We here at our company make extensive use of pictures in our asembly instructions. The pictures we use can come from many sources. I download released drawings from our engineering archives, scan sketches on a flat bed scanner or take a picture with a digital camera that we have from Kodak. There are a couple of main drawbacks with using the pictures from a digital camera. One is that your document size for your work instructions begin to get fairly large. I have some assembly intstructions where the file size is in excess of 1 meg. If you have as many different part numbers as I have, these files begin to take up a lot of space on your hard drive and network drive. In addition, your word processing software needs to be able to use these picture files in the document. Having separate directories for color pictures separate from the document ultimately results in confusion and chaos. The second drawback is printer hardware. Obviously, the original color print from a color laser printer or from an ink jet printer gives the best possible result. If you need many copies of the same picture, copies from a copy machine lose both color (unless, of course, you have a color copier) and resolution. If you decide that all of your copies will come from your laser printer, this can get to be costly since color prints from a laser printer cost between $0.50 and $1.00 per print !! There is a bright side, with computer hardware getting faster, printers becoming cheaper, cost of disk drive space going down, etc. etc. , the reality of full color documentation being as economical as the current black and white format is creeping ever so much closer to reality. We here at Moog, are starting to look at the next generation of work instructions where the operator looks at a computer screen and plays back video of work instructions. Pretty neat stuff. The big problem I have with all of this is that the more sophisticated the work instructions get, the less and less time you spend hands-on with the stuff your trying to build. Instead, you are at your desk creating a "Hollywood" production. Have a great holiday season. Bill Kasprzak Moog Inc. 716-652-2000 ext 2507 *************************************************************************** * TechNet mail list is provided as a service by IPC using SmartList v3.05 * *************************************************************************** * To unsubscribe from this list at any time, send a message to: * * [log in to unmask] with <subject: unsubscribe> and no text. * *************************************************************************** * If you are having a problem with the IPC TechNet forum please contact * * Dmitriy Sklyar at 847-509-9700 ext. 311 or email at [log in to unmask] * ***************************************************************************