How to Scan a Document to a Computer

Turn on your scanner.

Launch your scanner software. In this example, a program called "ScandAll 21" is used. While all programs are different, the functionality is essentially the same.

Place the document you want to scan on to the flat bed of the scanner or in the automatic document feeder, depending on the type of scanner you have.

Click once on the "Scan" drop-down menu, and select "To file."

Select the type of file you want the scanned document to be saved as. If you have PDF writing software, such as Adobe Acrobat Pro, and the document is primarily text, then save the scan as a PDF file. Other options include "JPG," "TIFF" and "BMP (bitmap)." In the example, a "JPG" format is chosen.

Choose whether you want the document to be scanned in grayscale (black and white) or color. If you are scanning a text document, then it will minimize the file size by selecting "grayscale."

Using the browse function, select a folder for the scan to be saved to. This particular software is set up to automatically save all scans to the "My Pictures" folder.

Click once on "Acquire."

Adjust the options on the "Scan" window as necessary. Depending on the type of software you have, there might be many features available to provide more control over the quality of the scan. It's important to note that the higher the resolution, the larger the file size.

Click once on "Scan" when you are ready to scan the document. When the document has finished scanning, the original screen will appear.

Open the folder to which you saved the document to launch, and view your scan. Left click once on the "Start" button, and select "Explore." In the "Folders" section of the pop-up window, scroll down until you find the appropriate folder. Double click on the folder to view the documents it contains, including your scanned document.