Scanning Banknotes

[Bifta]

After reading this: http://slashdot.org/articles/04/01/0...id=152&tid=185

I decided to give it a try with a 10 Euro note ... sure enough, Photoshop tells me that I'm being naughty and won't allow me to do it, fair enough, I can't see why people would want to scan bank notes unless they're going to commit some kind of fraud (or it's for some kind of school/college project) but do Adobe have the right to tell you what you can and can't do on your own machine? What's next? Perhaps copywritten materials will be encoded in the same way to stop you scanning them, I hope not .. I scan lots of brochures for customers to create site's and would rather not be told I can't do my job by a bit of software I spent several hundred pounds on.

(see attached image)

[downquark1]

how did they manage that???

[Sociable]

Ahhhhhh I think you will find the reason for this is that it is not using copyright law but the criminal law as its authority, it always having been a criminal offence to copy banknotes regardless of the intended use.

Exactly which method they use to identify that it is a banknote being copied I don't know, but I'm not that surprised such a feat is possible.

[Bifta]

Not sure, but no matter which angle you scan it ... same problem, even if you scan it using something else and save it, it won't let you open the file in Photoshop

[Xaccers]

Fold it in half and try scanning half of it

[Bifta]

heh, ok, hold on

[Bifta]

Nope .. still no joy! no matter which half or which side I try, same error, kudos to the cleverness of it but for those designers who deal with financial publications etc it's a blow.

[Bifta]

And to Sociable, as far as I know it IS legal to reproduce bank notes (certainly American ones) if certain criteria are met

There are quite strict restrictions on UK banknotes:

CONDITIONS

For physical reproductions and reproductions on film or television, Conditions 1, 2, 3, 4and at least one of the options in Condition 5 must be satisfied. In the case of all otherreproductions, including those on the Internet or on CD-Rom, Conditions 3, 4 and 6 mustbe satisfied.


Condition 1. Reproductions must be one-sided only (i.e. nothing should appear on the reverseof a reproduction which might give the impression that the reproduction is a genuine banknote).

Condition 2. Reproductions must not be the same size as actual banknotes. If they are to be smaller, they must be at most two-thirds as long and at most two-thirds as wide. If they are to be larger, they must be at least one and a half times as long and at least one and a half times as wide. Reproductions of parts of banknotes must meet the same conditions.

Condition 3. Reproductions may not appear in an offensive context, for example in conjunction with imagery or text of a violent or pornographic nature.

Condition 4. There should be no distortion to the Queenââ‚ƚ¬Ã¢â€žÂ¢s image (apart from an enlargement, reduction or slant).

3
At least one of the following conditions must also be met:
Condition 5.

a) the reproduction of the banknote is shown on the slant and not flat to camera. In such a case the distortion must be such that right angles are reduced to acute angles of 70° or less, or increased to obtuse angles of 110° or more. or
b) the reproduction is printed on a material clearly different and distinguishable from paper or paper-like material. or
c) the colours on the reproduction differ distinctly from the main colours used on any of thecurrent series of Bank of England banknotes.
or
d) in the case of a reproduction of part of a banknote, at most 50% of the total surface area of one side of the original banknote may be reproduced.
or
e) if the reproduction is flat to camera it must be overprinted with the word †œSPECIMENÃÂà ‚¢ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚¬Ã‚ƚÂÂ� twice in accordance with Condition 6.

Condition 6. The banknotes must also include the word SPECIMEN twice in solid black capital letters. Once from the bottom left corner to the top centre and again from the bottom centre to the top right corner of the banknote (as demonstrated below). The word SPECIMEN must be not less than one third of the length of the reproduction in length and not less than oneeighth
of the height of the reproduction in height. This applies whether the entire banknote is reproduced or just part.

[Sociable]

Thanks for the added detail bifta guess we will all have to stick to brushing up our etching skills then. Now where did I leave my old "John Bull" printing outfit?

[paulyoung666]

all very big brother , has anyone tried an english note to see what happens ???????????

[philip.j.fry]

Originally Posted by Bifta

Condition 4. There should be no distortion to the Queenââ‚ƚ¬Ã¢â€žÂ¢s image (apart from an enlargement, reduction or slant).

Oh no...must...resist

[Bifta]

Originally Posted by paulyoung666

all very big brother , has anyone tried an english note to see what happens ???????????

All my sterling is either Bank of Ireland or Ulster Bank .. which seem's to scan ok, but they're not new notes (and they're all fivers), It seems they've started with 20's and upwards, 20's being the most counterfeited note in the uk.

[paulyoung666]

i suppose ppl will just have to use photoshop 7 instead then

[philip.j.fry]

Originally Posted by paulyoung666

i suppose ppl will just have to use photoshop 7 instead then

scans fine in xsane and opens fine in the gimp

Originally Posted by philip.j.fry

scans fine in xsane and opens fine in the gimp

Just scanned and english fiver in adobe image ready