PROV state of the art scanning equipment for researchers' use

Thumbs up to the Public Records Office of Victoria (PROV) for the quality of the equipment available for researchers' use in their North Melbourne Reading Room.

As well as cameras connected to computers for photographing documents, they also provide camera stands to easily use your own digital SLR camera.

PROV's best innovation, however, is the introduction of scanners connected to computers. The documents are placed on a flatbed while the overhead lights focus on and scan the document which is then automatically saved to a USB thumb drive.

Designed to minimise record damage, the scanners are very quick, easy to use and produce high quality images. Unlike traditional flatbed scanners they operate without ever needing to drop the scanner's lid thus flattening the file/document in the process.

PROV is the only Archive I know which provides this level of facilities to assist researchers. Other, much larger, national and international institutions could (and should) take a leaf out of PROV's book.

Therese Lynch

Your Family Genealogist

Picture : with thanks to Unsplash