CONVERTING BOOKS INTO ELECTRONIC TEXT

Having your books available in an electronic format is a wonderful benefit of modern technology. With this benefit comes some additional responsibilities in terms of understanding what you (the student) can do to help make this process run more smoothly.

Understanding the E-Text ProductionProcess

1. Student delivers book and the course syllabus to DSS, accompanied by a receipt of purchase (this must be provided in accordance with copyright laws and publisher wishes). At this time, the student fills out Alternative Format Request Form. If book is delivered to DSS without a syllabus or ranking, DSS will place it at the end of the list.

2. DSS places your book within the editing list based on the ranking you assigned it and/or the order in which it is needed on your syllabus. In general, the book order will go as follows:

  1. Books ranked #1 and/or 1st needed on the syllabus received prior to August 1st.
  2. Books ranked #2 and/or 2nd needed on the syllabus received prior to August 1st.
  3. Books ranked #3 and/or 3rd needed on the syllabus received prior to August 1st. This will continue until all books received prior to August 1st. are complete.
  4. Books ranked #1 and/or 1st needed on the syllabus received after August 1st but on or before the 3rd Friday of the semester.
  5. Books ranked #2 and/or 2nd needed on the syllabus after August 1st but on or before the 3rd Friday of the semester.
  6. Books ranked #3 and/or 3rd needed on the syllabus received after August 1st but on or before the 3rd Friday of the semester. This will continue until all books after August 1st but on or before the 3rd Friday of the semester are complete.
  7. Books ranked #1 and/or 1st needed on the syllabus received after the 3rd Friday of the semester.
  8. Books ranked #2 and/or 2nd needed on the syllabus received after the 3rd Friday of the semester.
  9. Books ranked #3 and/or 3rd needed on the syllabus received after the 3rd Friday of the semester. This will continue until all books are complete.

3. DSS checks to see if book is available either in departmental files or through another resource (i.e. publisher). If the book is available from the publisher, it is likely that additional editing and formatting will have to be done. Therefore, this may or may not save some time depending on the format that is needed.

4. If the book comes with a CD, the CD will be checked for an accessible electronic version of the text.

5. If DSS does not have the book and it is not available through another source, the conversion to electronic text process begins. This includes the following:

  1. The book is sent out to have the binding removed.
  2. Once the book is returned,we will look at the length of the book. If the book is over 500 pages, it is divided into chaptersections and a file structure is created on the computer.
  3. The book is scanned, creating a PDF file by utilizing a software tool entitled Capture Perfect.
  4. This image file is converted to an ABBYY File which converts the file from a picture image to a text image.
  5. The ABBYY file is cleaned up by removing any extraneous marks on the page to minimize errors from the conversion process.
  6. The book is then put into the appropriate format (i.e Kurzweil (KESI), Audio (MP3), DAISY, Word) depending upon the type of accommodation requested/granted.
  7. Once in final format, a CD is created. The book is bound by Kinkos. The book and CD are returned to the student. The CD will contain a Read-Me document with important copyright information and production notes. Student should read this prior to using the book.
  8. The student is emailed as their resources are ready to be picked up.

Please be aware that this process can be positively or adversely affected by many factors, include the length, difficulty of content, language, amount of pictures/diagrams and condition (such as any highlighting, underlining, notes in margins) of the book being worked on. Also keep in mind that the availability and quality of the book from outside sources varies and some publishers will only provide electronic copies of those books that are new, not used.

As you can see, there are many steps to this process. We would prefer for you to have your book as quickly as possible. In order to try to accomplish that, it takes work on your part as well as ours. In general, please make sure to check in with us and let us know what you need before the semester begins.

Given the demand for this service, the students play a key role in helping DSS to accomplish the goal of timely conversion. Listed on the next page are important and helpful tips on how you can help us in this process.

Most importantly, please try to get us your books as early as possible.

If you have any questions at any time, please make sure to ask us. We are here to help you. We appreciate your patience.

Student’s Role in the Process

1)Priority Registration:Each semester, you will be on the priority registration e-mail list so that you can get in touch with your professors as soon as possible in order to get us the books. In order to be signed up for priority registration, make sure follow the directions in the e-mail sent to your CUA e-mail account by our office. This means that you are allowed to and should register on the first day of registration.

2)Contact Professor: All students who use E-text are asked to contact their instructorsimmediately after you register to try to get the names of your books. You may need to ask several times before you get the book list. Please do not give up! The sooner you know what books you need, the sooner we can begin working on them. It is also helpful to try to receive a copy of the syllabus, so that you are able to request the materials that will be needed first sooner than those that will not be used until the end of the semester.

3)First Come, First Serve: We edit and complete books based on the rank given to them by the student and the date which they were received. . As we receive books, they are ranked and listed according to date received. We then place the books in order for scanning and editing based on this information, as described during the E-Text Production Process. Books turned in to DSS prior to August 1st will have first priority, followed by those received before the third Friday of the semester. Books turned into DSS during the 4th week of the semester or later will not be started until all books turned in prior to the third Friday are done.The sooner we receive your book, the sooner we are able to complete and return it to you.

4)Before the Semester: If you are able to purchase your books before the semester begins, we welcome the opportunity to begin the editing process over the break periods. We always accept books early so that you can receive the E-text version as or before the semester begins.

5)Purchase Books:Your books can be purchased through the bookstore or directly through an on-line resource like Amazon. An online resource may be faster because you can have them shipped directly to DSS (207 Pryzbyla Center, 620 Michigan Ave. NE Washington, DC 20064).

6)Notes About Books:When purchasing your books, we would prefer that you purchase new books. If you buy used books, it is important that you buy ones without a lot of highlighting and underlining (that will slow the process down). In addition, as stated above, if you buy a used book, we may not be able to get it directly from the publisher. Also, we will need a copy of your receipt to show proof of purchase. Finally, please check the book to see if there is an accompanying CD that contains a link to the electronic version of the text (if there is, you may not need us to convert your book). If the book is delivered directly to us, we will open the CD and check for an accessible electronic version ourselves.

7)Before You Leave: If your books are not available before you leave or through an on-line source, then it is imperative that you get a form from our office to complete and then bring to the bookstore. The book store then places those books as a priority to order once the list from the faculty comes in. Once your books have been ordered, you will be contacted by the bookstore with the amount charged to your credit card.

8)Bring in a Course Syllabus: We ask that all students bring us a copy of the syllabus for each class that we are processing books. Even if you have not turned in the books before you leave for break, please try to get a syllabus from the instructor or department head (if an instructor has not been assigned). The syllabus will help DSS rank the books when they arrive and allow us to start working on those sections that will be needed in the beginning of semester. This will ensure that your books are not placed at the end of the list. It is especially important for those students who bring their books in at the beginning of the semester or students whose books are not finished yet to get us a copy of the syllabus. This way we can try to at least get the sections of the books needed for the next week or two completed as quickly as possible. It will still take a few days depending on how many books we have to do. When we are following your syllabus to get you the week’s readings, we will be doing so in between other books that are at the top of the list. Because of this, we can only guarantee that you will have the reading in a PDF file before class. We will make every effort to edit the section also as long as it will not significantly disrupt or delay the rest of the books on the list.

9)Rank Your Books:When completing the Alternative Format Request Form, be sure to rank your books. Once DSS receives your books (either from you, the book store or by mail from an on-line supplier),the ranking will be used to create an order of priority so that we will know which ones to work on first. If you do not rank them but provide us with a course syllabus, we complete the books based on the information found in the syllabus. If the rank that you have given a book does not coincide with the syllabus and we are given both, we do the books in order of the syllabus absent an explanation from you. If you do not provide us with a ranking or syllabus, the books will be added to the end of the list.

10)Book is Finished:When the book is finished will depend on when we get it and how many other books we have to do. Each book takes approximately 10-20 hours to work on. We will work on the books in the order that they come in. Therefore, the sooner we get them, the sooner they will be done. The “fast scan” option (see below) will help you get the book back to you sooner, especially if you are in a rush.

11)Fast Scan: If you are in a rush to get your books, the fast scan option willget them to you more quickly. Your book will be scanned and put into a PDF file which can be burned onto CD for you to pick up. The images will not be edited at all, but this file can be opened in Kurzweil. Because the editing process is the most time consuming step in the conversion process, the fast scan option will cut the time spent on the book to only 1-2 hours. When choosing this option, your book will be removed from the list once the book has been scanned. If you chose the fast scan option and find that it does not work for you, we will put your book back on the end of the list to be edited. Keep in mind that it will only be edited once other books on the list above it have been finished.

12)Following Up:At the beginning of the semester, we recommend that you check in with us to see how your books are coming along. We will email your CUA account if your books are finished or if we have any additional questions. It is imperative that you check this e-mail account often, as a delay in answering our questions delays the completion of your book. It is also important that you let us know throughout the semester if you encounter any problems with the books. If there are problems, we want to work with you to try to correct them as soon as possible.

13)Dropping A Class?:If at any point in time you decide to drop a class, please let us know as soon as possible so that we know that those books do not need to be created.

14)Need Your Book?:Once we scan the book, students can come in at any time to take the book to class or for reading, if they need it. However, we will need it back as we continue to edit it. If you will need your book early, please let us know so that we are able to rebind it prior to the completion of your book. If you take the book before it is re-bound, it is critical that all of the pages remain together, in order and with minimal damage. Otherwise, that can make it more difficult for us to complete the editing process. DSS will rebind the book in the order that it is received from the student.