1. Audience: who will use the collection? Generally scanning and digitizing does not work for the advanced researcher, but does work well for the advanced student or the general browsing public.
What users want:
a. Users want quick retrieval, not long waits to load documents.
b. Users need both image and text versions. Full text versions allow full text searching as well as provide readability.
c. Users want a legible image with minimal scrolling.
d. Users want images to vary in size and quality. Thumbnails to browse; screen size to view; full size to be reformatted.
e. Users want minimal navigation while having maximum manipulation -- zoom in and out, multiple images on a page, high resolution of prints
See: Kenney & Rieger. Moving Theory into Practice. Mountain View, CA: Research Libraries Group, 2000, pp. 4-5
2. Quality of Digital Objects:
a. illustrative: image will show what the photograph or document looks like. User can decide if need to view the original
b. readable: clear copy of the original source; text would be readable, photograph can be clearly seen
c. paleographic: could view the nuances of a photograph or document; everything is clear; what can be seen if viewing the original
d. enhanceable: adding or enhancing what cannot be seen by the naked eye; enlarging text or photographs beyond their original size.
3. Integrity of image: don't edit out water marks, flaws, tears and blemishes original with the photograph or document. Don't crop parts of the image. OK to brush out dust and scratches created in the scanning process.
The Commissar Vanishes
http://www.newseum.org/berlinwall/commissar_vanishes/