New owner of iQSmart2

[B.S.Kumar]

Okay, I took a tentative step into this minefield. I bought an iQSmart2 from an office recycling company, sight unseen, for very little money, here in Japan. The seller doesn't know a thing about it. He says there's only a power cord. I've asked him to search for any CDs, manuals or anything that might say Kodak or iQSmart or simply looks as it might fit somewhere on or in the scanner.

On the Kodak site, I see that oXygen software is required, and a PC version is also available. I will see if I can get this from Genesis or someone else. But before I spend any more money, how do I find out if the scanner actually works? Is demo software available? Can someone send me a copy of the Lite PC version? If the scanner works, I will then get everything that is required. (What else is required??) I also have a 12" iBook (OSX 10.4.11) with 1.25GB RAM and ample hard disk space. Can I run this scanner on the iBook?

What precautions do I need to take while shipping? Japanese couriers are extremely careful, and I do not expect any damage in transit, but if something needs to be locked, I would appreciate hearing from those of you who have this or similar scanners.
If you are kind enough to show me with pictures, I can forward this information to the seller.

Any other tips or suggestions are most welcome.

Thank you, and I promise to pester you with many more questions!

Kumar

[adrian tyler]

hi, there is a locking screw on the top right of the flatbed marked "locked" and "unlocked" it is very important to lock the scanner before transit. in my experience these machines don't travel too well even in the original packaging, so if you don't have the original packaging and you have a chance to pick it up yourself, do it.

it's heavy and big and difficult for one person to handle alone, beware.

also, they should sandwich some thin foam padding, or say a sheet of bubble wrap between the flatbed and the lid, i can't over-estimate this.

the scanner should have licenced software that came with it, ask them if they can find the original invoice, or check the serial number then contact a kodak dealer or third party provider who can help.

the software needs a calibrating mask to calibrate the scanner - a piece of acitate with printed calibration patterns and coordinates - you will go nowhere without these two items, without them you need to talk to the aforementioned dealers.

on the positive side, if you do get it all up and running the iq2 will perform as well as the iq3 to all intents and purposes - a tad slower - but you'll get excellent results and if you scan 4x5 originals or bigger you'll be thrilled with the results.

good luck

adrian

[B.S.Kumar]

Thanks Adrian,

I will pass on your recommendations to the seller. I have already asked him to search for the software and/or documentation. I'll buy whatever is required, but I need to first find out if the scanner itself is working. Do you know if the lite version of oXYgen is available somewhere perhaps as a demo?

Cheers,
Kumar

[George Stewart]

I have the IQsmart2. I concur with the aforementioned post.

Make sure the scanning head is parked and locked prior to shipment. The head should not be visible and should be under the extension on the right side of the scanner; also the locking mechanism only requires a screwdriver. I would not trust anyone except yourself on this matter - if possible, can you pick it up yourself with a friend - it is big.

It should come with a calibration film that has the same serial number as the scanner, although you can probably get a replacement. It should also come with masks, for scanning various films. These were part of the original package. You cannot use the scanner without using the calibration film first.

Software was not part of the original package however. You will most likely have to purchase this directly from Kodak, as I did. It is not cheap ($950 for the Mac OS X - PC is cheaper) but works very well, and is not available through resellers, at least here in the U.S.

You will love the scanner. When calibrating the scanner, you might have to go through several attempts before it passes.

[B.S.Kumar]

Thanks for the tips, George. The scanner is about 800 km away, not really practical to pick it up myself. But maybe I can go and make sure everything is packed properly before shipping. Japanese couriers are extremely careful, so I'm not too worried about that, once the packing is done. I'm not sure what accessories the seller will have found, so I'll buy whatever is required.

If software wasn't part of the original package, how would one know whether the scanner works at all? Isn't there some kind of demo software available?

I'm looking forward to getting it up and running!

Cheers,
Kumar

[John Brady]

I have a fairly recent model IQ2. Fantastic scanner once you get thru the learning curve. Mine came with all software required. It runs on Mac Tiger or later.
I don't use the masks so personally I wouldn't worry about those.

As mentioned above, parked and locked is critical. Mine shipped with the top and bottom glass removed. Very simple procedure but if broken very expensive. As I recall replacement AN glass is like $1500 each so I would only do that myself or find an authorized service center to pack and ship or do it myself. If you got a really good deal it would be worth the investment to move it right. I think they sell for about $12000 new.

My guess is they have the software and don't know it. I wouldn't give up on encouraging them to find it.

I don't remember the whole calibration deal Or it having its own serial number to match the machine. I know that if I had to run it at start up I have never had to run it again.

My 8x10 transparency scans on this machine are spectacular. I hope it all works out for you.
www.timeandlight.com
www.gladesgallery.com

[B.S.Kumar]

Thanks, John. I have a couple of days free next week, so maybe I will go and see for myself and help the seller find the software and everything else. I have a friend who has a pickup van. If I can persuade him to take a break from his day job...

Maybe I can make the masks myself out of black plastic?

Cheers,
Kumar

[adrian tyler]

you can't really make the masks as they have specific id codes cut into them, but unless you are doing a lot of small of mid format scans - mounting 20 or so at a time - then they are not really critical.

they are also sold apart as "mask packs".

the important things are the software and the calibration mask.

adrian

[John Brady]

Hi Kumar, You can live without the masks. I think they would be useful for doing batch scans (multiple negatives at one time). For my work flow I scan one image at a time and tape the negative in the bottom right corner to the glass with blue painters tape. I got this method from our resident scanner guru, Ted Harris shortly before he passed away. Another valuable piece of information he gave me was to perform some sharpening during the scan process. This is contrary to the method you use with a prosumer type scanner.

I moved my scanner recently from one location to another by locking as described above without incident.

I think a hatch back type vehicle with a fold down seat would work nicely. The dimensions are aprox 3ft w x 2ft d x 1ft high and about 100lb's (sorry u.s. measurements).

[ASRafferty]

Kumar, please see email from me. If you're running a PC, I don't think I can help; if a Mac, I may be able to.