The Digitization Handbook provides detailed instructions on the digitization of approved University records. The Handbook helps meet requirements defined in the "Electronic Records as Documentary Evidence" standard published by the Canadian General Standards Board (CAN/CGSB-72.34-2017). See the Records Management website for more information about the University Records Management program. |
Digitization is the process of creating digital representations of analog media. Libraries staff use specialized equipment to carry out the analog-to-digital conversion of documents, books, photographs, recordings, and other formats. Staff also work with approved vendors to digitize audiovisual material. This work produces digital master copies of these resources for long-term digital preservation. Staff also use software to create access copies
The University Archives maintains a small collection of technical manuals and other resources to support digitization training activities, project planning, and self-directed learning.
The following principles guide digitization activities:
Note: These principles have been adapted from the Principles and Specifications of the Library of Congress’ Preservation Digital Reformatting Program: http://www.loc.gov/preservation/about/prd/presdig/presprinciple.html.
Digitization projects require clearly established technical specifications:
Other technical specifications for digital images include settings for brightness, contrast, and saturation.
Certain material require further technical specifications. For example:
The process of creating access copies involves image compression. There are several points during the workflow where compression settings can be configured:
Compression methods | Description | When is the Option Available | Further reading |
---|---|---|---|
TIFF to JPEG conversion | Batch convert master TIFF files to JPEGs. Image reduction depends on "Resize to fit" and "JPEG quality" settings. Default is normally JPEG quality of 12 (i.e., maximum quality) and no resizing. | During batch conversion from TIFF to JPEG | |
"Resize to fit" | Batch resize images to a standard width or height. This reduces the overall size (i.e., dimensions) of the image. Can be applied during or after TIFF to JPEG conversion. | During batch conversion from TIFF to JPEG | |
JPEG quality scale | Adobe Photoshop uses a JPEG quality scale of 0-12. Can be applied during or after TIFF to JPEG conversion. | During batch conversion from TIFF to JPEG | An analysis of Lightroom JPEG quality export settings (Jeffrey Friedl's blog) |
Save small, medium, large PDF | Adobe Acrobat Pro provides the option to save PDFs as small, medium, or large files. This option has no perceptible impact on image quality or file size. | Compile a PDF from multiple files | |
Downsample during OCR | Downsampling reduces the number of pixels in an image but does not reduce the overall size (i.e, dimensions) of the image. Adobe Acrobat Pro provides the option to downsample to 600 dpi or 300 dpi when recognizing text in a PDF. | Recognize text in a PDF |
Access copies are disseminated via discovery platforms and also backed up on the Libraries' storage server. Intermediary JPEGs used to produce PDF/A files do not need to be preserved.
Use the following table to determine the appropriate "access copy" format and identify the necessary tools and instructions:
Analog Format | Digital access copy format | Tools | Instructions |
---|---|---|---|
Text | PDF/A scanned with OCR software | Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Bridge, Adobe Acrobat Pro, ABBYY FineReader | 2.3 - Create access copy PDF/A files |
Graphic material | JPEG | Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Bridge | 4.3 - Create access copy JPEGs |
Herbarium specimen | JPEG | Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Bridge | 16.2 - Create digital "master files" and access copy JPEGs of herbarium specimens |
Moving images | MPEG-4 | Sony Vegas | Coming soon. |
Sound recordings | mp3 | Audacity or Sony Sound Forge Pro | Coming soon. |
Quality control is extremely important during the process of creating digital masters, because:
See Appendix A for further guidance on quality control.