DIGITIZATION OF DATA

DIGITIZATION OF DATA

What is Digitization of data? Digitization is the process of converting analog information into a digital format. For example, scanning of analog source like printed photos or taped text, images or videos into computers for editing.

Digitizing is the primary way of storing images in a form suitable for transmission and computer processing whether scanned or captured using an image sensor equipped device such as digital camera.

Stages of Digitization

Digitization occurs in two parts or stages, which are:

1. Discretization: This is the reading of an analog signal at regular interval (frequency), sampling the value of the signal at the point. Each reading is called a sample.
2. Quantization: This is the rounding of sample to a fixed set of numbers (such as integers).

Generally, the two parts can occur at the same time.

Benefits of Digitization

Digitized data has the following benefits.

1. It allows easy and customized access to information
2. It allows long term preservation of document
3. It also makes dissemination of information through images, texts, internet, intranet and extranet easy.
4. It gives room for orderly ordinary of document.

Digitization Steps

1. Identification of client’s needs and intended use of the digitized records.
2. Translating the needs to digitizing objectives by means of requirement specification, system analysis for the planned product.
3. Development of a pilot application of technology for approval and testing. This may involve some source materials like printed form, images, sound and video
4. The documents are now printed so that their accuracy can be checked manually. These are scanned using special Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software and the data are keyed in. The output is checked manually by proof readers before being converted to the desired format (ASCII, HYML, PDF, DOCX, etc.)
5. The images are scanned, old and faded images are recorded using advanced digital correction software. The sound and video data are captured through a data capturing software.
6. The digitized data are integrated into an easily accessible form by incorporating indexes and table of contents. These are now on CD-ROM, or other suitable media depending on the intended use of the data.
7. Accuracy is achieved through a double keying system where every coding entry is made twice and automatically compared with appropriate software.