As professionals, we are always looking for tools that will help us produce, in a timely and practical manner, flawless work that can stand up to the harshest scrutiny - after all, time does equal money.
Fortunately, thanks to the technology we now all have at our disposal, we can choose from a varied selection of electronic equipment that can help us achieve our professional goals.
Whether you work from home or in a corporate environment, one of the most important tools you will need is a flatbed colour scanner.
Thanks to this machine, you can get instant access to digital reproductions of either written text/pictures or small objects.
For easy scanning, you simply open the flatbed scanner and gently deposit, face down, on the glass pane, the image or item you wish scanned.
Gently lower the cover of the flatbed scanner as this will trigger the interior sensor arrays - usually a charge-coupled device (CCD) or a contact image sensor (CIS)) - which will automatically start moving over the image or item, reading an imagine based on the light reflection.
Once the 'light show' is over, you can safely remove your document or object.
You now have a reproduction, thanks to the scanning process, of the text or picture you have scanned, or a picture of object that you have scanned.
It is worth remembering that the quality of the image will vary greatly, based on your choice of scanner, so purchasing the right scanner, based on your own personal requirements can be crucial.
There are currently quite a number of colour flatbed scanners available on the market, particularly since they are so versatile and can scan such a large variety of objects - however, they are not all created equally.
When choosing your next flatbed scanner, you should consider a few guidelines: - Do your research and read up on scanners.
Understanding the basic functionality along with the additional functions of the machine will help you determine what you need.
- Consider your needs - are you looking for a scanner for home or office? What type of imagines/objects will you be scanning? What size scanner can fit well with your working space? - What type of quality images do you need? Are you scanning mainly text or pictures? Never settle for a scanner with less than 36-bit colour and don't be afraid to go higher for sharper, brighter images.
- Take a moment to determine what kind of computer connection you need.
While most scanners today are set up with the classic USB connection, some older scanners may use a parallel port.
You will want to make sure that the scanner and computer ports are compatible.
- Determine your price range.
By factoring in all of these guidelines, you will be able to sort through the myriad of information that will be coming at you when you actually do go shopping for the scanner that you want.
Remember that knowledge is power - so make sure that you are prepared.