Skannatussa

Skannatussa is a term used in digital archiving to describe the state and outputs of mass digitization efforts. It encompasses the scanned images, the optical character recognition (OCR) text, and the metadata that accompany digital surrogates in a repository. The concept emphasizes image fidelity, text searchability, and long-term preservation readiness.

Typical workflows produce digital objects that combine high-resolution image files (often TIFF or JPEG 2000), OCR-derived text, and structured metadata. Preservation strategies use formats such as PDF/A for documents and METS, Dublin Core, and PREMIS metadata schemas. Repositories assign persistent identifiers, ensure file integrity with checksums, and expose access through discovery interfaces.

Skannatussa is widely applied in libraries, archives, and museums to improve access to historical and fragile materials, support scholarly research, and reduce handling of original items. It also supports disaster readiness and legal deposit programs by creating durable digital surrogates.

Etymology and usage: In Finnish-language documentation, skannatussa is a participial form derived from skannata (to scan) and the inessive case, indicating something exists in a scanned state. The term is used primarily in Nordic and European archiving contexts and appears in multilingual guides as a loanword.

Challenges include OCR accuracy for older or non-Latin scripts, multilingual content, and handwriting. Costs of high-quality scanning and storage, metadata completeness, and ongoing format migrations pose additional considerations for long-term access.

See also: Digital preservation, Digitization, Optical character recognition, Metadata standards, PDF/A, TIFF.