Digitization
Digitization[1] is the process of converting information into a digital (i.e. computer-readable) format.[2] The result is the representation of an object, image, sound, document, or signal (usually an analog signal) obtained by generating a series of numbers that describe a discrete set of points or samples.[3] The result is called digital representation or, more specifically, a digital image, for the object, and digital form, for the signal. In modern practice, the digitized data is in the form of binary numbers, which facilitates processing by digital computers and other operations, but digitizing simply means "the conversion of analog source material into a numerical format"; the decimal or any other number system can be used instead.[4]
"Digitizer" redirects here. For other uses, see Digitizer (disambiguation).
Digitization is of crucial importance to data processing, storage, and transmission, because it "allows information of all kinds in all formats to be carried with the same efficiency and also intermingled."[5] Though analog data is typically more stable, digital data has the potential to be more easily shared and accessed and, in theory, can be propagated indefinitely without generation loss, provided it is migrated to new, stable formats as needed.[6] This potential has led to institutional digitization projects designed to improve access and the rapid growth of the digital preservation field.[7]
Sometimes digitization and digital preservation are mistaken for the same thing. They are different, but digitization is often a vital first step in digital preservation.[8] Libraries, archives, museums, and other memory institutions digitize items to preserve fragile materials and create more access points for patrons.[9] Doing this creates challenges for information professionals and solutions can be as varied as the institutions that implement them.[10] Some analog materials, such as audio and video tapes, are nearing the end of their life cycle, and it is important to digitize them before equipment obsolescence and media deterioration makes the data irretrievable.[11]
There are challenges and implications surrounding digitization including time, cost, cultural history concerns, and creating an equitable platform for historically marginalized voices.[12] Many digitizing institutions develop their own solutions to these challenges.[9]
Mass digitization projects have had mixed results over the years, but some institutions have had success even if not in the traditional Google Books model.[13] Although e-books have undermined the sales of their printed counterparts, a study from 2017 indicated that the two cater to different audiences and use-cases.[14] In a study of over 1400 university students it was found that physical literature is more apt for intense studies while e-books provide a superior experience for leisurely reading.[14]
Technological changes can happen often and quickly, so digitization standards are difficult to keep updated. Professionals in the field can attend conferences and join organizations and working groups to keep their knowledge current and add to the conversation.[15]
Analog signals to digital[edit]
Analog signals are continuous electrical signals; digital signals are non-continuous. Analog signals can be converted to digital signals by using an analog-to-digital converter.[23]
The process of converting analog to digital consists of two parts: sampling and quantizing. Sampling measures wave amplitudes at regular intervals, splits them along the vertical axis, and assigns them a numerical value, while quantizing looks for measurements that are between binary values and rounds them up or down.[24]
Nearly all recorded music has been digitized, and about 12 percent of the 500,000+ movies listed on the Internet Movie Database are digitized and were released on DVD.[25][26]
Digitization of home movies, slides, and photographs is a popular method of preserving and sharing personal multimedia. Slides and photographs may be scanned quickly using an image scanner, but analog video requires a video tape player to be connected to a computer while the item plays in real time.[27][28] Slides can be digitized quicker with a slide scanner such as the Nikon Coolscan 5000ED.[29]
Another example of digitization is the VisualAudio process developed by the Swiss Fonoteca Nazionale in Lugano, by scanning a high resolution photograph of a record, they are able to extract and reconstruct the sound from the processed image.[30]
Digitization of analog tapes before they degrade, or after damage has already occurred, can rescue the only copies of local and traditional cultural music for future generations to study and enjoy.[31][32]
Implications[edit]
Cultural heritage concerns[edit]
Digitization of community archives by indigenous and other marginalized people has led to traditional memory institutions reassessing how they digitize and handle objects in their collections that may have ties to these groups.[74] The topics they are rethinking are varied and include how items are chosen for digitization projects, what metadata to use to convey proper context to be retrievable by the groups they represent, and whether an item should be accessed by the world or just those who the groups originally intended to have access, such as elders.[74] Many navigate these concerns by collaborating with the communities they seek to represent through their digitized collections.[74]
Fiction[edit]
Works of science-fiction often include the term digitize as the act of transforming people into digital signals and sending them into digital technology. When that happens, the people disappear from the real world and appear in a virtual world (as featured in the cult film Tron, the animated series Code: Lyoko, or the late 1980s live-action series Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future). In the video game Beyond Good & Evil, the protagonist's holographic friend digitizes the player's inventory items. One Super Friends cartoon episode showed Wonder Woman and Jayna freeing the world's men (including the male super heroes) onto computer tape by the female villainess Medula.[83]