#scanner help
13 messages in this thread
I currently use a Framegrabber connected to my video camera to digitize
photographs for use in deluxe paint and PagesetterII. I would like to get a
scanner to improve the resolution. Has anyone had any experience with
scanners for the Amiga, and can anyone give me any azdvice or suggestions?
Walter,
That same question was asked recently here, and the general concensus
seemed to be that for full page color work, the best price/performance
value available was an Epson ES-300C color flatbed scanner ($999) with
ASDG's driver software ($200 list/$139 mail order).
For small scans, the Sharp JX100 ($769 or so) is a 4" X 5" color scanner,
with lower resolution than the Epson, but comes bundled with driver
software from ASDG.
– Whapp!ng from the North Coast Michael
Thanks for the fast response. What about the smaller, cheaper hadn
scanners? I am mainly interested in grey scale. What is Whaping?
Migraph has an excellent greyscale hand scanner package for the Amiga that
sells for around $300.
Whap! is a program, that like TAPCI$, automates online access to compuserve
forums, saving you lots of $$. You can find a working demo of it in
AmigaVendor, in the ATI library.
– Whapp!ng from the North Coast Michael
Great. the Migraph unit sounds like what I'm looking for. Do you have an
address or phone for them? Thanks for the poop on Whap
Call Briwall at 800-638-5757, they sell the Golden Image Handscanner which
is the same thing as the Migraph, for $269.
Montgomer Grant, 800-759-6565 sells the Golden Image Handscanner for $239.
Best yet, call Creative Computers and ask them the difference between a)
golden image handscanner @ $289 and b) MiGraph Handscanner (1 meg min req)
@ $ 359.
Good-luck,
– Whapp!ng from the North Coast Michael
Hey, thanks for all of this really excellent info!
Computability in Milwaukee has the Golden Image/Migraph Hand Scanner, plus
Touchup software, PLUS they are now throwing in Deluxe Paint III, all for
$229. Their number is 800-553-0003. I recently got it and like it pretty
well.
Mike
Great. Tell me about it: How high is the resolution? Does the image looked
better than that produced with a frame grabber or digitizer? How large can
the original be? Thanks!
Resolution goes up to 400 dpi. Since my printer only goes to 300 dpi, I
don't know if there's any benefit to be had from using a higher resolution,
so I leave it at 300. There are a range of about 4 settings for what I
will call "subject matter," and detemines the number of gray levels you
get. Photos are at one end, black and white text is at the other. I
haven't tried the two settings in between. I suppose it's obvious but I'll
say it anyway, that a frame grabber can only grab pixels, so unless you're
shrinking an image rather significantly, or unless your pixels are 1/300",
resolution will be much better than a frame grabber. I'm no video whiz but
I would imagine the same is true with a digitizer.
Bear in mind that if I scan an area of 2" x 4" the resulting image can be
larger than my screen. Another way to think about it is that to have any
hope of working with the image on screen, you have to working with a
massive blow up of what the scanner has recorded, and you can only work
with a small region of it at a time. When you zoom out to full image, your
screen will not be able to faithfully represent the detail that's in there.
When you pop that image into a DTP document and send it to a Laserjet or
Deskjet, it will then be done reasonable justice. It will also bear the
scars of any manipulations done along the way.
You can scan any size image, but individual scans are limited by the
physical width of the scanner and a linear limit in the Touchup software of
about 10 inches, I believe. In addition, I have heard from others that
joining two adjacent scans together is diabolically difficult. I bought
mine for the limited purpose of scanning Japanese characters into a DTP
document and printing them to make flashcards for a Japanese course. My
typical image is smaller than 1" x 2" and is pure B&W on a flat sheet of
nonglossy paper, so I don't have much experience with testing the limits of
the system.
Mike [continued]
[continued]
Scanning simple figures and getting good rendition can actually be more
difficult than working with more complex figures, because as you scan down
or across the image your scan has what might be called a "grain", the
alignment of dots as recorded by the scanner. The probability of that
alignment lining up perfectly with the vertical and horizontal lines in the
scanned image is vanishingly small. Likewise, what are the chances that
you can make two successive passes that are parallel to within 1/300"?
That's why piecing two scans together can be difficult. My suggestion
would be that if you want to scan images larger than the width of the
scanner, and you absolutely can't afford or for some other reason don't
want a flatbed, get your hand scanner from a source that will allow you to
return it if it doesn't work out for you. Some places may even let you
rent one for a while to try it out.
Finally, you should know that the Golden Image scanner plugs into the
parallel port, so your options to avoid a lot of hassle are: 1) serial
printer (then you share with your modem, or have multiple serial ports); 2)
parallel switchbox, which may cause problems; or 3) multiple parallel ports
(is there such a thing?). I use the switchbox and find that when I switch
to my printer, the scanner comes on and stays on — I have to unplug the
power supply. The printer doesn't seem to get much heartburn from
switching to scanner, but people who sell the fancy software-switchable
electronic switchboxes will tell you that some manual switchboxes can short
out the motherboards on some laser printers. I don't know. I use a manual
switchbox and my Deskjet seems none the worse for wear. I do get some
antics out of it if I tell Touchup to do a scan while the box is set to
printer.
I hope this helps. Good luck.
Mike
Migraph now has a program called Merge-It that lets you merge two halves of
a scan quite easily. They also sell a scanner tray, or whatever it is
called, that lets you scan the right and left sides of a picture that is
wider than 4 inches (up to 8 inches), which you can then merge with
Merge-It. The tray also keeps the scanner moving in a straight line, so
that the two images merge very nicely. Migraph is in Federal Way,
Washington. Phone 206-838-4677.
– via Whap!