Regarding Les Citrome's article, I thought I should let E-Sylum readers know about a reasonably new scanner that has been released by Fujitsu that allows for non-destructive scanning of many bound documents, the ScanSnap SV600 Contactless Scanner.

You can read more information about it here:Fujitsu ScanSnap SV600 Contactless Scanner(www.fujitsu.com/us/services/computing/peripherals/scanners/scansnap/scansnap-SV600.html)

There are a range of videos that demonstrate how it works:ScanSnap SV600(www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJ4exzkxXzg)

As you can see, the scanning takes just seconds. The software that accompanies the scanner straightens the curved scanned images so they are as required for reading, and also OCR's the scanned information, enabling text searches etc.

I've used it to scan sections from a number of books and journals relevant to my recent numismatic research, and can confirm that it works extremely well.

I'm presently liaising with several members of the Australian numismatic fraternity of how a number of these scanners, in the hands of volunteers around the country, might allow us to finally digitise the published numismatic literature in Australia. Ideally, that would then be added to a searchable, online database of some kind.

It remains a large project, however at least this new technology allows it at a price that is affordable to volunteer associations etc.

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:LES CITROME ON DIGITIZING A PROFESSIONAL LIBRARY(www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v17n29a14.html)