NCSU Libraries Focus Online

Volume 21 number 1 - Fall 2000

Bys Keith Morgan, Digital Library Initiatives

The NCSU Libraries' Learning and Research Center for the Digital Age (LRCDA) reached another milestone in summer 2000 with the opening of a Scanning Lab on the second floor, East Wing, of the D. H. Hill Library. The Scanning Lab joins the LRCDA services of the Scholarly Communication Center, Learning Technology Service, Information Technologies Teaching Center, Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning, Usability Research Laboratory, and the Digital Library Initiatives Department.

The lab is the first phase of a service whereby library staff enable users to create and develop digital instructional and research materials for university-related use. Presently, the lab contains four workstations with a variety of scanners, image-processing software, and data-storage equipment. Each of the two Macintosh computers has a high-resolution flatbed scanner. A Polaroid slide scanner is also available. Adobe PhotoShop is used for image manipulation. A Dell workstation deploys a high-speed Canon document scanner with Adobe software for creating files in the popular .pdf format, as well as TextBridge Professional optical-character-recognition software. A second Dell workstation connects to a microform scanner that will digitize microfilm and microfiche files.

The Scanning Lab has full network access, and all computers are equipped with either Zip or Jaz disk storage. Lab users have access to CD-R drives to copy images to CD-ROM discs. A small collection of books on scanning and digital-image manipulation is available for consultation.

During the first months of operation, lab staff assisted faculty with scanning images for new online courses, publication requirements, and book reviews. Students have used the lab to scan slides for dissertation research, add images to presentations, and create electronic copies of lecture notes. Library staff have scanned materials from Special Collections and Archives for inclusion on multimedia presentations and for digital-collection building.

The lab's second phase, anticipated in fiscal year 2001-2002, will offer expanded services and specialized workstations for the creation of digital images and multimedia. When second-floor renovations to the East Wing are completed, the library will open phase two of the lab, which will more than triple the number of scanners and workstations.

For more information on the Scanning Lab, visit the Web page at URL http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/ads/dml/. It contains a list of hardware and software available in the lab and recommended Web sites for finding more information on scanning and digital image management. A larger list of scanning information and resources is also available, including Digital Media and New Media centers, scanner manufacturers, and digital photography sites. Queries about the Scanning Lab should be directed to Keith Morgan by calling (919) 515-4221 or sending an electronic mail message to keith_morgan@ncsu.edu.