17.323 scanning specifications

From: Humanist Discussion Group (by way of Willard McCarty willard.mccarty@kcl.ac.uk)
Date: Wed Oct 22 2003 - 01:35:26 EDT

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                   Humanist Discussion Group, Vol. 17, No. 323.
           Centre for Computing in the Humanities, King's College London
                       www.kcl.ac.uk/humanities/cch/humanist/
                            www.princeton.edu/humanist/
                         Submit to: humanist@princeton.edu

             Date: Wed, 22 Oct 2003 06:21:22 +0100
             From: François
             Subject: Re: 17.313 scanning specifications?

    Your very specific question raises a more general one regarding the
    _purpose_ of an image archive. It reminded me of a lecture given by
    Prof Manfred Thaller at Queen Mary (University of London) some time ago,
    in the mid 1990's. In it, he showed us two slides, apparently identical,
    of a victim of the holocaust. He then said that one was a contemporary
    photograph (yes, the Nazis actually photographed people before murdering
    them!) and the other was a digitized image of it. He went on to say that
    if you wanted to know what the person looked like, either image would
    do. However, with the original, he could zoom in on to a button of the
    uniform and see the manufacturer's name stamped on it, while the detail
    was completely lost in the second image. If you needed the picture as
    evidence for a prosecution of the uniform manufacturer on war crime
    charges, only the original would do. An extreme example...

    François Crompton-Roberts

    ----- Original Message -----

    Hi all,

    I am involved in writing a research grant at the moment. The project
    involves digitising various photographic images and other artefacts for
    the
    development of an archive. Could those with interests in this area be
    able
    to let me know:

    a) minimum scan specifications (resolutions, etc) that you would
    recommend?
    b) preferred hardware?

    While potentially funded this is a project at the 'domestic' end of the
    computing humanities paradigm and so we are not looking for equipment
    that
    will be needed to digitise an existing archive. Primary delivery will be
    only via computer screen.

    much thanks
    Adrian Miles



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