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Microforms are documents shrunk to approximately 1/25 of the original documents' size. The two most common formats are microfilm (think film reels) and microfiche (4" x 6" sheet). In earlier years, they were popular in libraries to help preserve some fragile paper collections and to save space.

Microform readers help you read, scan, email, adjust, crop, print, and save to a flash drive. You'll find the microform reader and detailed instructions in Room 260 of Hale Library. For assistance, ask at the Library Help Desk.

A second microform reader is located in Special Collections and Archives. For more information or to make an appointment, contact their staff at libsc@k-state.edu or 785-532-7456.

The directions below are for loading and navigating microfilm. 

First, retrieve the microfilm you want to read. Need help? Ask at the Library Help Desk located on the 2nd floor of Hale Library.
Next, follow these instructions:

1. Plug flash drive or thumb drive into the computer tower.
2. Open the “PowerScan 2500” program.
3. Select “35mm Roll Film Sample”.
4. Pull the film tray on the Microform Machine all the way out.
5. Follow the on-screen instructions to place film in the machine.
   • Place film roll on the left spool with film wrapped clockwise.
   • Thread film through the left rollers, going under the first and over the second.
   • Thread film between the glass plates.
   • Thread film through the right rollers, going over the first roller and under the second.
   • Slide film into the slot on the right spool and spin spool clockwise once to wind.
6. Push the film tray back in, the glass plate will close.
7. Center film according to the screen.

Film Threading Path

Use the on-screen arrows, the scrub bar, or the left and right arrow keys on the keyboard to move through the film.

• Do not wind spools manually after the film is in place.

Resizing the Image

The green crop square will always appear on the screen and can be moved or resized.

• To move the crop square; click on the sides and drag.
• To resize, click on the corners and drag inward or outward.

Magnifying the Film

To magnify film, click on the “Standard” tab on the left menu bar, then click “Magnifier”.

• A small, blue box will appear on the screen and can be dragged and resized.
• The magnifier will only magnify what is on the screen and the area will not be magnified once the area is output.

How to Output a Single Page PDF

1. Move the crop box to encompass what you wish to capture.
2. Select “Output” tab on the left menu bar and click “Scan to Drive #2”; this will capture what is in the crop box.
3. A dialog box will open and prompt you to name your file and select a place to save; make sure the file is saved to your flash drive.

How to Output Multipage PDF

1. Move the green crop box over what you wish to capture.
2. Click “Output” tab on the left menu bar and select “OCR PDF Multi-Page”.
3. Click “Scan to Drive #2”; this will capture what is in the crop box.
4. The “Save As” window will open and prompt you to name your file and select a place to save; make sure the file is saved to your flash drive.
5. Once saved, another dialog box will open named “Multipage” that will keep track of the number of scans made.
6. To continue scanning, manually move the crop box to the next area you with to capture and click “Add Scan” in the “Multipage” dialog box.
   • Repeat this process until you’ve captured all you need.
7. Select “Finish” in the “Multipage” dialog box to save the final PDF.
   • Selecting “Finish and Open” will open the PDF for viewing after it is saved.

When finished, pull the tray out until the glass cover lifts and click the rewind button, located by the on-screen arrows. The button will turn blue and yellow when the tray is fully pulled out. Remove the film from the left spool and select “Film Selection Wizard. Return the film to Library Help.