Digital Imaging Systems – Part 1

by D.R.Hunt

An introduction for the uninitiate and the unwary.

There’s a lot of hype going around information, management circles, about Digital Imaging Systems and about Optical Disks. So much so, that it’s beginning to get me annoyed !! It takes a lot to get me annoyed, but of late I have been party to receiving so much specious, doubtful and down right incorrect information, that I feel in my own way I should start to put the record straight.

What this is about.

This particular paper is about imaging systems and the technical side of it at that. I find that it’s on the technical side that potential users feel most ignorant, and at the same time are at the mercy of equally ignorant sales people (not that this paper is going to be heavily technical, just enough so’s you know what people are talking about, sales persons, and potential buyers alike). I don’t propose to look at the alternatives, only to warn you that imaging systems aren’t God’s answer to the filing clerk and are designed to satisfy certain fairly rigid criteria. It most certainly does not mean that imaging systems are the-all embracing answer to all your filing problems. Just because it’s the newest approach, does’n necessary mean it’s the best answer to your particular problems. Just a thought – I wonder why salesmen don’t like me, could be because I say things like that.

A few technical purists who read this are going to be upset. If, as I suggest, I know so much about it, why isn’t this paper presented in a precise and formal way, without the sweeping. generalisations, the screaming approximations and the simplified explanations, and why isn’t it written in a format English, instead of the appalling informal style I’ve chosen ? Well, all I can say to you Sir, is that this isn’t written for you, you probably know it all already, having read those awful wordy boring reports and papers I’ve had to read to understand what it’s about. This has been written for those who wish to know generally what’s going on, not the precise details. I know I use generalisations, and approximations. It’s fine in its place, for guys like you and me who have to actually understand precisely what makes a thing tick, but it’s still boring reading. I’ve written turgid technical stuff before, and believe me, I like writing it even less than I like reading it written by others. So if you don’t like my writing style – tuf !