A recent posting for free mags got me thinking about my own collection. Any of you computer freaks out there have any tips on scanning and storing that info. Might be somethin to do this winter when I can’t find anything better.
This subject came up shortly after I joined the forum fifteen months ago and then resurfaced a month or so ago; I can’t give you any advice on this issue but it is my intention to check into scanning my very large collection of MRs and RMCs as well as others onto CDs. I intend to do some extensive scratchbuilding of structures for my new/next layout and I just can’t bear to dispose of these things because of their reference value.
my feelings exactly, ideally I’d set it up with an index.
This is what I do for anything I scan:
I cut the pages out with a steel-edges ruler and razor blade. Trying to set a magazine on the scanner is a major hassle.
Then I scan at 300dpi and save as jpeg.
Then I give the files names that refer to the issue - i.e. 2007-05 Would be may 2005. Then I give a description of the article, then save in directories that I name based on whatever scheme makes the most sense to me.
SBCA,thanks. I still hate to cut up he mags. Somebody might want em.[:)]
I have been scanning for about four years. When I get a new engine or any other model, I scan the instructions. I scan most anything when I know the instructions can be lost. When I get a new hard drive, I scan the label on the hard drive. I have maybe nearly 1gb of files. Not much but still growing.
I am using a Canon Lide 20 with a Linux (Linspire 5.1.427) operationg system. I use a Linux program called Kooka, yeah wierd name but it works so much better than windows. I use to use W98SE but it stopped recognizing the scanner. It even stopped recognizing a Plustec scanner. That was over three years ago.
By the way, I am not a geek. I entered geezerhood (66 years old now and retired) a few years ago. I jjust know, change is inevatible and struggle is an option.
I fold the magazine over to the page I want and press down on the scanner cover. I have scanned stuff with the cover up. It is a matter of learning a techinque that works for me. I would definitly use a flatbed scanner that lays on the desk. Sometimes you have to press down to get complete coverage of the page.
I also backup all data to a external firewire 80gb hard drive. I lost a hard drive over four years ago and will not go down that path again.
You will hear all kinds of things about copyrights. Deal with it as you care.
Yeah this is off topic but model railroaders should know we are in the digital age and make full use of it.
Cheers
Richard
I scan the entire magazine at 300 dpi and save it as a color, multipage Adobe pdf file named something like MRR-2007-06. Naming the file this way allows the computer to sort them. I use a Fujitsu SnapScan sheet feed scanner. I pull the staples and cut the magazine in half. The Fujitsu scanner has a special sheet that allows it to scan tabloid size (11x17) inserts in a single scan. I verify the accuracy and completeness of the scan. Double feeding pages and/or skew can be an issue. Once the scan is verified as being good, I discard the original. It takes about 10-15 minutes per 120 page magazine. MRR’s magazine index has a good, searchable index of articles. I use the MRR index instead of making my own duplicate index.
Thanks,
Who??? I found out some years ago that the only person interested in my (model railroad) magazines is me!!!
if shipping wasnt so costly id get old MR all the time. i love the pre 1960 mag the best, so much cool informations and plans and those vintage track plans and outside third rail in HO and those EL Moore structures and Wescott newfangled elctronics gizmo…oooohh!!! MR-gasm
I regularly scan articles I want to save for future reference. I use a Canon LIDE 50 flat bed scanner; just lay the open page on the scan bed, close the cover and tell the software to “save” you jpg. No need to cut the magazine apart.
I use a setting of 150dpi, mostly because the scan time is so much faster. Using 300 dpi gives only a marginally better image, but it takes a lot longer per page to scan at this higher resolution. Using a Scan Mode of “Color (Photo)” seems to work the best.
I create a file name that is the same as the article title and save the scanned pages in folders for track, scenery, DCC, building & structures, etc. The first page of each artcile I save as “1” and the subsequent pages as “2,” “3,” etc.
Over the years I have created quite a sizable library of articles that I “burn” to CD-RW disks. The library has gotten so sizable that I erase each disk to make room for the latest scans. The articles get saved in a directory on my computer and on the CDs. Bear in mind that these are copyrighted works so you can’t sell your disks to anyone else. These are for you personal use. Hope this helps.
Thanks guys, I was off line for a day,but I’m alright now,gasp, gasp. Sounds like some good ideas,and, yes, its for my own use. When I look at my stack of mags though, the task sems daunting. Part of the hobby of Model Railroading I guess.
Wow, sounds like a lot of work. I slice out the few articles I want to save, staple 'em, file 'em by date. As others have pointed out, the on-line index helps you find anything if you organize by date.
I downsized signfiicantly in my last move and being rid of the stacks and stacks of train mags (each one of which usually had only one or two articles I really wanted to save) was a big relief.