
Digitize your personal archives with SFPL's new workstation.
You can digitize:
- Videotapes
- Audiocassettes
- Microcassettes
- 8mm and Super 8 film
- Photographs
- Slides
- Negatives
- Documents
- 3.5” floppy disks
- Non-commercial CDs/DVDs
Click on any of the above links to download a PDF of the digitization workflow for that format.
Before your visit
- Make an appointment online.
- Have a valid SFPL library card.
- Download and review the digitization workflows for the formats you will be bringing into the Lab.
About appointments
- Appointments can be booked up to 30 days in advance so that new appointments regularly become available.
- If there are no appointments available, please check back.
- After you book an appointment, you will receive a confirmation via email.
- Appointments are three hours long to accommodate for real-time digitization of materials.
- Limit of two appointments per month.
What to bring
- Items to digitize.
- USB flash drive or other Mac-compatible USB portable storage device, with enough space to hold your digitized files. The Lab computer does not have access to cloud storage or the Internet.
- Use this document to format your storage device to be compatible with both Mac and Windows operating systems.
When you arrive
- Go to the Government Information Center Desk on the 5th floor and ask for the DIY Digi Lab staff.
Rules & Guidelines
- You must check-in and check-out with a DIY Digi Lab staffer at the beginning and end of your appointment. Failure to check out will result in loss of access to the Lab.
- You must sign a Participant Release Form before starting your first session. The form will be provided when you arrive.
- Maximum two people in the Lab.
- No food or drink in the Lab, including covered containers. No exceptions.
- There is no Internet access on the Lab computer.
- If you need help during your session, please go to the Government Information Center Desk and ask for the DIY Digi Lab staff.
- It is a DIY (do-it-yourself) lab, so our help is limited to brief orientation and troubleshooting.
- Do not leave the Lab unattended for more than 10 minutes during your appointment. If you need to leave for a few minutes, please shut the door and tell the staff at the Government Information Center Desk.
Enjoy accessing and preserving your memories!