[bookshare-discuss] Re: scanner
- From: "Peter Scialli" <peter.s@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <bookshare-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 07 Mar 2005 13:16:37 -0500
Judy,
I didn't realize that the Fujitsu didn't have Mac support. Sometimes,
they'll package the samed device with the Mac software and give it a
slightly different model number. I wonder if that could be the case here.
I'm not all that familiar with the current crop of flatbed scanners, but the
Epson 3170 is enjoying a good reputation at just over $100. I hope this
helps.
Peter M. Scialli, Ph.D.
Associate, Technical Projects
The Benetech Initiative
WWW.Bookshare.org
----- Original Message -----
From: "Judy s." <mjstouff@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: <bookshare-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Sunday, March 06, 2005 2:05 PM
Subject: [bookshare-discuss] Re: scanner
> Thanks, Peter! Budgetwise, I guess I hadn't decided yet - it depends on
> the capabilities of the scanner. I was thinking in the $200-$300 range
> originially, but I don't think there is anything that can scan duplex
> under $600. So I guess maybe I'm looking at two categories - what can I
> get for under $300 with an autofeed, and what can I get for under maybe
> $800 with duplex ability.
>
> The Fujitsu looks great, but I think it only works in the windows
> environment from what I read after reading your email. Hmmm. I hadn't
> realized that the mac world seems to have a real limited number of
> scanners available to it.
>
> On the Fujitsu, I read that it produces a PDF file automatically. Can you
> tell me what type of PDF? Is it a PDF image file, or does it immediately
> try to turn it into an editable text and images PDF?
>
> Has anyone used the mac version of FineReader? It looks like its last
> update was in 2003, so it's a couple of years behind the windows version.
> Or has anyone used the mac version of OmniPage?
>
> Thanks for the idea about getting a book rebound by Kinkos. I'll check
> into that!
>
> Judy
> mjstouff@xxxxxxxxxx
>
>> Hi Judy,Knowing what your budget is for a scanner would help in
>> suggesting
>> one. At Bookshare, there is a high speed, multi-thousand dollar machine
>> which can scan things very fasst. I personally have two scanners, one of
>> these is a sheet scanner. I also cut the spines off the books. At least
>> most of the time. My sheet scanner is a Fujitsu 5150. It has some
>> letters
>> before the model number but I can't recall them. It is duplex so does
>> both
>> sides of the page at once. It has a range of resolution settings up to,
>> I
>> think 600 dpi which is too much for most OCR jobs anyway. It does about
>> 15
>> pages per minute, so about 30 sides. I use Kurzweil to do the
>> recognition,
>> but it comes with software which may work just fine. I think Fine Reader
>> is
>> considered to be the best or among the best OCR products available
>> commercially though. The scanner may not appeal to some at first glance
>> because it is not a standard TWAIN scanner. It does plug into a USB
>> port,
>> but uses its own proprietary interface. So Kurzweil, for example,
>> doesn't
>> see it directly. Instead, it produces a high quality PDF file and when
>> done, auto launches Kurzweil for me. All of that is easy to set up and
>> works nicely. The cost was around $400.
>> By the way, there are some options for reconstructing chopped books.
>> Kinko, for example, will bind a chopped book with tape for a couple of
>> bucks.
>> Marissa who is in charge of the scanningoperation at Bookshare actually
>> does get the books rebound and then donated. Overseas, I think, but I'm
>> not
>> sure. Previously, Andrea at Bookshare, now moved onto grad. school would
>> donate the books to a prison literacy program. Hope this helps.
>>
>> Peter
>
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