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Can't Find The Answer to Your Question?

Ask Scan Monkeys directly and we would be happy to answer your questions.


Frequently Asked Questions & The Scan Monkeys Answers:


  1. What is Document Scanning?
    • Document scanning is the process of converting paper documents into a digital form.
  2. Why Would I Want to Have My Documents Scanned?
    • There are several reasons to consider document imaging. Among these are the following:
      • Save money by no longer paying employees to search for files
      • More time for customer service
      • Improved employee efficiency
      • More office space and fewer filing cabinets
      • Save money by getting rid of your storage facilities
      • Find files in seconds
      • Create a data recovery plan
  3. What Paper Sizes Can be Scanned?
    • Standard pricing includes the following sizes:
      • 8 ½ x 11 (letter)
      • 8 ½ x 14 (legal)
    • For an additional fee, the following sizes are able to be scanned:
      • 11 x 14
      • 11 x 17
  4. What is The Standard Format Used to Electronically Store My Document Images?
    • Scan Monkeys uses the standard format PDF (portable document format).
  5. Is PDF Legal?
    • PDF is indeed legal. Currently it is the standard format for electronic filing (e-filing).
    • The US Courts have decided that PDF is the official format for filing. The Federal Courts have an “eFiling/case management program” underway.
    • The reasons they have stated for their choice is ubiquity, security, permanence, and better workflow in the courthouse.
  6. What Image Resolution Should I Use?
    • Generally 250 dpi is recommend for images that will be used for archival purposes. This is needed for any image that will have OCR performed on it to provide more accurate results.
  7. How Accurate is OCR?
    • Accuracy of OCR recognition on a clean laser-printed page is typically better than 99.6%. Accuracy on dirty, faxed or degraded documents will be lower. For these, this process is 95% or better.
  8. Do I Need to Purchase Special Software?
    • No special software needs to be purchased. PDF documents can be viewed, printed, and e-mailed using the free Acrobat Reader from Adobe. One can simply go to the Adobe webpage and download the Acrobat Reader needed.
  9. How Do I search and Retrieve My Documents?
    • Using the index provided, in combination with Adobe Reader, keyword searching can be used to locate individual words within a document(s). Through combining key words or refining your search parameters, the results can be narrowed down to a hand full of documents or a specific document.
  10. What Happens to My Original Documents?
    • Once digitizing of the documents is complete, Scan Monkeys will safely return the original paper documents for the company to keep or dispose of as they see fit.
    • We can also arrange for the documents to be shredded by a AAA certified shredding company.
  11. Can I Add Notes to the Scanned Documents?
    • Not directly onto the CD/DVD. It is a read-only medium. This keeps others from deleting or changing your original, and it is required if the images are to be used for legal purposes.
    • You can annotate or otherwise edit the documents once you copy them to your hard drive or other read/write media by using the full version of Adobe Acrobat.
  12. Do I need Special Training to Use a Document CD/DVD?
    • No special training is required to view, print, or e-mail the documents when using intuitive software such as "Acrobat Reader". Most computer users are able to get results in minutes.
  13. What if I Want to Add More Documents to the Disc That Has Already Been Made?
    • Because the CD/DVD is a read-only medium, your old records would be merged with your new records onto a new CD/DVD.
  14. How Can More Than One Person at a Time Access Our Scanned Documents?
    • Discs may be uploaded to a server then shared through the company's network.
    • Through simple networking of the computers…no server needed.
    • E-mail
    • Duplicate CDs
    • Individual documents can be password protected if required.
  15. What Hardware Am I Required to Have?
    • One of the following hardware options are needed:
      • CD: CD-ROM drive
      • DVD: DVD Drive
    • Hard drive: a computer that can use an external hard drive and has a USB Port
    • The PDF documents can be read by Windows, Macintosh, and other platforms.
  16. What Are My Minimum Preparation Responsibilities?
    • Box documents in the standard box sizes. See our pricing page for box sizes.
    • Put files in separate file folders
    • Label files in a way that is logical to how you would store and access them normally.
      • Unless some other naming conventions are agreed upon, Scan Monkeys will label the electronic files based on the label provided on the file folder.