How to Solve This Problem

[Pressman]

I need ideas and now is the time to work on this project. How to copy, catalog and store information. Looking at the attached picture shows the scope of the problem.
4 shelves, 6 feet long, 24 feet total of e-mail correspondence that needs to be cataloged and put into a quickly searchable format.

All of these binders are a gold mine of reloading tool history and information. The binders are broken down by tool brand and by the sender.

The number of pages is in the thousands, as each binder is about 3 inches thick. I am looking at scanning them one page at a time on my little Canon scanner. Hoping it lives through a single binder.

Once scanned as a PDF the files could be combined into a more accessible format.

Does anyone have a better solution?

Ken

259132

[PB234]

Find somewhere that has higher end office equipment that can take a pile of pages and quickly scan them. One at a time scanning might take forever.

[Bo1]

It could be a bit pricey, but there are office supply stores that will scan them to digital media in a short amount of time. Once on digital media as PDF's, you can make multiple copies and store them in different areas for security purposes.

[Rcmaveric]

I use nested folders to catalogue digital media. It's going to take some time digitizing and organizing it all. Also, naming format of the files will help organize it all.

I have a program that uses nested folders for note taking and can view files. So while I am reloading I can type my notes and ready reference files for information.

For instance:
- Lifes Work Folder
- Shotgun sub folder
-General files on subject
-Buck sub sub folder
-Slug sub sub folder
-Metalic subfolder
-J words
- Cast
- 260 Rem
- 270 Win
- Paper patch
- Lubes

You get the idea. Also, from now on. Use the print to PDF functionality of the computer. Thata how I have amassed my archives. You could add an author category after subject.

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[Bent Ramrod]

I’ve gone to Office Max and Staples with a Thumb Drive and had a pile of pages scanned While-U-Wait.

Don’t know much about computers, but if you have the original emails on your hard drives, there should be some kind of App that brings them up by topic, author, etc, using keywords.

You have my sympathy, Ken. Ever since I moved here and organized my library on a rational, logical basis, I haven’t been able to find anything without a ton of searching and some luck.

[Dapaki]

Scanning to a searchable database was my sole job for a year at a manufacturing company as an Application Engineer in the late 1990's. I used a high speed scanner using Adobe OCR searchable database, there is now a free application that allows you to use a cell phone to scan docs using your camera, the app is free but i am sure the database costs something.

Putting this in the Cloud would allow for a transportable database and will outlive you in the case you wish to pass it on to someone else in the future.

[Pressman]

Dapaki you are on to it. I have an idea to scan each binder into a single big PDF. I can make it available on line or offline easily.
My major concern is scanner life cycle. I don't want to burn up three or four units getting through this, neither do I wish to invest in a 3/4000 dollar machine.
This not so expensive machine looks capable and has a legal size bed that I really need. I will call Canon and talk to the sales people before placing an order. I have had excellent service from them in the past.

https://www.usa.canon.com/internet/portal/us/home/products/details/scanners/document-scanner/imageformula-dr-f120

[gwpercle]

Check with Cannon about renting a "good" scanner to do the job with .
We had a large project and the company we did our copier/office/blue print machine business with let us rent one for a month to do the work with , I don't remember the rental cost being that expensive , it was a refurbished used machine ... we liked the machine so much we wound up buying it .
Gary

[.45Cole]

I'd say take it to a copy shop and have them scan to PDF and then take it on a flash drive. See what it will cost to have them break it down by chapter with titles (they can organize it so each sheet is it's own page in a binder labeled PDF). Post the project to split up the and label chapters in the binders otherwise on freelancer and have somebody split things up as you wish. The large copy machines can scan an entire binder in a couple minutes and it won't cost but $20.

[djryan13]

Reminds of my older friend who wanted to scan his pictures one by one...

He died part way through that project. Scanner he talked me into still sits in a box.

Stupid question but can you outsource that work? Maybe kinkos?

[kerplode]

Wow...That's a stack of papers!

So, yeah...This stuff was likely already searchable when it was emails...Like before you printed it all out.

Anyway, now the best bet might be to see if there is a local company you could contract to scan and catalog it all for you. Probably cheaper than buying a proper scanner and software, and much less daunting than doing it as a DIY project...

[Pressman]

Good advise, I think I'll check with my favorite print shop before I hit send with an order to Canon.

[Minerat]

Look at HP My printer suppliers suggested it.

https://store.hp.com/us/en/pdp/hp-scanjet-pro-2000-s1-sheet-feed-scanner

It can handle legal size too. They make faster ones just cost more.

[Mal Paso]

My Brother laser/scanner has a page feeder, think it was $130. Lots of self feeding now, even 2 sides. I don't think you want to haul that paper to get it scanned.

[Minerat]

Now that Mal Paso mentions it, at home I have a Brother DCP L2550DW combo, scanner, printer, FAX and copier that is wireless. That was close in price to his and it is fast at scanning. It is only BW print but uses toner not ink, but does color scans. 8.5x14 scans too with doc feed. I am very pleased with it.

[Conditor22]

+1 on a printer with a scanner that has a document feeder

[Traffer]

I got an old HP Office Jet Pro 8710 from a friend who upgraded. It has a 50 page document feeder and scans. So I can put 50 pages in, scan them to the computer, then put 50 more in.
This is an older machine that is worth maybe $50. I am sure there are lots of Multi-function printers out there for real cheap or free that will do A LOT better than scanning on a flat bed one page at a time. Printers often stop printing for ink problems while the rest of the functions still work (like scanning) so you shouldn't have any problem getting one for free or cheap.

[jonp]

We use an app at my last place of work on our phones that lets you take a picture and send the document that way to a computer database. All done on our phones in the truck. Scanned all Bills of Lading like that. Instead of talking a picture and sending it to someone, it took the picture and when you took 8 or 10 you sent it direct to a file. It was how we got paid.

[Traffer]

Scanning to a searchable database was my sole job for a year at a manufacturing company as an Application Engineer in the late 1990's. I used a high speed scanner using Adobe OCR searchable database, there is now a free application that allows you to use a cell phone to scan docs using your camera, the app is free but i am sure the database costs something.

Putting this in the Cloud would allow for a transportable database and will outlive you in the case you wish to pass it on to someone else in the future.

There are lot's of OCR programs out there. Many are free. Some have more of a hard time with formatting of the document. That's why (I think) people use that PDF program that basically creates a picture of the page. You gotta beware of those, Can't edit or isolate words. Can be a pain in the long run. But just getting the data onto a computer shouldn't be that hard.

[metricmonkeywrench]

We had a great aunt (a teacher)that typed up a bit of family history it had hand written notes and hand type corrections. Over time it had become quite fragile. My Dad took it to a professional print shop but the job was to small for them, but the owner had a collage student that volunteered to do it after hours on the shops pro equipment for a reasonable price. She did both a PDF and a OCR conversion. OCR is a bit tricky as it types out what it thinks it sees and can often garble words and symbols. She went the extra mile to proof read the conversion and returned any text to the original state.

[Newboy]

About twenty years ago, I had a stack of manuals and notes, maybe a fourth of what you have. I took it to the copy place and they did their magic for $30.



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[Pressman]

After some thought I decided against having a shop scan them. Many, many of the pages were stapled together before punching for the binder. Thus, there is a lot of hand work.
I called Canon late yesterday and ordered the model referenced in the link above. It's a scanner only, long bed with document feeder. Importantly Canon gives a live cycle expectancy with these machines of 800 pages per day.
Adobe Acrobat has a decent OCR feature to convert type into text. As these are all emails it should work OK, most of the time.
I scanned one of the red folders this morning with my little flatbed, it took an hour for about 100 pages. That gives a file size of 47 MB. Good to know so I can be looking at a larger hard drive to store everything on.

[Minerat]

Good choice, I use Adobe OCR a lot and it will sometimes gets the words wrong if the type being scanned is messed up. But it is good for about 95% of the cases. I use one of those 1 tetra byte portable UBS disks as a backup drive or to carry very large acad drawing files from office to a clients office. They are not very expensive and very handy.

[blackthorn]

How do you san pages from books without busting the spine of the book, or getting a copy that looks like one edge has been stretched and pulled out of line??

[Scrounge]

I use an Epson WorkForce WF-7620 All-in-One printer/scanner/fax. It has an automatic document feeder that will feed up to about 35 pages of 20# bond paper, and scan both sides of each page. It will also scan 11x17 Ledger size paper, or A3 paper. You can put a memory card or USB drive in it, and scan to that, so it doesn't even need to be hooked up to a computer. I'm sure there are a lot of other company's machines out there that will do as well.

[Pressman]

How do you san pages from books without busting the spine of the book, or getting a copy that looks like one edge has been stretched and pulled out of line??

Very good question and the answer is a bit expensive. There are scanners that have software to flatten the image, these are made especially for books, they work mostly OK.

Or you have to fabricate a "V" device to place the book in, hold the pages open and photograph them.

[Pressman]

Minerat, that is where I was going, In think this project is going to fill a terabyte disk easily. It's also going to create a need for secure file back-up that I need to think about.

[Handloader109]

terabyte is nothing any more. go get a 2 or 3tb external drive and save to it. And I've a fairly new hp multi printer that works well.

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[blackthorn]

Thanks.

[flyingmonkey35]

Do you have a neighbor that has some teenagers that want to earn some easy cash? During this slow down?

My daughter has done somthing similar for a few people "mainly old slides and negatives"

She was wanting to buy a gadget so she did the work.






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[fn1889m]

I have a business that generates a lot of paperwork which I have to save. I started scanning everything 8 years ago. A $350 dedicated scanner, in my network, seldom jams. I am almost paperless (in storage). Everything gets scanned. The automatic page feeder is essential. Also, at some point I started producing everything on 8.5×11.0 paper. That way, everything fits into the page feeder without fuss.

There are scanner programs which will let you search for a specific words. It takes more bandwidth and data storage to do so, but it’s not unusual. I don’t bother with it, but it works. You have to scan the material with that purpose from the beginning.

I have as much reloading information on my iPhone as in book form, for the 5 calibers which I reload.


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[Pressman]

Flying Monkey you have an idea and I have just that sort of neighbor. I will have to explore that option.

[David2011]

Glad you mentioned backup. On a project of that magnitude I would store copies on the computer plus two separate USB hard drives. After 25 years in IT, most of it for a huge corporation, I would only use Western Digital or Seagate. If the scanner you chose doesn’t work out, I highly recommend the Fujitsu, especially the “Fi” series. They’re built for all day every day use and scan 27 pages/minute with a 50 page paper feeder.