Why It Is Important To Digitize Yearbooks

By Martha West


Developments in technology and the Internet have made it possible to share publications online. Some media companies and authors longer print their articles and publications, their audience can access them through the Internet. Schools have also started to digitize yearbooks instead of producing hard copies. The following are the reasons making many schools consider digital yearbooks.

One of the main reasons is that it is environmentally friendly. Producing printed copies requires a lot of papers. These papers are from trees cut down in our environment. This leads to deforestation which has a lot of negative effects on our precious world. Every school has a responsibility of taking measures to conserve the environment. These online publications do not need papers hence no need to cut down trees.

Another advantage is the cost structure of publishing digital formats. This is especially good for parents. Every year, parents have to pay a lot of money to print yearbooks. The amount significantly reduces when there is no printing. Parents with more than one child in school do not have to buy multiple paper copies that would cost a lot of money.

Multimedia data is usually added without any limitations. Students may have videos of a memorable moment they would like to share. It cannot be shared on a printed copy and only a limited number of photos can be added. Personalization and self-expression is not limited. Students can customize the book as much as they want depending on interests and school theme. Everyone om the school is involved in the production process which leads to a final masterpiece of art.

It is easier to share digital forms of a book because there is no book to carry. They can be stored in CDs or DVDs. Other formats such as PDF allow people to share the publications through emails. Going for long distances carrying a heavy book just to share memories with a friend is a thing of the past.

It takes 14 to 21 days to have the book ready for the students. This means it can be available for longer maybe from the beginning of the year or term. Students will, therefore, be able to add more memories over the period of time. Memories from activities happening at the end of the year such as prom and spring athletics can be also included.

An online publication is more durable than a hard copy that can get lost and even cost more on a replacement. Future generations will only need to visit the school's website to look at memories made by students of a specific year. There is a permanent archive which makes it easy and quick to get additional copies at any time.

The copies available online can be accessed from any device at any time of the day. In case you bump into a friend at a restaurant, you will only need to pull out your phone and share the special memories with them. During the production process, the book can be accessed through any device with Web access.




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