The DIY Book Scanner

azoblue writes "Daniel Reetz did not want to lug around heavy textbooks, so he built a book scanner to create digital copies. '... over three days, and for about $300, he lashed together two lights, two Canon Powershot A590 cameras, a few pieces of acrylic and some chunks of wood to create a book scanner that's fast enough to scan a 400-page book in about 20 minutes (PDF). To use it, he simply loads in a book and presses a button, then turns the page and presses the button again. Each press of the button captures two pages, and when he's done, software on Reetz's computer converts the book into a PDF file. The Reetz DIY book scanner isn't automated — you still need to stand by it to turn the pages. But it's fast and inexpensive.'"

Comments

Too bad slavery is illegal

[Anonymous Coward]

This would be a good activity for the winter months when farming isn't possible.

Re:Too bad slavery is illegal

[Anonymous Coward]

This would be a good activity for the winter months when farming isn't possible.

That's why God gave us illegal immigrants.

I've

[Kamineko]

What a coincidece! I too have a book scanner that scans books, and requires a human operator to attend to turning the pages.

It's called a scanner.

Re:I've

[Jeremy Erwin]

Has anyone tried shotgun scanning yet? Irregularly shred the books, feed the shreds into a bulk scanner, and use a computer to reassemble.

Re:A bargain

[GNUALMAFUERTE]

Better yet, how much does a high school student fetch on ebay?

Re:Cameras usually stink for this....

[Chris Tucker]

I am well aware of how the Mars cameras work, having done a metric shitload of B&W "color" photography via filters myself.

And you, obviously, know exactly dick about not being an asshole.