An Introduction to Digitization Technologies and Issues Skip navigational links. Starting Points Digitization is one of the hot topics in librarianship today. The assumption is that digital collections will be more accessible to a broader range of users, presumably through networking technologies, and that there are new efficiencies to be gained in resource-sharing and for preservation. This background document examines some of the basic digitization concepts and issues. Defining Digitization Digitization refers to the process of translating a piece of information such as a book, sound recording, picture or video, into bits .
Bits are the fundamental units of information in a computer system.
Turning information into these binary digits is called digitization. This digitization process can be accomplished through a variety of existing technologies. In general, many of the technological challenges to the digitization of paper-based materials have been met. Microform digitization still poses a number of challenges. Digitization technologies for library- based applications, rather than business applications, are still relatively new and much of the hardware and software should be considered as first generation products.