, and microfilm a close alternative. (The digital scanned data that we produce can be processed into microfilm easily though). However, where digital data does score admirably is: It enables researchers to find and view documents very quickly indeed. Original books and documents need not be handled, and that alone helps to preserve them. Prints can be made direct from the CD. Unlike microfilm, the image is extremely high quality, and as it is digital data, it can be reproduced any number of times without any loss of image quality. (The digital images can also be transferred to film for archiving if you wish). Images can be sent to other libraries as digital data in seconds. Therefore any other library can request copies of individual documents, or even a single page of a book from your collection. Until your collection is digitised (or archived copies made) then they are especially vulnerable. Especially so with unique documents and registers which are irreplaceable. With digital data, many copies can be made. The more copies there are - the safer the information is at least. It's a great weight off your shoulders.
	This scanning and digitising service is intended to enable organisations such as Libraries, Museums, Record and Archive Offices, and Cemetery Departments to have copies of the information on CD. Archive CD Books can scan and digitise the documents and books for free under certain circumstances, and we would also supply you with free copies of the data on CD. Come to that, if it is an old book that is being scanned, and it is in a sorry state, then we can often offer pay for it to be professionally renovated. How can we do that? Simple. It is because of the way that the Archive CD Books Project works. The people who want access to the information in these old books and documents world-wide are the genealogists and historians. They can't normally get access to them, and they would like to be able to. So we distribute the books and documents on CD. And make a charge of just £8.50 per CD. Those people are fully aware that a portion of that cost goes towards the expenses involved in scanning and CD production, (and book renovation if need be), and that is what covers the costs. You may even have copies of the finished CDs to sell to visitors. It is simple, and it works. That is why we are sometimes able to offer free scanning and digitising of the old books and documents in your collection. Everyone wins, and no-one loses. The story doesn't end there either. If Archive CD Books purchases old books from book dealers, (and we do that very often), then we give them away to a good home. Usually the Local Studies Library, Museum or Record Office for the county or district where they belong. You get them for nothing, no matter how much they cost.		We will pay for books to be renovated. Yes - these three pictures are of the same book! One of our huge collection of CDs
	How good are the scanned images? Very good indeed. Much better than a conventional microfilm image. How gentle is the scanning process with these old books and documents? Where this scanner/camera really comes into its own. It is specifically designed for the task. The scanner is especially gentle with old documents. Unlike a conventional scanner, the book or sheet does not need to be laid down flat on its face, and handled each time a new page scan is made. The book sits in its normal reading position, and the pages are turned one at a time, just as you would when reading a book. It is a non-contact process. We can even scan documents such as wills which are held together with a seal, without causing any damage whatsoever. As long as the front page can be lifted to 90 degrees (or less) to get it out of the way, then the second page can be scanned perfectly. Unlike microfilming, even the wax seal can be scanned in detail. Maps and plans up to A2 size can be scanned in one go. Larger than that, and they need to be scanned as two or more separate images. So how gentle really is it? One day, just by chance, a butterfly landed on the page of a book as it was being scanned. The image of it was captured just by chance! Even the light didn't alarm it. And the butterfly flew away totally unharmed afterwards. That's how gentle the process is to old books and documents. That just about says it all. Also see: Scanning Techniques By nature, each task is different, therefore please phone and ask to speak with Rod Neep to discuss your requirements.		Maps up to A2 size The Bookeye® Scanner Sorry it isn't in colour. We were scanning in grey scale at the time.
	Digitising & CD Production for Organisations
	[ Home Page ] [ Top of this page ] Digitise-it.com Ltd 5 Commercial Street,  Cinderford, Gloucestershire GL14 2RP England Phone: +44 (0)1594 829879 Fax : +44 (0) 1594 827864 E-mail : sales@digitise-it.com