To complete my digitization project I require the use of technology to scan materials and transfer scans. In this post, I will describe the app and equipment selection process I took to determine which technology to employ in the completion of my project.
I began the selection process with the desire to minimize costs and utilize equipment already in my possession. Equipment In My Possession
In light of the desire stated above, I determined there were two main courses of action available:
Since I already possessed knowledge of my camera, I decided to research iOS apps in order to obtain sufficient information to be able to make an informed decision on which would be the best course of action. In order to ease the research and selection process I came up with the following four requirements and desires:
Next I performed some basic searches for document scanning apps in the iTunes store. While doing so it quickly became apparent that there existed many apps that could meet my needs. This led to my determination not to use my camera, as doing so would needlessly increase my workload. It is not possible to email or upload scans directly from my camera (files must be transferred via SD card). There is no simple method for creating specific folders of images on my camera. Couple the previous deficiencies together and I have a recipe for time consumption. Every batch of scans I created would have to be transferred before starting another in order to ensure scans within a batch maintained a useful order. With my camera dropped out of the running I focused on researching apps that could meet my needs. A Google search brought up a recent review article by Allyson Kazmucha titled ‘Best document scanner apps for iPhone: Scanner Pro, TinyScan, PaperBox, and more!’ In this article, Kazmucha reviews five of the top document scanning apps available in the iTunes app store. These apps with a short bullet list of benefits summed up from Kazmucha’s article can be found below. Scanner Pro
InstaPDF
TinyScan Pro
SharpScan Pro + OCR
PaperBox
After reading Kazmucha’s article, I performed further research on each app and determined all five met my four requirements. With five stellar apps to choose from I decided to discontinue my search for additional apps. Next, I needed to figure out a way to further reduce my selection. As I wished to minimize costs the next step was to eliminate those apps that cost money. This led me to eliminate Scanner Pro, TinyScan Pro, and SharpScan Pro + OCR. With only InstaPDF and PaperBox left, I downloaded and tested both apps to see which one would be best for my project. During testing I determined that InstaPDF was superior to PaperBox. InstaPDF has a minimalist user interface with virtually no features likely to be unused during my project. InstaPDF provides an intuitive method of organizing files (e.g. users can alter scan order with a side swipe and simply click ‘Add Page’ to add a new scan to a batch). Both InstaPDF and Paperbox produce scans of equivalent quality. InstaPDF provides a superior method of transferring files by automatically syncing with a free Mac app. In addition, I determined the OCR capability of PaperBox was not essential to the successful completion of my project. Even with this being the case I performed a quick Google search and was able to determine that if I wished to have this feature in the future it would not be terribly difficult to locate and utilize PDF-OCR conversion applications. As a result of a perfect fit with my project needs and an intuitive fit with my own desires, InstaPDF will be the app employed for my digitization project. Now that I have selected the technology, I am prepared to start the next stage of my project (i.e. the development of an organization strategy). -------------------- Works Cited Kazmucha, A. (2014, May 21). Best document scanner apps for iPhone: Scanner Pro, TinyScan, PaperBox, and more!. iMore. Retrieved from http://www.imore.com/best-document-scanner-apps-iphone-scanner-pro-tinyscan-paperbox-more
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In this post, I wish to introduce and discuss a personal project I intend to complete over the coming months. This project involves the digitization, organization, and presentation of academic works, notes, and materials I produced and collected during my last year at Steinbach Regional Secondary School, my Bachelor of Arts at the University of Manitoba, and my Masters of Library and Information Studies at the University of Alberta. Over the course of my educational path I have accrued thousands of papers. While it is unlikely I will need to consult every paper again, I wish to keep a record for future reference. My yearning to digitize the materials described above stems from my desire to minimize my physical footprint; an increasingly important desire in my life and a desire that has become increasingly difficult to practice as the amount of stuff I own decreases (i.e. I have already grasped the low-hanging fruit). Some other motivations for taking on the above project include a desire to practice developing a custom digitization plan, provide easy access to materials should I ever need them in the future, and blog about something of potential relevance to other information professionals.
For this project I intend to periodically blog about my progress and major steps. The major steps are as follows:
While going for a bike ride around Steinbach, Manitoba on what felt like the hottest day of the year so far (May 23, 2014), I conceived of the basic skeleton for a blog. I have been contemplating starting a blog for some time now, but have not started one yet as I was unsure if I could blog anything of interest or if I had the motivation to regularly write entries. In addition, I was unsure whether I would be ok with writing entries that were not on the same level of language and grammar as expected in essays I completed in University. This fear went away when I simply decided it would not matter so much to have exceptional grammar and diction. The important thing is simply to write. Now that I have finished my Master’s in Library and Information Studies, do not see more university in my near future, and have not yet acquired employment, I have no outlet for writing demanded of me yet I desire to write. The writing bug has bitten me and the symptom of needing to write is eliminating my fear of failure. Why not simply write, post, and see where everything goes? Another reason I feel the time is ripe to start a blog is I have been practicing yoga on an increasingly regular basis and as a result I find myself reflecting more about everything. This has led to a desire to write down my thoughts so I can remember and think about them further.
Below is a list of topics I wish to cover in my blog (Note: I wish to develop this blog organically, so it is likely I will add and subtract topics from this list as circumstances demand and desires change). At the current time my primary desire is to blog on topics involving personal development. I hope to produce a new post every time I do something that involves the topics below or something else of equivalent interest. I imagine this will result in a new post weekly or bi-weekly. We’ll see how close I come to meeting this goal. It is likely I will post both summary posts discussing my advancement involving a bunch of topics and specific posts focusing on one activity, project, or thought. I hope blogging helps me get to know myself better and improve my desire and ability to keep myself accountable to my goals.
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