Blog
Microform Reader Printers: Vintage Viewing Technology
We recently spoke to a Crowley Digitization Services client who had a microform reader printer at home for the sole recreational purpose of reading old/out-of-print science fiction on microfiche. (For the layperson, a reader printer is a device used to magnify and view microfilm, microfiche, or other types of microform.) As we typically work in the corporate/public domain, this personal use intrigued us. How many others use microform at home? For what purpose? Where do they get the media? And the…
Anticipating ARMA
The InoTec SCAMAX 8×1 Debuts At Crowley, we can’t wait for October 25th. That’s the day we get our hands on the SCAMAX® 8×1 Ultra High-Performance Document Scanner and get to dig in deep. “I’ve always been impressed with the throughput and sorting of the InoTec document scanners, especially the 400-series,” says Crowley Vice President Matt McCabe. “But I operated the 8×1 in Germany earlier this year and cannot wait to bring it to the North American market. It’s an incredible…
Digitization Discoveries: Uncovering a Skeleton at Penn
There are many reasons to digitize collections. Museums and archives primarily digitize for preservation purposes. Government entities and commercial institutions digitize for preservation and to improve records management functions. Libraries may digitize to provide enhanced media and online research access. What is often surprising about digitization projects are the hidden gems uncovered when bringing forgotten or misplaced materials to light. This is exactly the sort of unexpected revelation recently experienced by the University of Pennsylvania (Penn) Museum of Archaeology and…
Service Bureau Walkabout
In need of a little blog inspiration today, I went to the one location in our Frederick, Md. headquarters that always makes me happy – our Crowley Imaging service bureau. While I’m intrigued by the equipment, manufacturing and technical sides of our business, my artsy right brain loves taking the 26 steps from my desk to the threshold of our imaging division. That 27th step never fails to transport me from desk jockey to treasure hunter. The lights are always…
Microfilm and the Greatest International Scavenger Hunt the World Has Ever Seen
Writing images to microfilm is not an unusual request for Crowley Imaging. It is unusual, however, to get a request to write only 15 images to microfilm. Five times. In two days. From five different people. In five different locations. We asked a few questions, did a little research and found that the request was part of an international scavenger hunt that raises awareness for charity: GISHWHES (aka the Greatest International Scavenger Hunt the World Has Even Seen). It is,…
Broadening Reach with Resellers
From its humble beginnings as a one-person firm started by Jerry Crowley in 1980, The Crowley Company has grown in many ways and yet remains a small business at heart. Now with divisions in Frederick, MD, Basingstoke, UK, and San Dimas and Newbury Park, CA, Crowley has sprawled out across the map with expanding staff, brands and services. Today led by brothers Chris and Pat Crowley, the company remains a family business and preserves this mentality in the way it…
Quantum Happiness
Last week we received the kind of email every business wants to receive: a glowing review, a good tip and an idea for further engagement – the trifecta of customer response. A State Archivist wrote: “After framing the first fiche…in QuantumProcess, I used “Progogate this page” and since they [the images] were all shot the same, it took very minor tweaking to get the rest perfect. These machines are more flexible than I ever imagined. Is there an official forum…
From Scanning to Salmon: Installing an InoTec in Alaska
In April, we discussed technical support services and celebrated the 50th state milestone of Crowley technician Steve Sheckels. Today, we take a look into the life of another Sheckels brother, Kris. You may remember Kris as the imaging specialist who scanned the Rosenberg diary under armed guard. Now a Crowley Imaging service bureau project manager, Kris used to also be a traveling technician. This past week, he took a step into his past life and flew cross-country to Bethel, Alaska…
From Google Alert to Dorothea Lange
As I reluctantly shook off the long weekend and dragged my cursor through Monday morning’s inbox, I was pleasantly surprised to see a Google Alert entitled “Fourth of July Celebrations from the 1870s to 1940” citing “Library of Congress, The Crowley Company/Dorothea Lange.” Getting an alert that actually applies is akin to getting a ‘real’ letter in the mail: you don’t know if you should open it first because it’s not junk or draw out the anticipation to later savor…
Celebrating Independence; Remembering the Revolution
As we celebrate Independence Day this week, we appreciate that the 4th of July is more than an excuse for a three-day weekend (although it’s a plus). It’s a chance to celebrate the day we declared ourselves a free nation. There are several organizations such as the Daughters of the American Revolution, Daughters of Colonial Wars and more who devote not just one day, but generations to memorializing the Revolutionary War and its role in shaping our country’s history. Crowley…