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0 pointsdaniel_reetz4y ago0 comments

Hi Mark! We had electronic and USB triggering working with SDM and CHDK before you joined. But no image transfer or control of settings by USB. We deliberately pursued mechanical triggering for places where a computer and crazy firmware wasn't an option. I donated quite a few scanners to projects and people who simply couldn't use that stuff at the digitization site.

Johannes (spreads) was one of the most inspiring people I've ever worked with, so thankful for the energy and intellect he brought to the project- and the software he built. I donated a pair of DSLRs to him as a thank-you. Last I heard he was still working in a related space, but at a higher level.

Personally, I left the project to join Apple (they refused to let me continue any work on the open- source project while I was employed there), and gave Jonathon (tenrec) control. He redesigned the scanner again and sold kits as well as produced a Raspberry Pi based controller with nice software. Seems he has closed the store.

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jbaiter4y ago

Hey Mark, hey Daniel, Johannes here, thanks for the praise, you're making me blush :D. The inspiration was mutual, I remember the time working on spreads and with you guys very fondly, learned a lot from it.

I'm still active in the "digitizing books" sector, albeit now officially employed at a library and more concerned with what we can do with the books after they're scanned :-)

mdaniel4y ago

> (they refused to let me continue any work on the open- source project while I was employed there)

I somehow thought that was illegal for residents of California, and IMHO should be illegal nationwide on general "not indentured servitude" grounds. Then again, I guess who wants to go up against Apple's legal team to find out

markvdb4y ago

Hello Dan! Nice to see you here!

Rereading my previous comment, I realise that part of it could be misinterpreted. The diybookscanner project was wonderful to be part of, to contribute to.

One thing I realise was particularly impressive about diybookscanner.org was how much time you spent making it an environment friendly to broad experimentation and tinkering. Exploring broadly was absolutely necessary for a project like this. Mechanical triggering, the SDM experiments I had forgotten about, lighting, glass experiments, and more.

You sowed some powerful seeds. Your effort nursed diybookscanner.org into something that still speaks to the imagination of so many people. I feel privileged to have been part of that, and I'm more than happy to give you full credit.

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