SCANNING

What is it? What does it do? Do I need to do it? What equipment do I need? How do I do it?

What is it?

Scanning means making a digital recording of a piece of paper.

Example 1: A fax machine scans a document into digital format and sends the digital data to another fax machine to be decoded back into a document. For the technically detailed person, a fax machine must also convert the digital signal into an analog signal to send over a phone line and then the receive fax must convert the analog back to digital.

Example 2: A copy machine scans a document for the purpose of making a copy. We just never thought of these processes as scanning.

The difference with what we now refer to as scanning is the output. The next section will discuss what the output is all about.

What does it do?

A scanner provides output in the form of a computer file. Here is a list of possible uses:

1. Making copies of documents for records, inventory, archiving. These copies can be stored on CD's for a very condensed permanent record in place of paper archives.

2. If you do not have a fax machine, you can scan a document and send a fax from your computer.

3. Scanning photographs is the most common use for scanners today. You can take all of your old album pictures, slides and negatives and scan them into the computer. Once in the computer, you can print copies, make a slide show, store hundreds of photos on one CD. You can modify old photos to remove scratches and recolorize.

You can make a CD containing a slide show of selected photos and send copies to other family members.

4. Enlarging publications for vision impaired. You can do this with a copy machine also, but scanning into the computer gives you more options of layout.

Do I need to do it?

That depends on your individual needs. When was the last time you got out the slide projector and looked at your old photos? How often do you look at your photo albums?

Do you ever need to fax a document? Would you like to store copies of all your important documents in a safe place?

If any of these scenarios fit you, then scanning might be the answer.

What equipment do I need?

There are a number of considerations in choosing a scanner.

Flatbeds are a little larger footprint, but allow scanning pages of a book, odd shaped papers or varying thickness from paper thin to very thick.
Page feed (Like a fax machine) These will only scan a single piece of paper of limited thickness and size. They do allow scanning longer documents like a legal size.
All in one. These devices may include a scanner, printer, copier and fax. They save space instead of having 4 separate devices. They are available in both page feed and flatbed. My experience with them is that they grab a lot of resources and control of Windows. If you can afford the space for separate devices, that is a better choice in my opinion.
Color vs. B/W. Our world is changing to a color world. There are few reasons to settle for a B/W unit today. Some businesses need only B/W and a laser type works just fine and keeps the cost of printing low.
Parallel/SCSI/USB. The type of connection is a consideration. Scanners are available in all 3 connection types. Parallel is the slowest. SCSI is fast but requires some special considerations outside the scope of this discussion. Anyone considering a new scanner should definitely consider USB connection.

USB is very fast and easiest of all to set up. Canon makes a series of scanners that are very small called Canoscan. They have no power cord. The unit is powered by the USB connection, which means only one cord. Maybe we will soon see wireless, but I haven't seen any as of this writing. Look for Bluetooth devices to hit the market in the near future.

If you want to review the canon line of scanners, click here. I have the N1220U that is replaced by the N1240U that I paid $129 at Costco. I saw one of the 676 models at Walmart or KMart for $69. The difference is resolution to be discussed later. 2006. The models have changed but the principles still hold.

The model of scanner you choose is not really important. I have owned Umax, HP and Canon and worked with great numbers of them and other brands with my clients and I have nothing negative to say about any brand or model. There may be a compatibility issue with your brand of computer or with the XP operating system, so check compatibility first.

Choosing a model involves size, resolution, cost and connection. You can buy scanners for under $50 today, but you may want to spend a little more for better resolution. See the later discussion on this subject.

This leaves the question - How do I do it? We will continue this on Page 2.