Interesting post the other day in a franchising forum regarding UPS Stores hating when customers just drop off packages for shipping, rather than shipping through the store itself. The stores make a mere one dollar fee for taping up and sending out an already stamped package, making some UPS Store owners unhappy to even do the task.
Contained within the post was a recommendation from the writer that these UPS Stores concentrate on added value services, such as document imaging, notary, and fax, rather than relying on shipping for all revenues.
This brings up a question for the document imaging customer, however:
Do you want your shipping person doing your document imaging?
This really depends on how detailed your job is. Not every document imaging or document scanning task is rocket science. Some just takes the right machinery, a scanner or two.
Some aspects of document imaging, though, are better done by a dedicated document imaging services company. These more complex jobs would include:
-- Integration with SharePoint
-- Document storage architecture
-- Enterprise Content Management consulting
While there is nothing wrong with doing small jobs at multi-service retail shops, specialization in document imaging is desirable for higher-end, bigger picture jobs.
Knowing the difference between the two is critical.
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Data Entry Jobs Disappear, Change Because of Document Imaging
Although it is great to see people employed, sometimes it's necessary for certain jobs to be lost, if progress is to be made. Resisting this process is counterproductive. We aren't training our sons and daughters horse and buggy drivers, now that cars are here.
Document imaging has been doing some of this pruning over the past years, and one of the main areas of streamlining has been among data entry jobs.
Here is an interesting article about how a financial need analysis organization reduced its demand for temporary data entry workers from 2,000 to 500.
FAIR, the organization described, had been employing data entry workers to manually copy numbers from one form to another. When FAIR implemented a document imaging solution, however, the data entry need was greatly reduced.
This is one area where document imaging and scanning services can produce tangible and immediate return on investment.
Interestingly, some companies have cleverly transitioned data entry from being a relatively no-brainer activity into more of an information and document management service.
Horse and buggy drivers learned cars, too. And so it goes...
Document imaging has been doing some of this pruning over the past years, and one of the main areas of streamlining has been among data entry jobs.
Here is an interesting article about how a financial need analysis organization reduced its demand for temporary data entry workers from 2,000 to 500.
FAIR, the organization described, had been employing data entry workers to manually copy numbers from one form to another. When FAIR implemented a document imaging solution, however, the data entry need was greatly reduced.
This is one area where document imaging and scanning services can produce tangible and immediate return on investment.
Interestingly, some companies have cleverly transitioned data entry from being a relatively no-brainer activity into more of an information and document management service.
Horse and buggy drivers learned cars, too. And so it goes...
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Step-by-Step Document Imaging: The Process of Change
For any organization, especially large corporations, change can be a real pain. This is definitely true of implementing new document imaging and enterprise content management systems.
To make this process less painful and more productive, management gurus have developed various 12-step style programs. None are more instructive, perhaps, than "Kotter's 8 Steps."
First outlined in John Kotter's groundbreaking book "The Heart of Change: How People Change Their Organizations," the 8 steps are as follows:
1. Create a sense of urgency
2. Form a powerful coalition
3. Create a vision for change
4. Communicate the vision
5. Remove obstacles
6. Create short-term wins
7. Build on the change
8. Anchor the change in corporate culture
Since the book came out, many commentators have written about this process and it is often included in business presentations.
It's a particularly interesting list to look at with respect to document imaging solutions because the document imaging sales pitch is an argument for change that sometimes lacks an answer to the question, "Why?"
Why should the corporation implement a new document imaging solutions? Why is the new better than the old? Why is change necessary?
These are valid concerns for both the corporation selling document imaging solutions and the corporation purchasing document imaging solutions.
If answers are not immediately and easily forthcoming, an evaluation of Kotter's 8 Steps may be in order. At the very least, the list can spark conversation and debate.
To make this process less painful and more productive, management gurus have developed various 12-step style programs. None are more instructive, perhaps, than "Kotter's 8 Steps."
First outlined in John Kotter's groundbreaking book "The Heart of Change: How People Change Their Organizations," the 8 steps are as follows:
1. Create a sense of urgency
2. Form a powerful coalition
3. Create a vision for change
4. Communicate the vision
5. Remove obstacles
6. Create short-term wins
7. Build on the change
8. Anchor the change in corporate culture
Since the book came out, many commentators have written about this process and it is often included in business presentations.
It's a particularly interesting list to look at with respect to document imaging solutions because the document imaging sales pitch is an argument for change that sometimes lacks an answer to the question, "Why?"
Why should the corporation implement a new document imaging solutions? Why is the new better than the old? Why is change necessary?
These are valid concerns for both the corporation selling document imaging solutions and the corporation purchasing document imaging solutions.
If answers are not immediately and easily forthcoming, an evaluation of Kotter's 8 Steps may be in order. At the very least, the list can spark conversation and debate.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Document Imaging For Small Biz: Platform-Dependent
If you are thinking about how document imaging may be able to help your corporation, which is not a massive corporation with unlimited resources to throw at Enterprise Content Management, think about watching this webinar from Gilbane Group.
Sponsored by KnowledgeLake, the discussion, though more than one year old, offers strong insight into the challenges faced by smaller companies that wish to take advantage of all that document imaging technologies have to offer.
The situation, then as now, is full of opportunity. Costs for document imaging technology products have dropped while capabilities have increased, a variation on Moore's Law. The missing piece seems to be, "What is the platform for building out these applications?"
Platforms are an extremely important development in any technology, because they enable linking and sharing at fundamental levels. Document imaging is no exception to this rule, and in fact may even be more dependent on platform than most technologies.
Gilbane Group analysts point to SharePoint as the obvious and indeed only option to serve as such a platform. And they cite some compelling numbers to back that up. For example, SharePoint is the fastest-selling product in Microsoft history.
As SharePoint garners more and more corporate users, it is moving towards becoming the standard platform for corporate document imaging as an entire market.
While this is not good news for Microsoft's competition, it is good news for small businesses that want to build document imaging solutions--because platforms reduce cost, and allow the buying and selling of "ready made" products that work, and work together, and are affordable.
Sponsored by KnowledgeLake, the discussion, though more than one year old, offers strong insight into the challenges faced by smaller companies that wish to take advantage of all that document imaging technologies have to offer.
The situation, then as now, is full of opportunity. Costs for document imaging technology products have dropped while capabilities have increased, a variation on Moore's Law. The missing piece seems to be, "What is the platform for building out these applications?"
Platforms are an extremely important development in any technology, because they enable linking and sharing at fundamental levels. Document imaging is no exception to this rule, and in fact may even be more dependent on platform than most technologies.
Gilbane Group analysts point to SharePoint as the obvious and indeed only option to serve as such a platform. And they cite some compelling numbers to back that up. For example, SharePoint is the fastest-selling product in Microsoft history.
As SharePoint garners more and more corporate users, it is moving towards becoming the standard platform for corporate document imaging as an entire market.
While this is not good news for Microsoft's competition, it is good news for small businesses that want to build document imaging solutions--because platforms reduce cost, and allow the buying and selling of "ready made" products that work, and work together, and are affordable.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Document Imaging Discounting -- Up to 40 Percent?
ChannelWeb came through with another interesting article based on its recent conference in Florida. Here is that article in full. It seeks to identify 10 burning questions in the print and document imaging industry.
Tech consultancy Gartner analysts led the conversation, and spotted opportunities for the document imaging industry, even in this rough economy.
Rolling through the 10 burning questions, though, I was struck by how totally uncertain the Gartner analysts (and, most likely, their audience) really were in terms of how many precious corporate dollars document imaging services can attract in today's economic environment.
Thus the big trend, as outlined in burning question #3:
Discounting.
Gartner VP of Research Ken Weilerstein stated that some document imaging vendors may be open to granting discounts of as much as 40 percent. That's right: 40 percent.
But how can a corporation obtain such discounts? One method is to use a vendor comparison service. Another method is to bundle other purchases together with document imaging products, and ask for a big break.
Either way, the bottom line is clear: discounting is a trend to watch for 2009.
Tech consultancy Gartner analysts led the conversation, and spotted opportunities for the document imaging industry, even in this rough economy.
Rolling through the 10 burning questions, though, I was struck by how totally uncertain the Gartner analysts (and, most likely, their audience) really were in terms of how many precious corporate dollars document imaging services can attract in today's economic environment.
Thus the big trend, as outlined in burning question #3:
Discounting.
Gartner VP of Research Ken Weilerstein stated that some document imaging vendors may be open to granting discounts of as much as 40 percent. That's right: 40 percent.
But how can a corporation obtain such discounts? One method is to use a vendor comparison service. Another method is to bundle other purchases together with document imaging products, and ask for a big break.
Either way, the bottom line is clear: discounting is a trend to watch for 2009.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Document Imaging Needs to Change (Documents, That Is)
Paper isn't all bad.
For example, with a piece of paper, you can change the document. You can manually cross out words, add new words--break out a bottle of White-Out, even.
Document imaging, as an information management mechanism and as an industry, must also develop tools to make documents changeable.
This process is underway but not perfected.
The most important tool as of now is Optical Character Recognition technology, or OCR, which we've blogged about previously. If you're interested in document imaging, you should be watching this technology like a hawk.
OCR changes things because it lets you change things. And people and organizations who use document imaging--laywers, hospitals, real estate brokers, etc.--often need to make changes to documents.
With OCR, an Adobe PDF document can be easily converted into a Microsoft Word document, so that the document can be amended after it's been scanned into digital form.
Here is a short explanation of how, generally, to turn a PDF into a Word doc.
Things are changing. Scanned documents need to be changeable, too, if document imaging is really going to challenge paper as the dominant medium for valuable information.
For example, with a piece of paper, you can change the document. You can manually cross out words, add new words--break out a bottle of White-Out, even.
Document imaging, as an information management mechanism and as an industry, must also develop tools to make documents changeable.
This process is underway but not perfected.
The most important tool as of now is Optical Character Recognition technology, or OCR, which we've blogged about previously. If you're interested in document imaging, you should be watching this technology like a hawk.
OCR changes things because it lets you change things. And people and organizations who use document imaging--laywers, hospitals, real estate brokers, etc.--often need to make changes to documents.
With OCR, an Adobe PDF document can be easily converted into a Microsoft Word document, so that the document can be amended after it's been scanned into digital form.
Here is a short explanation of how, generally, to turn a PDF into a Word doc.
Things are changing. Scanned documents need to be changeable, too, if document imaging is really going to challenge paper as the dominant medium for valuable information.
Document Imaging Companies Still Using CDs: Why?
The compact disc may be going the way of the dinosaur (and the eight-track) as more and more people download music digitally, but for outsourced document imaging services companies, the CD is still a very useful item.
Why isn't everything digitally transmitted by now?
First of all, as this document imaging FAQ explains, because CDs can hold up to 15,000 scanned letter-sized images. That's a lot. Far too much to fit through even the broadest of broadband pipes.
Futhermore, when a document imaging service sends its client a CD or three by courier or some other secure physical delivery method, the service can verify that the package has been received safely and securely.
When transmitting over the Internet, a whole host of other security issues come up. Many providers work to address these problems, but sometimes it's just simpler to send a hard copy.
Video may have killed the radio star, but document imaging is keeping the CD alive and well.
Why isn't everything digitally transmitted by now?
First of all, as this document imaging FAQ explains, because CDs can hold up to 15,000 scanned letter-sized images. That's a lot. Far too much to fit through even the broadest of broadband pipes.
Futhermore, when a document imaging service sends its client a CD or three by courier or some other secure physical delivery method, the service can verify that the package has been received safely and securely.
When transmitting over the Internet, a whole host of other security issues come up. Many providers work to address these problems, but sometimes it's just simpler to send a hard copy.
Video may have killed the radio star, but document imaging is keeping the CD alive and well.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Document Imaging: The Interoperability Issue Still #1 Priority
Bud Porter-Roth, an accomplished Enterprise Content Management consultant, authored a paper in 2005 that called for document imaging products to work better together.
Individuals and corporations were by then fully familiar with the basics of translating paper into digital images, but the time had come to do more.
Porter-Roth wrote of a pressing challenge:
"As EDM becomes integrated with more mainstream applications, the stumbling block has become the need to hardwire each EDM application to each business or legacy application. The programming effort for this is high, the programming is not reusable, and once made, the connections are fragile. The resulting complex network still does not provide the interoperability needed to share data efficiently and often companies are forced to re-key data from one system to another. Data sharing is often limited by the inability to connect applications due to programming complexity, costs, and time."
The solution proposed by Porter-Roth (and other experts) was to concentrate as much on systems working together as on the systems themselves. This focus was called Service Oriented Architecture, or SOA.
SOA, as a concept, if not as an acronym, has made great strides in the document imaging industry. The standardization of programming language XML has been instrumental in this drive towards interopability.
However, the interopability issue still remains a top priority for the industry as well as its clients. Document imaging service providers who have mastered this domain are the companies to work with.
Ask about interoperability--every time.
Individuals and corporations were by then fully familiar with the basics of translating paper into digital images, but the time had come to do more.
Porter-Roth wrote of a pressing challenge:
"As EDM becomes integrated with more mainstream applications, the stumbling block has become the need to hardwire each EDM application to each business or legacy application. The programming effort for this is high, the programming is not reusable, and once made, the connections are fragile. The resulting complex network still does not provide the interoperability needed to share data efficiently and often companies are forced to re-key data from one system to another. Data sharing is often limited by the inability to connect applications due to programming complexity, costs, and time."
The solution proposed by Porter-Roth (and other experts) was to concentrate as much on systems working together as on the systems themselves. This focus was called Service Oriented Architecture, or SOA.
SOA, as a concept, if not as an acronym, has made great strides in the document imaging industry. The standardization of programming language XML has been instrumental in this drive towards interopability.
However, the interopability issue still remains a top priority for the industry as well as its clients. Document imaging service providers who have mastered this domain are the companies to work with.
Ask about interoperability--every time.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
The Right (Sized) Document Imaging Solution
Document imaging solutions come in all shapes and sizes.
Sometimes, a corporation needs an ongoing, system-wide revamp of the entire Enterprise Content Management function.
Other times, something decidedly more modest is in order. You want to clear out the back room, and there are thousands of papers back there, and you'd like to keep the information but lose the paper.
That is a golden opportunity to work with a document imaging services company. For a couple hundred dollars, you may be able to scan all that paper, keep the information on it, and then toss (or better yet recycle) the dead trees.
Now you have a wide open back room.
You can even rent a scanner, if you want to do the job yourself.
If you do choose to work with a third party document imaging company, be aware that they'll need those papers flat-edged and without staples in order to offer you the lowest rates on document imaging. Add-on services such as searchability will usually cost a bit more, too.
Regardless of what document imaging solution you choose, the important point is to realize that document imaging is not just something that big businesses do that costs millions of dollars.
There are all different products available and you can choose the one that fits with your goals and budget.
Sometimes, a corporation needs an ongoing, system-wide revamp of the entire Enterprise Content Management function.
Other times, something decidedly more modest is in order. You want to clear out the back room, and there are thousands of papers back there, and you'd like to keep the information but lose the paper.
That is a golden opportunity to work with a document imaging services company. For a couple hundred dollars, you may be able to scan all that paper, keep the information on it, and then toss (or better yet recycle) the dead trees.
Now you have a wide open back room.
You can even rent a scanner, if you want to do the job yourself.
If you do choose to work with a third party document imaging company, be aware that they'll need those papers flat-edged and without staples in order to offer you the lowest rates on document imaging. Add-on services such as searchability will usually cost a bit more, too.
Regardless of what document imaging solution you choose, the important point is to realize that document imaging is not just something that big businesses do that costs millions of dollars.
There are all different products available and you can choose the one that fits with your goals and budget.
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Document Imaging Industry: Selling Through a Stormy Economy
Correspondent Chad Berndtson of ChannelWeb brought home an informative report the other day from the Print & Imaging Summit in Bonita Springs, Florida.
In said report, Berndtson identified the three drivers of document imaging technology adoption for businesses in these trying economic times:
1. Multifunction machines
2. Managed print (and imaging) services
3. Software
Managed print (and imaging) services, in the form of outsourcing to third party vendors, was perhaps the hottest topic of the three, with representatives from Xerox stressing the need for corporations to see document imaging services as a major means of cost-cutting.
Xerox--and other document imaging services providers--advertise immediate cost savings of 10 to 30 percent, but also argue for the overall business process improvement that can come from the right outsourced solution.
In other words, the true efficiency of using document imaging to its fullest potential is to change not only the way your paper works, but the way your people work.
In said report, Berndtson identified the three drivers of document imaging technology adoption for businesses in these trying economic times:
1. Multifunction machines
2. Managed print (and imaging) services
3. Software
Managed print (and imaging) services, in the form of outsourcing to third party vendors, was perhaps the hottest topic of the three, with representatives from Xerox stressing the need for corporations to see document imaging services as a major means of cost-cutting.
Xerox--and other document imaging services providers--advertise immediate cost savings of 10 to 30 percent, but also argue for the overall business process improvement that can come from the right outsourced solution.
In other words, the true efficiency of using document imaging to its fullest potential is to change not only the way your paper works, but the way your people work.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
SharePoint Alone Not Good Enough?
I received an interesting sales pitch via email the other day from Ethan Agai, of CVISION Technologies, Inc. This company is very active in the document imaging industry, offering a variety of services including PDF compression and Optical Character Recognition.
What interested me about Ethan's sales pitch was the following statement:
"SharePoint as a standalone application may not produce a clear, measurable ROI for your company. Most companies find a tangible ROI in their document workflow when their document processing is re-designed to maximize automation, including document classification and form coding."
Without making any judgements or recommendations regarding CVISION's solutions ("Trapeze" was the specific product offered), this notion that implementing SharePoint alone doesn't meet everyone's needs seems to jibe with reality.
SharePoint provides a foundation that can be built upon. It's not the whole house.
Interestingly, some people see the integration of other people's applications into the SharePoint environment as yet another attempt by Microsoft to lock in corporate clients.
Very possible--but if the workplace works better in the meantime, does the corporate client object to being "locked in"?
What interested me about Ethan's sales pitch was the following statement:
"SharePoint as a standalone application may not produce a clear, measurable ROI for your company. Most companies find a tangible ROI in their document workflow when their document processing is re-designed to maximize automation, including document classification and form coding."
Without making any judgements or recommendations regarding CVISION's solutions ("Trapeze" was the specific product offered), this notion that implementing SharePoint alone doesn't meet everyone's needs seems to jibe with reality.
SharePoint provides a foundation that can be built upon. It's not the whole house.
Interestingly, some people see the integration of other people's applications into the SharePoint environment as yet another attempt by Microsoft to lock in corporate clients.
Very possible--but if the workplace works better in the meantime, does the corporate client object to being "locked in"?
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
How to Tag...If You Decide to Tag
As noted the other day, it may not be worth it in every situation for a company to make scanned PDFs searchable by everyone in the company.
However, in many cases, it is worth it--especially if the project is well-thought out, as part of a larger Enterprise Content Management initiative.
One key aspect of creating such successful intiative, as opposed to an initiative that costs a lot of money and doesn't accomplish much, is the correct use of "metadata." For that reason, check out James Robertson's work on this topic.
It's located here, and it's very instructive.
Mr. Robertson writes:
"There are two fundamental purposes for metadata on intranets and websites:
1) helping end users find what they are looking for, via search or navigation
2) helping authors and administrators manage the site."
In the situation of a corporation deciding if--and how--to make imaged documents searchable, metadata might be defined as the thing that makes search results page worthwhile, instead of worthless.
For example, a lawyer's paperwork might be "tagged" with "metadata" including the name of the client, the date of the case, and the date the document was imaged. These bits of metadata would then ideally make searches for those documents more accurate and precise.
If you hire a document imaging services company, they will do a lot of the metadata work for you. But you should understand the concept regardless, because it's important.
We'll blog more on this topic in future posts, and again, Mr. Roberton's Web site is much recommended.
However, in many cases, it is worth it--especially if the project is well-thought out, as part of a larger Enterprise Content Management initiative.
One key aspect of creating such successful intiative, as opposed to an initiative that costs a lot of money and doesn't accomplish much, is the correct use of "metadata." For that reason, check out James Robertson's work on this topic.
It's located here, and it's very instructive.
Mr. Robertson writes:
"There are two fundamental purposes for metadata on intranets and websites:
1) helping end users find what they are looking for, via search or navigation
2) helping authors and administrators manage the site."
In the situation of a corporation deciding if--and how--to make imaged documents searchable, metadata might be defined as the thing that makes search results page worthwhile, instead of worthless.
For example, a lawyer's paperwork might be "tagged" with "metadata" including the name of the client, the date of the case, and the date the document was imaged. These bits of metadata would then ideally make searches for those documents more accurate and precise.
If you hire a document imaging services company, they will do a lot of the metadata work for you. But you should understand the concept regardless, because it's important.
We'll blog more on this topic in future posts, and again, Mr. Roberton's Web site is much recommended.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
DON'T Make PDFs Searchable?
Fellow blogger Patrick C. Walsh had an interesting post today about Google's recent move in making imaged PDFs searchable on the World Wide Web.
Mr. Walsh thinks searchability can be a bad thing when it comes to document imaging. And, frankly, after hearing him out, he may have a point.
Here's his post, and here is the nut graph on why PDFs don't need to be searchable in most cases:
"I have been told that searchable PDFs will be a very good thing for intranets but I just don’t get it. The poor users put their search terms in and, as all documents are searchable, they will get a mountain of results back. Then, when they click on a result, it will land them on a document containing the search term.
This can be a problem as a lot of documents aren’t set up like the best web pages and if they are PDFs from external sources, e.g. legislation, H & S advice etc., you won’t be able to change them anyway. The problem is context."
This is absolutely true that context can be a problem with searchable PDFs. If the users do not find search intuitive and easy to use, search isn't much use.
In that sense, Walsh may be correct in stating that for the average corporation, making scanned docs searchable across the enterprise may not be best allocation of resources. Better to file appropriate scanned docs in appropriate folders...
And make people search the old-fashioned way: using their brains, instead of relying on keywords.
Mr. Walsh thinks searchability can be a bad thing when it comes to document imaging. And, frankly, after hearing him out, he may have a point.
Here's his post, and here is the nut graph on why PDFs don't need to be searchable in most cases:
"I have been told that searchable PDFs will be a very good thing for intranets but I just don’t get it. The poor users put their search terms in and, as all documents are searchable, they will get a mountain of results back. Then, when they click on a result, it will land them on a document containing the search term.
This can be a problem as a lot of documents aren’t set up like the best web pages and if they are PDFs from external sources, e.g. legislation, H & S advice etc., you won’t be able to change them anyway. The problem is context."
This is absolutely true that context can be a problem with searchable PDFs. If the users do not find search intuitive and easy to use, search isn't much use.
In that sense, Walsh may be correct in stating that for the average corporation, making scanned docs searchable across the enterprise may not be best allocation of resources. Better to file appropriate scanned docs in appropriate folders...
And make people search the old-fashioned way: using their brains, instead of relying on keywords.
Thursday, November 27, 2008
thanksgiving day
today, we have much to be thankful for, including the ability to blog from a mobile phone, as i am doing right now, so pardon the lack of proper capitalization. including, too, ducument imaging solutions that work. thanks for those. thanks for the disaster recovery files that don't take up any space. thanks for the medical records that cost nothing to transport from hospital to hospital. thanks for the searchability and scalability. thanks for not just scanning documents, but sharing them. thanks for the chance to use a weak economy to prove document imaging's roi is the real deal. thanks for fewer filing cabinets. thanks for better document imaging options and services, and happy thanksgiving to you and yours.
Sunday, November 23, 2008
When Disaster Strikes, Document Imaging Survives?
In the course of scouring the Internet, one runs upon some good things. If you missed it, check out this wonderful story in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution the other day.
It is about a pastor and a business man striving to reform and revitalize a tough neighborhood in northwest Atlanta, where a beloved 92-year old grandmother had recently been shot and killed by the police.
The business man owns a document imaging company in Atlanta. His name is Mr. Gordon, he donates money to his case, and he had this to say:
“There’s so many good people who’ve lived a lifetime here that go to sleep afraid at night. We don’t believe people should live in that kind of fear.”
Though the connection may seem tenuous, one can surmise that Mr. Gordon's ability to relate to and connect with this community could have something to do with his status as the owner of a document imaging company.
How so?
Because the strength of document imaging is in its interest in combating disaster. Or not necessarily disaster itself, but the loss that comes with it.
All those papers--wills, memos, letters--disappeared. Into nothing, a hurricane, a tsunami...
A neighborhood at war.
No easy task, to outlast those, but document imaging keeps some of those losses. Sent out over email, maintained on backup Internet-connected databases, scoured by searchers of relevance, the images of documents can escape disaster--and live to tell about it.
It is about a pastor and a business man striving to reform and revitalize a tough neighborhood in northwest Atlanta, where a beloved 92-year old grandmother had recently been shot and killed by the police.
The business man owns a document imaging company in Atlanta. His name is Mr. Gordon, he donates money to his case, and he had this to say:
“There’s so many good people who’ve lived a lifetime here that go to sleep afraid at night. We don’t believe people should live in that kind of fear.”
Though the connection may seem tenuous, one can surmise that Mr. Gordon's ability to relate to and connect with this community could have something to do with his status as the owner of a document imaging company.
How so?
Because the strength of document imaging is in its interest in combating disaster. Or not necessarily disaster itself, but the loss that comes with it.
All those papers--wills, memos, letters--disappeared. Into nothing, a hurricane, a tsunami...
A neighborhood at war.
No easy task, to outlast those, but document imaging keeps some of those losses. Sent out over email, maintained on backup Internet-connected databases, scoured by searchers of relevance, the images of documents can escape disaster--and live to tell about it.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Winter Reading: Document Imaging
As the winter months approach, it's time to curl up with your favorite novel. Or, if you're considering implementing a document imaging solution for your business, your favorite Microsoft SharePoint textbook.
There are some great books out right now that address the potential--and potential pitfalls--of making SharePoint a part of your business life.
Here are a couple to consider:
Essential SharePoint 2007, by Scott Jamison.
This is a quite substantial book that can teach you how to:
-- Define optimal, workable collaboration strategies
-- Build SharePoint applications people want to use
-- Provide your customers with state-of-the-art sites, blogs, and wikis
-- Implement forms-based workflow to optimize virtually any business process
-- Organize and staff SharePoint support teams
-- Migrate efficiently from SharePoint 2003
Another book to consider is SharePoint 2007 User's Guide: Learning Microsoft's Collaboration and Productivity Platform, by Seth Bates and Tony Smith.
Be careful when ordering books on document imaging, however. Many of them are quite old, from the 1990s. And while they may be instructive on basic principles, they do not reflect the current environment.
Since the 1990s, document imaging has become part of the larger Enterprise Content Management space, so look for books with that more general tag.
Happy reading!
There are some great books out right now that address the potential--and potential pitfalls--of making SharePoint a part of your business life.
Here are a couple to consider:
Essential SharePoint 2007, by Scott Jamison.
This is a quite substantial book that can teach you how to:
-- Define optimal, workable collaboration strategies
-- Build SharePoint applications people want to use
-- Provide your customers with state-of-the-art sites, blogs, and wikis
-- Implement forms-based workflow to optimize virtually any business process
-- Organize and staff SharePoint support teams
-- Migrate efficiently from SharePoint 2003
Another book to consider is SharePoint 2007 User's Guide: Learning Microsoft's Collaboration and Productivity Platform, by Seth Bates and Tony Smith.
Be careful when ordering books on document imaging, however. Many of them are quite old, from the 1990s. And while they may be instructive on basic principles, they do not reflect the current environment.
Since the 1990s, document imaging has become part of the larger Enterprise Content Management space, so look for books with that more general tag.
Happy reading!
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Document Imaging "Extras"
You can get ten different price quotes for the same document imaging job. Why the discrepancy?
Indeed, let's look at a few "extras" that can push the price of a job up or down.
-- Volume. Generally speaking, the more volume, the less "per piece" charge. However, very high volume jobs require special machinery, and thus may cost more.
-- Size. If your documents are irregularly sized, your job is not standard and will probably cost a little more based on its format-specific nature.
-- Packaged Documents. Sometimes, the document imaging services company will be presented with a stack of papers that are binded or stuck together. Someone has to separate them, and if it's the document imaging company, that'll cost a bit more.
-- Data Services. Once you've scanned all the documents, it's time to decide where they will be stored, and how the data will be organized. Document imaging service companies are often great consultants on these issues, but they do charge for the consultations and/or software.
As with a mechanic, the answer to the question "How much do you charge?" is always, "It dpends." When you know what it depends on, you not only understand the mechanic's point of view, but are able to negotiate with him better on price.
Indeed, let's look at a few "extras" that can push the price of a job up or down.
-- Volume. Generally speaking, the more volume, the less "per piece" charge. However, very high volume jobs require special machinery, and thus may cost more.
-- Size. If your documents are irregularly sized, your job is not standard and will probably cost a little more based on its format-specific nature.
-- Packaged Documents. Sometimes, the document imaging services company will be presented with a stack of papers that are binded or stuck together. Someone has to separate them, and if it's the document imaging company, that'll cost a bit more.
-- Data Services. Once you've scanned all the documents, it's time to decide where they will be stored, and how the data will be organized. Document imaging service companies are often great consultants on these issues, but they do charge for the consultations and/or software.
As with a mechanic, the answer to the question "How much do you charge?" is always, "It dpends." When you know what it depends on, you not only understand the mechanic's point of view, but are able to negotiate with him better on price.
Monday, November 17, 2008
Document Imaging and the Obama Presidency
Of course it's impossible to see the future, but that doesn't prevent anyone from trying. In the current economic straits, moreover, accurately spotting trends that can impact your business is especially valuable. All of which brings us to the questions:
What will document imaging look like in 2009? Will there be major changes in the industry? New technologies? Exciting startups?
John Mancini over at AIIM had an interesting post the other day based on a survey in which respondents who work in the document imaging industry pointed out the three vertical markets where they saw the most opportunity in 2009:
Healthcare / Medical -- 59%
Insurance -- 38%
State and Local Government -- 33%
These thoughts make a lot of sense, because they seem to pinpoint the change this nation experienced two weeks ago: the election of Barack Obama.
One of the main pieces of legislation Obama sponsored while he was in the Senate was called "Google for Government." Read about it here. The idea was to create a Web site that showed where Federal tax dollars were being spent.
Obama has promised to apply this same transparency standard to the government as a whole. This will no doubt create the need for document imaging services to move the tons and tons of paperwork into digital formats, so the people can see them.
Only time will tell if that project is successful, but the trying is bound to be profitable for the document imaging industry as a whole, especially the companies that get those contracts.
What will document imaging look like in 2009? Will there be major changes in the industry? New technologies? Exciting startups?
John Mancini over at AIIM had an interesting post the other day based on a survey in which respondents who work in the document imaging industry pointed out the three vertical markets where they saw the most opportunity in 2009:
Healthcare / Medical -- 59%
Insurance -- 38%
State and Local Government -- 33%
These thoughts make a lot of sense, because they seem to pinpoint the change this nation experienced two weeks ago: the election of Barack Obama.
One of the main pieces of legislation Obama sponsored while he was in the Senate was called "Google for Government." Read about it here. The idea was to create a Web site that showed where Federal tax dollars were being spent.
Obama has promised to apply this same transparency standard to the government as a whole. This will no doubt create the need for document imaging services to move the tons and tons of paperwork into digital formats, so the people can see them.
Only time will tell if that project is successful, but the trying is bound to be profitable for the document imaging industry as a whole, especially the companies that get those contracts.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Document Imaging: Think Integration
One of the great things about document imaging is the ability to move paper around without moving paper around, allowing people in different locations to access the same documents at the same time, if need be.
But in order to fully exploit the potential of this aspect of document imaging, we need to think about integrating existing software and hardware into an overall well-functioning system.
There are many companies who promise to do exactly that, such as this one and this one. However, the important thing is for the business professional to insist on, and drive, this integration.
For example, you are a real estate broker, and you are looking to scan and archive all of your past signed contracts. Fantastic idea. But consider tying in your document imaging solution with an eFax capability, where you can essentially email faxes.
Because real estate contracts need hard signatures, faxing is still a big part of the business. That shouldn't stop you from implementing a document imaging solution, but it should make you think about how you can integrate for better performance in the real world.
Likewise with peripheral devices such as cameras, older printers, and laptops. When everything works together, everything works better.
But in order to fully exploit the potential of this aspect of document imaging, we need to think about integrating existing software and hardware into an overall well-functioning system.
There are many companies who promise to do exactly that, such as this one and this one. However, the important thing is for the business professional to insist on, and drive, this integration.
For example, you are a real estate broker, and you are looking to scan and archive all of your past signed contracts. Fantastic idea. But consider tying in your document imaging solution with an eFax capability, where you can essentially email faxes.
Because real estate contracts need hard signatures, faxing is still a big part of the business. That shouldn't stop you from implementing a document imaging solution, but it should make you think about how you can integrate for better performance in the real world.
Likewise with peripheral devices such as cameras, older printers, and laptops. When everything works together, everything works better.
Friday, November 14, 2008
Controversy Comes to Document Imaging
Document imaging is not usually considered a controversial subject, but the argument between authors and Google has been pretty heated over the past few years--and it is also a reminder that security of imaged documents is always a concern.
It all started when Google got the bright idea to scan library books and make them available on the Internet. This seemed like a great public service, but what about the authors who wrote those books? Essentially, their work would be given away for free.
Google argued hard and publicly for their side, as did certain authors and authors unions. A major leage copyright suit ensued. And was only recently settled. Read the whole settlement here (if you have a few spare months on your hands).
The upshot of the judge's decision is that the program to scan books and put them on the Web, Google Books, can and will continue. But Google will have to pay a royalty to authors, and can only use small portions of scanned books, unless they get explicit permission to use the whole text from the author or the author's representative.
Check out Google Books here, and consider, too, how this issue might affect your own document imaging situation. Many organizations, for example, use document scanning and imaging to retain sensitive and private data, such as medical records or legal paperwork.
The whole thing is just one more reminder that if you're thinking about document imaging, you need to be thinking about document security. Because far from disappearing once documents go into the computer, they might just live forever, available to everyone.
If they make it onto the World Wide Web.
It all started when Google got the bright idea to scan library books and make them available on the Internet. This seemed like a great public service, but what about the authors who wrote those books? Essentially, their work would be given away for free.
Google argued hard and publicly for their side, as did certain authors and authors unions. A major leage copyright suit ensued. And was only recently settled. Read the whole settlement here (if you have a few spare months on your hands).
The upshot of the judge's decision is that the program to scan books and put them on the Web, Google Books, can and will continue. But Google will have to pay a royalty to authors, and can only use small portions of scanned books, unless they get explicit permission to use the whole text from the author or the author's representative.
Check out Google Books here, and consider, too, how this issue might affect your own document imaging situation. Many organizations, for example, use document scanning and imaging to retain sensitive and private data, such as medical records or legal paperwork.
The whole thing is just one more reminder that if you're thinking about document imaging, you need to be thinking about document security. Because far from disappearing once documents go into the computer, they might just live forever, available to everyone.
If they make it onto the World Wide Web.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
The Document Imaging Social Network: Information Zen
Social networking is not just for college kids on Facebook. Social networking applications for business are becoming increasingly common.
AIIM, the industry trade group for those of us interested in document imaging and related topics, recently opened up a social network called Information Zen, located here.
Though the site is new, it has already attracted about 1,000 members. If you are interested in document imaging, scanning, or the overall Enterprise Content Management issue, you should definitely check out this site.
One of our favorite posts was this one, which invited forum members to describe their best experience with a vendor. Document imaging services are of widely varying quality, so this type of community feedback from real users is invaluable to prospective buyers.
Also see the "Ask the Experts" function, such as this discussion of the concept of Digital Mailroom, whereby all documents that arrive in the mail are scanned and distributed throughout the company. The quality of the responses on this site is quite high.
We hope that this will continue, and that vendors will not "game the system" by lurking on the site only to shamelessly plug their own products.
In short, get on this site ASAP if you are interested in document imaging. Interact with your peers, learn, and make better decisions about document imaging solutions.
Thank you, AIIM.
AIIM, the industry trade group for those of us interested in document imaging and related topics, recently opened up a social network called Information Zen, located here.
Though the site is new, it has already attracted about 1,000 members. If you are interested in document imaging, scanning, or the overall Enterprise Content Management issue, you should definitely check out this site.
One of our favorite posts was this one, which invited forum members to describe their best experience with a vendor. Document imaging services are of widely varying quality, so this type of community feedback from real users is invaluable to prospective buyers.
Also see the "Ask the Experts" function, such as this discussion of the concept of Digital Mailroom, whereby all documents that arrive in the mail are scanned and distributed throughout the company. The quality of the responses on this site is quite high.
We hope that this will continue, and that vendors will not "game the system" by lurking on the site only to shamelessly plug their own products.
In short, get on this site ASAP if you are interested in document imaging. Interact with your peers, learn, and make better decisions about document imaging solutions.
Thank you, AIIM.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Is OCR Ready for Prime Time?
We blogged the other day about Google's new document imaging initiative, which promises to make "hard" PDF documents searchable on the World Wide Web. The technology being used to accomplish this feat, we noted, is called Optical Character Recognition, or OCR.
OCR is one of those technologies that has a definite cool factor. Through OCR software, a computer can "read" a hard copy document and render it into bits and bytes--in short, make a paper document digital.
At that point, sharing and searching that document becomes much easier, because the digital world is not dependent on things like planes, trains, and automobiles. You want something, it's at your fingertips.
But is OCR really ready for widespread corporate use? For example, say you run a law firm, and you are interested in implementing a document imaging solution, but your files are hard for a non-lawyer human being to comprehend, let alone a non-lawyer computer.
Can you rely on OCR technology to accurately transport your paperwork to your computer accurately and completely?
The answer is, yes but. Depending on your provider (so check around), OCR software has bugs and troubles just like any other software. Nevertheless, accuracy rates on typed words are 99%.
Cursive writing, however, is still being figured out.
OCR is one of those technologies that has a definite cool factor. Through OCR software, a computer can "read" a hard copy document and render it into bits and bytes--in short, make a paper document digital.
At that point, sharing and searching that document becomes much easier, because the digital world is not dependent on things like planes, trains, and automobiles. You want something, it's at your fingertips.
But is OCR really ready for widespread corporate use? For example, say you run a law firm, and you are interested in implementing a document imaging solution, but your files are hard for a non-lawyer human being to comprehend, let alone a non-lawyer computer.
Can you rely on OCR technology to accurately transport your paperwork to your computer accurately and completely?
The answer is, yes but. Depending on your provider (so check around), OCR software has bugs and troubles just like any other software. Nevertheless, accuracy rates on typed words are 99%.
Cursive writing, however, is still being figured out.
Saturday, November 8, 2008
An Issue of Standards: Document Imaging Needs Those
There are about five major trade groups devoted to advancing the interests of the document imaging industry. Here is a good list of those, for your reference.
Among those, there is one organization that works specifically to promote a particularly important need of the document imaging industry: standardization. TWAIN was founded in 1992 and has been very aggressive since then, agitating for greater and greater standardization between the great variety of hardware and software that make up this large community.
The fact that this organization (a not-for-profit) has been around so long, since the early days of document imaging and scanning, not only attests to the foresight of its founders, but encourages all of us to appreciate--and, more than that--use this standardization to better effect.
Sharing scanned document is, once again, the prime example of this better effect. The TWAIN board of advisors is a who's who of the document imaging industry, which might imply that they'd be too competitive with each other to cooperate, but the opposite is true.
Because sharing scanned documents empowers all players in the market. TWAIN is a testament to that. If you are interested in becoming a member of this organization, visit this page. You can sign your company up to head a sub-group supporting the larger mission of standardized, work-together document imaging systems, worldwide.
Among those, there is one organization that works specifically to promote a particularly important need of the document imaging industry: standardization. TWAIN was founded in 1992 and has been very aggressive since then, agitating for greater and greater standardization between the great variety of hardware and software that make up this large community.
The fact that this organization (a not-for-profit) has been around so long, since the early days of document imaging and scanning, not only attests to the foresight of its founders, but encourages all of us to appreciate--and, more than that--use this standardization to better effect.
Sharing scanned document is, once again, the prime example of this better effect. The TWAIN board of advisors is a who's who of the document imaging industry, which might imply that they'd be too competitive with each other to cooperate, but the opposite is true.
Because sharing scanned documents empowers all players in the market. TWAIN is a testament to that. If you are interested in becoming a member of this organization, visit this page. You can sign your company up to head a sub-group supporting the larger mission of standardized, work-together document imaging systems, worldwide.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
See the Forest: Enterprise Content Management
Document imaging is part of a larger system, commonly called Enterprise Content Management. As we research all the various document scanning and imaging solutions available, we can sometimes miss the forest for the trees, as the saying goes.
This is regrettable. Even if your business is small by comparison to companies that need products with lofty terms like "Enterprise Content Management," think about what this Harvard Business School-sounding concept means--or could mean--for your business.
If you are new to this conversation or even just looking for a great resource to learn more, visit the Association for Information and Image Management, or AIIM, Web site. It's here and it's rich. To start with a definition:
"Enterprise Content Management (ECM) is the technologies used to capture, manage, store, preserve, and deliver content and documents related to organizational processes. ECM tools and strategies allow the management of an organization's unstructured information, wherever that information exists."
Document imaging is one technology among many in that ecosystem.
This is important to realize not to make some abstract point, but because it makes us consider the real-life workings of these interconnected technologies, i.e. stuff needs to work together. This is why a company like IBM is a major provider of ECM products: because they make everything, everything should (theoretically) work together. The old standardization sell.
However, that is not an argument for using IBM products. It is merely an argument for thinking ahead of time about whether your document imaging system is going to fit into your overall goal of archiving and using the information important to your business.
It is merely an argument for seeing the forest, not just the trees.
This is regrettable. Even if your business is small by comparison to companies that need products with lofty terms like "Enterprise Content Management," think about what this Harvard Business School-sounding concept means--or could mean--for your business.
If you are new to this conversation or even just looking for a great resource to learn more, visit the Association for Information and Image Management, or AIIM, Web site. It's here and it's rich. To start with a definition:
"Enterprise Content Management (ECM) is the technologies used to capture, manage, store, preserve, and deliver content and documents related to organizational processes. ECM tools and strategies allow the management of an organization's unstructured information, wherever that information exists."
Document imaging is one technology among many in that ecosystem.
This is important to realize not to make some abstract point, but because it makes us consider the real-life workings of these interconnected technologies, i.e. stuff needs to work together. This is why a company like IBM is a major provider of ECM products: because they make everything, everything should (theoretically) work together. The old standardization sell.
However, that is not an argument for using IBM products. It is merely an argument for thinking ahead of time about whether your document imaging system is going to fit into your overall goal of archiving and using the information important to your business.
It is merely an argument for seeing the forest, not just the trees.
Monday, November 3, 2008
Google Making Scanned Docs Searchable Worldwide
Being able to search within your organization for scanned documents is a necessary aspect of the most successful document imaging systems. But maybe, in focusing so much on intra-organizational search, we're missing the bigger picture.
For instance, Internet giant Google recently revamped its technology in hopes of making scanned documents as searchable as any other Web page.
As this post indicates and your experience may corroborate, PDF files have been showing up in Google search results for a while now. But before, Google was merely reading the "metadata" of these pages, i.e. the tags attached to them, such as document title, keywords, etc.
But now, Google has created a solution whereby actual scanned documents are "read" by the Google search technology through a method called "Optical Character Recognition." Read about how this is being done at the Google blog, here. Right now, it only works on PDF docs.
This is a very interesting development, and perhaps a huge one. Even today, think of all the paper documents that are not searchable to the world at large. As humongous as the Web already is, it's growing by leaps and bounds every day!
We are going to have to keep a sharp eye on this developing story.
For instance, Internet giant Google recently revamped its technology in hopes of making scanned documents as searchable as any other Web page.
As this post indicates and your experience may corroborate, PDF files have been showing up in Google search results for a while now. But before, Google was merely reading the "metadata" of these pages, i.e. the tags attached to them, such as document title, keywords, etc.
But now, Google has created a solution whereby actual scanned documents are "read" by the Google search technology through a method called "Optical Character Recognition." Read about how this is being done at the Google blog, here. Right now, it only works on PDF docs.
This is a very interesting development, and perhaps a huge one. Even today, think of all the paper documents that are not searchable to the world at large. As humongous as the Web already is, it's growing by leaps and bounds every day!
We are going to have to keep a sharp eye on this developing story.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Kodak Q3 Report: Slower Than Expected
We blogged the other day about how the recession may or may not affect the document imaging industry. This morning, some hard data on the subject arrived in the form of Kodak reporting third quarter earnings.
Read the full conference call here.
Chairman and CEO Antonio Perez began by stating:
"Well, a lot has changed since we spoke during the second quarter earnings call. The growing economic crisis which started in the United States has now become global."
He continued:
"When we spoke in July...we were expecting our year-over-year digital revenue growth to be 8% in the second half. While we expect for the rest of this year to gain or maintain market share with our key product lines, as we just did in the third quarter, we are now forecasting the second half year-over-year digital revenues to decline 1 to 5%."
Full year earning projections were drastically lowered. Originally, the Rochester-based company was expecting to garner between $400 and $500 million.
Now, that number is $200 to $250 million.
A main culprit for this situation, Perez noted, was the inability of small to mid-sized business to secure short-term credit, such as are commonly used in the purchase of document imaging and scanning machines.
Still, the news for the industry was not all bad by any means. Scanner sales remained strong, giving industry boosters a reason to hope.
Read the full conference call here.
Chairman and CEO Antonio Perez began by stating:
"Well, a lot has changed since we spoke during the second quarter earnings call. The growing economic crisis which started in the United States has now become global."
He continued:
"When we spoke in July...we were expecting our year-over-year digital revenue growth to be 8% in the second half. While we expect for the rest of this year to gain or maintain market share with our key product lines, as we just did in the third quarter, we are now forecasting the second half year-over-year digital revenues to decline 1 to 5%."
Full year earning projections were drastically lowered. Originally, the Rochester-based company was expecting to garner between $400 and $500 million.
Now, that number is $200 to $250 million.
A main culprit for this situation, Perez noted, was the inability of small to mid-sized business to secure short-term credit, such as are commonly used in the purchase of document imaging and scanning machines.
Still, the news for the industry was not all bad by any means. Scanner sales remained strong, giving industry boosters a reason to hope.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Document Imaging Research Resource
It's not easy to find good sources of information regarding document imaging. That's part of why we run this blog. But there are some good resources available, if you're doing research and trying to discover what's right for your business.
One of the better pages I've found is on Kodak's site, right here. This is a wealth of information and, while Kodak is definitely trying to sell you something, the information itself is quite valuable.
For example, you can see the major industry breakdown of common document imaging customers:
•Real estate offices
•Doctors’ offices
•Dentists’ offices
•Legal firms
•Charities
•Municipal and town offices
•Financial advisors
•Sales and services offices
•Branch office operations
•Auto dealerships
•Community banks
•Credit unions
•County Clerks
You can also get some handy tips for the actual process of document imaging and scanning. How to maintain image quality, for example.
If you want to delve a bit deeper into document scanning technology, check out this white paper. Detailed technical information like this is not easy to come by, and worth looking into if document imaging is going to be a long-term part of your business.
Meanwhile, think about how you can use document imaging technology to increase Corporate Accountability. If you look at the common customer list above, you'll notice that many of these industries deal with highly private and sensitive documents. Once those docs are inputted into the computer, it doesn't absolve the company from responsibility to handle them with care.
If you run a small or mid-sized business, this white paper is worth reading. It talks about how document imaging technology has made its way from only being used by huge corporations to being an inexpensive solution for any size business.
Kudos to Kodak for making these materials available. Although they are offered with a slant towards Kodak's products, that does not negate their usefulness to the potential customer.
One of the better pages I've found is on Kodak's site, right here. This is a wealth of information and, while Kodak is definitely trying to sell you something, the information itself is quite valuable.
For example, you can see the major industry breakdown of common document imaging customers:
•Real estate offices
•Doctors’ offices
•Dentists’ offices
•Legal firms
•Charities
•Municipal and town offices
•Financial advisors
•Sales and services offices
•Branch office operations
•Auto dealerships
•Community banks
•Credit unions
•County Clerks
You can also get some handy tips for the actual process of document imaging and scanning. How to maintain image quality, for example.
If you want to delve a bit deeper into document scanning technology, check out this white paper. Detailed technical information like this is not easy to come by, and worth looking into if document imaging is going to be a long-term part of your business.
Meanwhile, think about how you can use document imaging technology to increase Corporate Accountability. If you look at the common customer list above, you'll notice that many of these industries deal with highly private and sensitive documents. Once those docs are inputted into the computer, it doesn't absolve the company from responsibility to handle them with care.
If you run a small or mid-sized business, this white paper is worth reading. It talks about how document imaging technology has made its way from only being used by huge corporations to being an inexpensive solution for any size business.
Kudos to Kodak for making these materials available. Although they are offered with a slant towards Kodak's products, that does not negate their usefulness to the potential customer.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Document Imaging Lowers Your Rent?
Maybe it's because I live in New York, but I think about a real estate a lot. Specifically about how dang expensive the stuff is. Prices per square foot and such.
Which brings us, albeit in a roundabout way, to the issue of filing cabinets.
The average filing cabinet is about five feet tall, two feet deep, and one foot wide. Office space in downtown Manhattan can go for upwards of $100 per square foot. So that means that each filing cabinet costs about $300 per month. And just sits there.
The problem is, filing cabinets travel in packs. If you've got one, you've probably got two, and if you've got two, you well might have ten. And if you've got ten, that's a lot of space in your office being taken up by inanimate objects.
That's room enough for another desk, another employee. Or perhaps you'll want to move to a smaller office, so as to pay less rent.
Document imaging is all about getting rid of filing cabinets. Keeping the files, but miniaturizing them into digitized bits and bytes. Over and above the "value-adds" of searchability and shareability, document imaging is the ultimate space-saver.
And sometimes, when you save space, you save money.
That's definitely true of New York.
Which brings us, albeit in a roundabout way, to the issue of filing cabinets.
The average filing cabinet is about five feet tall, two feet deep, and one foot wide. Office space in downtown Manhattan can go for upwards of $100 per square foot. So that means that each filing cabinet costs about $300 per month. And just sits there.
The problem is, filing cabinets travel in packs. If you've got one, you've probably got two, and if you've got two, you well might have ten. And if you've got ten, that's a lot of space in your office being taken up by inanimate objects.
That's room enough for another desk, another employee. Or perhaps you'll want to move to a smaller office, so as to pay less rent.
Document imaging is all about getting rid of filing cabinets. Keeping the files, but miniaturizing them into digitized bits and bytes. Over and above the "value-adds" of searchability and shareability, document imaging is the ultimate space-saver.
And sometimes, when you save space, you save money.
That's definitely true of New York.
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Document Imaging Solutions: In-House or Hosted?
When implementing a document imaging solution, one of the fundamental decisions is where to store the digitized documents. As we discuss so frequently, security and shareability should be in balance if document imaging solution is going to reach its full potential.
But this is not an easy balance to strike. Medical and legal offices are some of the prime users of digital imaging technologies, making privacy concerns especially acute.
For this reason, many businesses choose to host scanned documents on an in-house server/software configuration, such as Microsoft SharePoint. But Microsoft always has its detractors.
Fluid accessibility combined with low up-front cost is the primary promise of the "software as a service" (SaaS) crowd, led by Salesforce.com. They used to be called "Application Service Providers," or ASPs. Think of SaaS as sort of "renting" the software.
This is a good article to read if you want to get an overview of this topic.
Regardless of the vagaries of tech terminology, the idea of the SaaS crowd remains the same: the software (in this case, document imaging) is hosted on remote servers, and then beamed out over the Internet to the client. And you don't have to spend a lot up front to get the system up and running.
This model is now coming into the document imaging industry. Digitech Systems is one example of a company moving into this area, trying to sell small to mid-sized businesses on going paperless. Hyland Software is another one.
A hosted or "on demand" solution may be right for your business. But before committing, please make sure that you feel comfortable with the security procedures of the provider.
But this is not an easy balance to strike. Medical and legal offices are some of the prime users of digital imaging technologies, making privacy concerns especially acute.
For this reason, many businesses choose to host scanned documents on an in-house server/software configuration, such as Microsoft SharePoint. But Microsoft always has its detractors.
Fluid accessibility combined with low up-front cost is the primary promise of the "software as a service" (SaaS) crowd, led by Salesforce.com. They used to be called "Application Service Providers," or ASPs. Think of SaaS as sort of "renting" the software.
This is a good article to read if you want to get an overview of this topic.
Regardless of the vagaries of tech terminology, the idea of the SaaS crowd remains the same: the software (in this case, document imaging) is hosted on remote servers, and then beamed out over the Internet to the client. And you don't have to spend a lot up front to get the system up and running.
This model is now coming into the document imaging industry. Digitech Systems is one example of a company moving into this area, trying to sell small to mid-sized businesses on going paperless. Hyland Software is another one.
A hosted or "on demand" solution may be right for your business. But before committing, please make sure that you feel comfortable with the security procedures of the provider.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Document Imaging: Recession-Proof?
In honor of the recent financial calamities and in progress recession, let's talk for a second about how this turbulence may or may not affect the nascent document imaging industry. Corporations are tightening belts all across America and the world.
What can the document imaging industry do to keep growing?
1. Emphasize Cost Savings
-- Just because we're in a recession doesn't mean that companies don't want to grow. But they want to grow smart. They want to grow cheap. For document scanning and imaging, this can mean that they may want lower cost machines or service providers.
But it can also mean that they want to consolidate or centralize document management functions. For example, if a company has multiple offices, it may be willing to spend some money on a document scanning solution that enables sharing -- if other costs can thereby be eliminated, such as unnecessary faxing, copying, and filing.
The point is to address the need.
2. Emphasize Productivity Increases
-- The productivity of the American worker is the pride of this nation and the only reason our economy is not in worse shape than it is. Document scanning and imaging has become a fairly major contributor to this productivity.
This contribution must not only continue but increase. A document scanning sales pitch that convinces the business decision-maker that her staff is going to be able to concentrate on their jobs instead of tedious file-finding is convincing in this environment.
Talk about recession concerns and be ready to calculate ROI!
Challenge = Opportunity?
This recession challenge can most definitely be viewed as an opportunity for this industry. Document scanning and imaging can be a big part of cost-cutting and improving efficiency at companies struggling to maintain earnings power amid slowing sales.
If the document imaging industry does not prove, however, that it can help trim expenses while increasing productivity, the industry itself may fall victim to the cost-cutting trend.
What can the document imaging industry do to keep growing?
1. Emphasize Cost Savings
-- Just because we're in a recession doesn't mean that companies don't want to grow. But they want to grow smart. They want to grow cheap. For document scanning and imaging, this can mean that they may want lower cost machines or service providers.
But it can also mean that they want to consolidate or centralize document management functions. For example, if a company has multiple offices, it may be willing to spend some money on a document scanning solution that enables sharing -- if other costs can thereby be eliminated, such as unnecessary faxing, copying, and filing.
The point is to address the need.
2. Emphasize Productivity Increases
-- The productivity of the American worker is the pride of this nation and the only reason our economy is not in worse shape than it is. Document scanning and imaging has become a fairly major contributor to this productivity.
This contribution must not only continue but increase. A document scanning sales pitch that convinces the business decision-maker that her staff is going to be able to concentrate on their jobs instead of tedious file-finding is convincing in this environment.
Talk about recession concerns and be ready to calculate ROI!
Challenge = Opportunity?
This recession challenge can most definitely be viewed as an opportunity for this industry. Document scanning and imaging can be a big part of cost-cutting and improving efficiency at companies struggling to maintain earnings power amid slowing sales.
If the document imaging industry does not prove, however, that it can help trim expenses while increasing productivity, the industry itself may fall victim to the cost-cutting trend.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Document Imaging How To Videos
Many people think of YouTube as a site to look at when you're bored at work and want to see something home-made and off-beat, such as people getting hit in the crotch with various objects. But YouTube also has an increasingly large business use: how to videos.
Document imaging and document scanning have benefited from this trend. One video maker, called ExpertVillage.com, has a variety of document scanning how to videos posted.
Here's one on how to scan a document on an all-in-one machine.
Here's another one on how to edit blurry digital images in Adobe Photoshop.
Here's one on how to crop and edit digital images.
Other companies post their document imaging sales pitch on YouTube, showing what their products look like and how they work. Watch this guy try to sell you on why every business should use a document scanning service.
Especially if you are a visual learner, these videos can be very helpful in learning what document imaging is good for and specifically how to do certain things. They always told you that YouTube would be more than a collection of videos of people getting hit in the crotch with various objects.
Now, there's proof.
Document imaging and document scanning have benefited from this trend. One video maker, called ExpertVillage.com, has a variety of document scanning how to videos posted.
Here's one on how to scan a document on an all-in-one machine.
Here's another one on how to edit blurry digital images in Adobe Photoshop.
Here's one on how to crop and edit digital images.
Other companies post their document imaging sales pitch on YouTube, showing what their products look like and how they work. Watch this guy try to sell you on why every business should use a document scanning service.
Especially if you are a visual learner, these videos can be very helpful in learning what document imaging is good for and specifically how to do certain things. They always told you that YouTube would be more than a collection of videos of people getting hit in the crotch with various objects.
Now, there's proof.
Friday, October 17, 2008
When Document Imaging, Sharing Is Caring
We, like other people who talk about document imaging, talk a lot about how to not only reduce the amount of paper lying around the office, but make sure that going paperless increases the productivity of the organization that strives for it.
A major point of discussion in this area is how scanned documents are shared within the organization--or not shared, or partially shared, or whatnot. How to make appropriate decisions on that issue and then how to set up systems that work with those decisions. After all, the "new guy" doesn't need to be given instant access to all the company's sensitive documents.
Microsoft SharePoint is an interesting product in this respect. In typically "Microsoftean" fashion, SharePoint can do a huge number of things, but it's not easy to know what it should do for your company. Indeed, a visit to the SharePoint website can be headache-producing.
It's a product worth getting to know, though, because Microsoft has created a compelling technology which can revolutionize your company's ability to collaborate, search, and manage scanned documents. For example, SharePoint works with the other Microsoft programs such as PowerPoint, Excel, and Access.
Major corporations such as Monsanto are using this interopability to build complex systems that facilitate effective sharing of scanned documents across multiple platforms.
Some people have noted that SharePoint has not caught on yet as true business process changer, and this blog does not endorse or advertise SharePoint. However, looking at this high end product and thinking about its sharing capability can open your mind as to what you can do with scanned documents after they've been scanned.
For scanning is only the beginning of a document imaging journey.
A major point of discussion in this area is how scanned documents are shared within the organization--or not shared, or partially shared, or whatnot. How to make appropriate decisions on that issue and then how to set up systems that work with those decisions. After all, the "new guy" doesn't need to be given instant access to all the company's sensitive documents.
Microsoft SharePoint is an interesting product in this respect. In typically "Microsoftean" fashion, SharePoint can do a huge number of things, but it's not easy to know what it should do for your company. Indeed, a visit to the SharePoint website can be headache-producing.
It's a product worth getting to know, though, because Microsoft has created a compelling technology which can revolutionize your company's ability to collaborate, search, and manage scanned documents. For example, SharePoint works with the other Microsoft programs such as PowerPoint, Excel, and Access.
Major corporations such as Monsanto are using this interopability to build complex systems that facilitate effective sharing of scanned documents across multiple platforms.
Some people have noted that SharePoint has not caught on yet as true business process changer, and this blog does not endorse or advertise SharePoint. However, looking at this high end product and thinking about its sharing capability can open your mind as to what you can do with scanned documents after they've been scanned.
For scanning is only the beginning of a document imaging journey.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Document Imaging Jargon -- Defined
It's tough to know what end is up when a salesperson gets to spouting jargon. The document imaging business sees a fair bit of this problem, with MFPs needing to comply with OpenText protocols which aren't necessarily copascetic to VIPs, etc., etc.
In other words, what?
MFP:
This is a big one. Multi-Function Printer is the formal definition, but these machines have outgrown the "printer" label. These machines do a lot more than print, and are the focal point of the entire modern document imaging business. They print, scan, fax, and photocopy -- but they also digitally store and transport imaged documents.
MFPs vary from the relatively simple and inexpensive to the big and pricey.
ADF:
Automatic Document Feeder. A feature included in most MFPs that allows users to place numerous papers into the document scanner rather than feeding each one in manually. Definitely a feature worth having if your scanner gets regular use.
FTP:
File Transfer Protocol. The common language used to move imaged documents around a network. A technical term that's worth getting to know.
WebDAV:
Another technical term that's worth getting to know. The common language within the network that aids file-sharing between multiple users and groups. Hugely important if imaged documents need to be worked on by different people working from different locations.
Also see:
SMB.
TWAIN.
ICC Profile.
At least a working familiarity with these terms makes you a formidable negotiating partner when it comes to buying an MFP with ADF and SMB, based on FTP.
If you know what I mean.
In other words, what?
MFP:
This is a big one. Multi-Function Printer is the formal definition, but these machines have outgrown the "printer" label. These machines do a lot more than print, and are the focal point of the entire modern document imaging business. They print, scan, fax, and photocopy -- but they also digitally store and transport imaged documents.
MFPs vary from the relatively simple and inexpensive to the big and pricey.
ADF:
Automatic Document Feeder. A feature included in most MFPs that allows users to place numerous papers into the document scanner rather than feeding each one in manually. Definitely a feature worth having if your scanner gets regular use.
FTP:
File Transfer Protocol. The common language used to move imaged documents around a network. A technical term that's worth getting to know.
WebDAV:
Another technical term that's worth getting to know. The common language within the network that aids file-sharing between multiple users and groups. Hugely important if imaged documents need to be worked on by different people working from different locations.
Also see:
SMB.
TWAIN.
ICC Profile.
At least a working familiarity with these terms makes you a formidable negotiating partner when it comes to buying an MFP with ADF and SMB, based on FTP.
If you know what I mean.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Document Imaging: Asking the Right Questions?
Before attempting to implement a new or improved document imaging system, it is a good idea to ask yourself--and your organization--some key questions. Here are a few of our favorite:
Do these documents need to be shared with the whole company, or only certain individuals?
Do the documents need to be secured, so that no one who is not authorized to access them will be able to?
How long do the documents need to be stored?
If documents are frequently transferred from one employee to another, how can the system be set up to take this into account?
If a disaster takes place, are the documents backed up in a secure location?
According to what criteria will the documents be "tagged"?
What do the employees think of the document imaging system? Do they find it easy to use?
Asking these questions, even if they can't all be answered at once, is a great start towards building or improving an effective document imaging system. When working with an outside contractor, ask the outside contractor to answer these questions--and then ask more.
A document imaging system is something that, if set up properly initially, really helps an organization. But if not, the system itself can become useless.
Do these documents need to be shared with the whole company, or only certain individuals?
Do the documents need to be secured, so that no one who is not authorized to access them will be able to?
How long do the documents need to be stored?
If documents are frequently transferred from one employee to another, how can the system be set up to take this into account?
If a disaster takes place, are the documents backed up in a secure location?
According to what criteria will the documents be "tagged"?
What do the employees think of the document imaging system? Do they find it easy to use?
Asking these questions, even if they can't all be answered at once, is a great start towards building or improving an effective document imaging system. When working with an outside contractor, ask the outside contractor to answer these questions--and then ask more.
A document imaging system is something that, if set up properly initially, really helps an organization. But if not, the system itself can become useless.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Partner Praise For Document Imaging Clients
Document imaging, as with any business arrangement, requires the attention and effort of both the client and the provider to truly reach its full potential. In this spirit, document imaging company eCopy recently announced its 2008 Best Practices Awards.
The full list is worth a look, but for our purposes, let's just point out a few of the award winners and note why they won. Warning: this may give you some ideas.
The "Best Application Integration" award went to Chesapeake Energy Corporation, for innovating a document imaging solution for the company's more than 1,000 expense reports per month.
The "Best Productivity Improvement" prize went to Extendicare, a medical company that specializes in long-term care. Drowning in paperwork, Extendicare made the move to fully integrate document imaging software into its Oracle business applications for storage, filing, and indexing. The company estimates that these changes save $143,000 annually.
On a smaller scale, law firm Klarquist Sparkman, LLP was singled out because of a simple but important change: the firm began "tagging" scanned files at the time of scanning, rather than going back and having to manually open up each file and tag it then.
Once more, the vital nature of tagging and tagging properly cannot be overestimated when it comes to document scanning and imaging. Documents that are not properly tagged are not easily findable--defeating the whole purpose of document imaging itself.
The full list is worth a look, but for our purposes, let's just point out a few of the award winners and note why they won. Warning: this may give you some ideas.
The "Best Application Integration" award went to Chesapeake Energy Corporation, for innovating a document imaging solution for the company's more than 1,000 expense reports per month.
The "Best Productivity Improvement" prize went to Extendicare, a medical company that specializes in long-term care. Drowning in paperwork, Extendicare made the move to fully integrate document imaging software into its Oracle business applications for storage, filing, and indexing. The company estimates that these changes save $143,000 annually.
On a smaller scale, law firm Klarquist Sparkman, LLP was singled out because of a simple but important change: the firm began "tagging" scanned files at the time of scanning, rather than going back and having to manually open up each file and tag it then.
Once more, the vital nature of tagging and tagging properly cannot be overestimated when it comes to document scanning and imaging. Documents that are not properly tagged are not easily findable--defeating the whole purpose of document imaging itself.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Document Imaging Goes Green With Gusto
The idea of going paperless is about the most ecologically responsible act we can think of. Aside from its business benefits, it's a good thing to do for the planet (especially the trees).
However, not all document imaging companies are created equal when it comes to going green. A large, average, multi-function copier is among the most energy intensive of all office machines. And a lot of document imaging companies use large, average, multi-function copiers.
Other document imaging companies are making green an explicit focus, like FileVision, out in San Francisco. They are on a green kick for sure. Interestingly, FileVision sees the Internet as a main tool for going green in the document imaging biz. After all, connectivity allows the transfer of documents, not just their storage. This is a big deal, no doubt.
At the same time, involving the Internet in your document scanning and imaging strategy entails a rethinking of security issues. Password protect documents that need to stay private even as they're in transit. It's a must.
However, not all document imaging companies are created equal when it comes to going green. A large, average, multi-function copier is among the most energy intensive of all office machines. And a lot of document imaging companies use large, average, multi-function copiers.
Other document imaging companies are making green an explicit focus, like FileVision, out in San Francisco. They are on a green kick for sure. Interestingly, FileVision sees the Internet as a main tool for going green in the document imaging biz. After all, connectivity allows the transfer of documents, not just their storage. This is a big deal, no doubt.
At the same time, involving the Internet in your document scanning and imaging strategy entails a rethinking of security issues. Password protect documents that need to stay private even as they're in transit. It's a must.
Monday, October 6, 2008
Document Imaging Entrepreneur: David Hunt
Check out this story out of Memphis, about an entrepreneur named David Hunt who recently entered the document imaging business. Mr. Hunt is a great example of the American dream in action, still alive and kicking.
While working two jobs early in his career, Hunt saved up $100,000 to start his own business, H&H Services. The venture started with only Hunt and his wife, but grew consistently and grossed $6.5 million in revenues last year. With 35 employees, H&H owns three Seattle's Best Coffee shops, a Perkins restaurant, and two Hampton Hotels.
Now Hunt is entering the document imaging business. His first two big accounts are St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and the Regional Medical Center at Memphis.
The reason we mention this story is not only to make a point about American entrepreneurship, but also to make a point about document imaging. Or, actually, two points about document imaging.
The first is that document imaging is a service more than it is a product. This is why we predict that H&H will do well in this field. Serving customers in a coffee shop is not all that different than serving customers in the office; it's all about customer service, in both places.
The second point is that document imaging is an easy sell. Lower costs, greater efficiency. That's it. That's the whole sell. Mr. Hunt said it well: "There's a lot of opportunity here." Because everybody wants lower costs, greater efficiency.
Good luck to David Hunt. And, if you are in the market for document imaging or document scanning services, consider using a service that sees its business as a service rather than a product, and look for lower costs and greater efficiency.
While working two jobs early in his career, Hunt saved up $100,000 to start his own business, H&H Services. The venture started with only Hunt and his wife, but grew consistently and grossed $6.5 million in revenues last year. With 35 employees, H&H owns three Seattle's Best Coffee shops, a Perkins restaurant, and two Hampton Hotels.
Now Hunt is entering the document imaging business. His first two big accounts are St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and the Regional Medical Center at Memphis.
The reason we mention this story is not only to make a point about American entrepreneurship, but also to make a point about document imaging. Or, actually, two points about document imaging.
The first is that document imaging is a service more than it is a product. This is why we predict that H&H will do well in this field. Serving customers in a coffee shop is not all that different than serving customers in the office; it's all about customer service, in both places.
The second point is that document imaging is an easy sell. Lower costs, greater efficiency. That's it. That's the whole sell. Mr. Hunt said it well: "There's a lot of opportunity here." Because everybody wants lower costs, greater efficiency.
Good luck to David Hunt. And, if you are in the market for document imaging or document scanning services, consider using a service that sees its business as a service rather than a product, and look for lower costs and greater efficiency.
Friday, October 3, 2008
Document Scanning: Easy But Not Simple
People who haven't done it may not understand exactly how easy it is to scan a paper document to a PDF file. Check out this video from the TigerDirect blog here to see a demonstration of exactly how very easy it can be. The guy even has an Australian accent.
However, easy does not mean simple when it comes to document imaging, and just because you can scan a document to PDF does not mean that you are exploiting the full potential of "going paperless." Indeed, an Adobe PDF file is a powerful thing these days.
Check out Adobe's description of how powerful here. But don't take their word for it. Check out what other companies are building on top of the PDF paradigm. And remember, Adobe has been working on PDF technology for upwards of 15 years now.
For example, let's think for a second about search. The PDF file format has been "Google-ized" to a quite significant degree. But many people do not use this function. In essence, then, documents are scanned and the paper thrown away, but you still can't find what you're looking for when you're looking for it. Needless to say, this can be frustrating.
Watch this tutorial to see how you can avoid this problem by making your PDF files searchable.
However, within that larger idea of making scanned document searchable, there are a variety of technical concerns which can either help or hinder the effectiveness of the search function with regard to your documents in particular. Effective "tagging" of documents, for example, can mean the difference between good search and bad search. Read about tagging here.
Businesspeople looking to fully exploit the power of PDF may want to consider working with an expert to build an effective system.
However, easy does not mean simple when it comes to document imaging, and just because you can scan a document to PDF does not mean that you are exploiting the full potential of "going paperless." Indeed, an Adobe PDF file is a powerful thing these days.
Check out Adobe's description of how powerful here. But don't take their word for it. Check out what other companies are building on top of the PDF paradigm. And remember, Adobe has been working on PDF technology for upwards of 15 years now.
For example, let's think for a second about search. The PDF file format has been "Google-ized" to a quite significant degree. But many people do not use this function. In essence, then, documents are scanned and the paper thrown away, but you still can't find what you're looking for when you're looking for it. Needless to say, this can be frustrating.
Watch this tutorial to see how you can avoid this problem by making your PDF files searchable.
However, within that larger idea of making scanned document searchable, there are a variety of technical concerns which can either help or hinder the effectiveness of the search function with regard to your documents in particular. Effective "tagging" of documents, for example, can mean the difference between good search and bad search. Read about tagging here.
Businesspeople looking to fully exploit the power of PDF may want to consider working with an expert to build an effective system.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Do You Need a New Scanner?
Your scanner broke down. But the fact is, you weren't using it that much to begin with. So now you need to decide whether buying a new scanner is worth it.
On the one hand, money is tight. On the other, there are those times you really need a scanner, and you'd rather buy a good one that will last.
If you do find yourself in the market for a new scanner, check out this review. There are some inexpensive scanners out that are pretty solid performers.
However, you also should consider the good old "user error" issue. Whether you operate the scanner or someone else in your office gets the job, they need patience to avoid incidents like this. And they also need some level of training on the machine.
A third option is to contract the document imaging work out to a third-party. Pricing depends on the job, of course, but some services charge as little as 8 cents per page for scans to PDF. Let's say you scan 700 pages. That'd cost you $56 -- with no hassle.
Outsourcing to a document imaging/scanning service may be the right choice for you.
A little tip: if you do decide to outsource some or all of your document imaging needs, consider (tedious as it may be) going through the papers and taking out all the staples and folds ahead of time. Any time someone has to work on a page by page basis, they're going to charge more.
You'd do the same, I bet.
On the one hand, money is tight. On the other, there are those times you really need a scanner, and you'd rather buy a good one that will last.
If you do find yourself in the market for a new scanner, check out this review. There are some inexpensive scanners out that are pretty solid performers.
However, you also should consider the good old "user error" issue. Whether you operate the scanner or someone else in your office gets the job, they need patience to avoid incidents like this. And they also need some level of training on the machine.
A third option is to contract the document imaging work out to a third-party. Pricing depends on the job, of course, but some services charge as little as 8 cents per page for scans to PDF. Let's say you scan 700 pages. That'd cost you $56 -- with no hassle.
Outsourcing to a document imaging/scanning service may be the right choice for you.
A little tip: if you do decide to outsource some or all of your document imaging needs, consider (tedious as it may be) going through the papers and taking out all the staples and folds ahead of time. Any time someone has to work on a page by page basis, they're going to charge more.
You'd do the same, I bet.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Keeping Document Imaging Real
There is a certain amount of resistance to going totally paperless. Despite all the technological advancements, this resistance has not yet "gone away." And in fact it's not likely to, ever.
Why? Because it's against human nature. Human beings like to be able to see and hold things. Always have, always will.
We encounter this every day in the document imaging business. People feel as if once they scan a document and put it in that computer, they won't be able to see it and hold it anymore -- and that makes them uncomfortable.
Document imaging providers have found it necessary, then, to work many hours with clients to develop effective filing and naming systems for documents that used to be tactile pieces of paper but now are somewhere inside that mysterious white (or black, or gray) box.
Watch the video located at http://www.disusa.com to get an idea of how contentious these issues of storage and retrieval remain within the industry, even today. The document imaging business is still constantly searching for ways to keep digitized documents accessible to real live human beings, who like to see and hold things.
So are businesspeople looking for those ways. One manager I know places different colored rocks in a formation known only to him that somehow (don't ask me) reminds him where, within his computer system, specific highly valuable documents are.
Hey, whatever works, right?
Why? Because it's against human nature. Human beings like to be able to see and hold things. Always have, always will.
We encounter this every day in the document imaging business. People feel as if once they scan a document and put it in that computer, they won't be able to see it and hold it anymore -- and that makes them uncomfortable.
Document imaging providers have found it necessary, then, to work many hours with clients to develop effective filing and naming systems for documents that used to be tactile pieces of paper but now are somewhere inside that mysterious white (or black, or gray) box.
Watch the video located at http://www.disusa.com to get an idea of how contentious these issues of storage and retrieval remain within the industry, even today. The document imaging business is still constantly searching for ways to keep digitized documents accessible to real live human beings, who like to see and hold things.
So are businesspeople looking for those ways. One manager I know places different colored rocks in a formation known only to him that somehow (don't ask me) reminds him where, within his computer system, specific highly valuable documents are.
Hey, whatever works, right?
Monday, September 8, 2008
Document Imaging FAQs
What is document imaging?
The process of using software and scanners to transfer an image to a digital picture. The image can be stored in a system that gives users the ability to access many documents.
How are documents indexed?
- Manual entry
- Second pass entry and verification of index fields
- Full text indexing
What types of images can I scan?
Documents entail pictures, posters, brochures, pages of text, etc.
Document Imaging News:
Conquer Information Chaos
What is scanning software?
The software allows the computer to take digital impressions of a document. It optimizes shading, clarity, and contrast.
What does "scan ready" mean?
It means the paper document is ready to be accessed to the scanning equipment. There must be no staples, tears, or wrinkles on the document.
What types of processes does the document undergo?
Images are de-skewed, de-speckled, rotated, mirrored, background colors are dropped, and borders are trimmed and removed.
How can I use document imaging?
- Read the documents on your monitor rather than have a hard copy
- Have the ability to fax documents using a modem
- Have the ability to edit the document
- Print out the pages whenever needed
How many pages can fit onto one CD?
About 15,000 letter-sized pages can fit onto one CD. Color and images take up more memory, so the number of pages containing such would be less.
The process of using software and scanners to transfer an image to a digital picture. The image can be stored in a system that gives users the ability to access many documents.
How are documents indexed?
- Manual entry
- Second pass entry and verification of index fields
- Full text indexing
What types of images can I scan?
Documents entail pictures, posters, brochures, pages of text, etc.
Document Imaging News:
Conquer Information Chaos
What is scanning software?
The software allows the computer to take digital impressions of a document. It optimizes shading, clarity, and contrast.
What does "scan ready" mean?
It means the paper document is ready to be accessed to the scanning equipment. There must be no staples, tears, or wrinkles on the document.
What types of processes does the document undergo?
Images are de-skewed, de-speckled, rotated, mirrored, background colors are dropped, and borders are trimmed and removed.
How can I use document imaging?
- Read the documents on your monitor rather than have a hard copy
- Have the ability to fax documents using a modem
- Have the ability to edit the document
- Print out the pages whenever needed
How many pages can fit onto one CD?
About 15,000 letter-sized pages can fit onto one CD. Color and images take up more memory, so the number of pages containing such would be less.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Document Imaging Trends
OCR - Optical character recognition allows you to grab information from scanned documents. The technology has been around since the 90's, but its accuracy has improved considerably through recent years.
MFP - The multifunction peripheral is a single machine that acts as a printer, fax machine, photocopier, and scanner.
SharePoint Server - This software is a content management system. The software enables document imaging, as well as imaging for spreadsheets, photographs, videos, and other digital materials.
MFP - The multifunction peripheral is a single machine that acts as a printer, fax machine, photocopier, and scanner.
SharePoint Server - This software is a content management system. The software enables document imaging, as well as imaging for spreadsheets, photographs, videos, and other digital materials.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Document Imaging Provides a Reason to Decorate the Office
The process of document imaging creates the opportunity to get rid of paper vessels in order to create free space in the office.
With more space available, you can exercise the option of decorating your office.
Consider the following decorating suggestions:
- To begin, you want to be sure to adhere to your company's guidelines regarding decorating. Every business is different. Some companies may frown upon any personal decoration, while others may be as liberal as letting you paint the walls.
- Get ideas and items from around your house. You have decorated your place of living according to your style, so it would make sense to emulate the same decor for your office space. Bring in items from your house and place them around your working quarters.
- Put up a lot of pictures. Think of a particular theme and search for portraits that are germane to the central idea.
- Keep your office space well lit. Think about getting a lamp to supplement day and ceiling lights.
- Avoid a cluttered desk and work area. Only leave items on your desk that you will utilize regularly. All other things can be stored away for later use.
With more space available, you can exercise the option of decorating your office.
Consider the following decorating suggestions:
- To begin, you want to be sure to adhere to your company's guidelines regarding decorating. Every business is different. Some companies may frown upon any personal decoration, while others may be as liberal as letting you paint the walls.
- Get ideas and items from around your house. You have decorated your place of living according to your style, so it would make sense to emulate the same decor for your office space. Bring in items from your house and place them around your working quarters.
- Put up a lot of pictures. Think of a particular theme and search for portraits that are germane to the central idea.
- Keep your office space well lit. Think about getting a lamp to supplement day and ceiling lights.
- Avoid a cluttered desk and work area. Only leave items on your desk that you will utilize regularly. All other things can be stored away for later use.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Save Office Space with Document Imaging
Along with other benefits of document imaging, the process can contribute to the conservation of office space.
Filing cabinets can be bulky and displeasing to the eye. Document scanning services relieve the need for the storage vehicles.
Instead, you can spread out the desks in the office (giving employees more room) or you can decorate your office with flowers, furniture, or sculptures.
Other scanning service news:
Businesses Less Dependent on Paper Processes - Kodak.com
Shasta Pools & Spas Deploys Document Imaging Solution From eCopy and OptiScan - BNet
Filing cabinets can be bulky and displeasing to the eye. Document scanning services relieve the need for the storage vehicles.
Instead, you can spread out the desks in the office (giving employees more room) or you can decorate your office with flowers, furniture, or sculptures.
Other scanning service news:
Businesses Less Dependent on Paper Processes - Kodak.com
Shasta Pools & Spas Deploys Document Imaging Solution From eCopy and OptiScan - BNet
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Introduction to Document Imaging Solutions
Document Imaging converts physical, paper documents to electronic images. This makes it easy to locate, modify, and share company documents.
Why else should you adopt the document imaging process?
- Document imaging prevents lost records
- Your company will save on storage space
- Managing records is easier with document imaging
- Processes can be automated
- Document imaging reduces operating costs
- Eliminates the chance of data loss
It is easy to integrate the process:
- Document imaging vendors scan your documents into a system
- The imaging system stores your documents on a hard drive or optical disk
- Documents are tracked and indexed
- Documents can be retrieved, modified, and shared through your company's internal computer system
Many vendors exist to provide Document Imaging Services; receive quotes from several sources before making a final decision.
Why else should you adopt the document imaging process?
- Document imaging prevents lost records
- Your company will save on storage space
- Managing records is easier with document imaging
- Processes can be automated
- Document imaging reduces operating costs
- Eliminates the chance of data loss
It is easy to integrate the process:
- Document imaging vendors scan your documents into a system
- The imaging system stores your documents on a hard drive or optical disk
- Documents are tracked and indexed
- Documents can be retrieved, modified, and shared through your company's internal computer system
Many vendors exist to provide Document Imaging Services; receive quotes from several sources before making a final decision.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
