FAQ

How do I place an order?
Fill out our online order form on our pricing page, click the "Buy Now" button to checkout. We accept all major credit cards, through payapl (If you do not have a Paypal account, you can sign up for free during checkout. If possible, please use a personal email rather than a corporate email, for better SPAM-friendliness. Once the checkout process is complete, you will receive an email confirmation from us. Please print this receipt and include it in your shipment to us. That's it! You're done! We handle the rest! Once we scan your books, we will send an email confirmation with your download links, and return ship your books for free (if applicable).

How can I get a price quote from you?
The order form on our pricing page contains an automatic price calculator. Simply enter the total number of pages and the total number of books, and it will display the total cost for you (at the bottom).

I am concerned about sending my books in the mail.
Although we cannot make guarantees on behalf of mail carriers, we can say that in all our years of business, the occurence of lost of damaged packages have been negligable (less than 0.05% of shipped packages). If the books are packaged well, there should be no concern at all.

What is OCR?
OCR stands for Optical Character Recognition. It is the process by which we convert your physical books into an editable text-based file format such as Word, TXT, HTML, etc. (Please note, PDF files are image-based, and thus do not depend on OCR accuracy. However, the PDF files will contain an OCR text layer behind the images to make the text searchable and selectable).

Does Blue Leaf guarantee 100% perfect results?
In an effort to keep our prices low, our staff does not perform manual page-by-page inspection on our scans. To do this would significantly increase our per-page cost. Thus, we do not guarantee perfect results (for example; some pages in the PDF may contain a slight skew of a couple degrees, or the Word files may contain a few spelling errors). Due to the limitations of OCR technology today, it should also be assumed that some editting/proofing will be required. If a customer is publishing their books online, then in most cases he/she will start with the Word or HTML file we provide, and make the necessary corrections prior to submitting online (most online publishers accept these formats).

What is included in the base conversion package?
The files are delivered in a ZIP archive. Our standard scanning service (base package) includes the following (per book);
    1. Two (2) editable Word documents (formatted, unformatted)
    2. Two (2) searchable PDF files (high res for printing, reduced-size for mobile reading)
    3. One (1) full color image of the front cover*
*Hardcovers/dust jackets cannot be scanned with Destructive scanning.

What is included in the additional options?
     Kindle: (1) PRC file, (1) HTML file (Unformatted "re-flowable" text. No images.)
     Sony, Nook, iPad: (1) ePub file, (1) HTML file (Unformatted "re-flowable" text. No images.)
     PDF Configured for online Publishers: (1) PDF Configured for Online Publishers
     mp3 Audiobook: Multiple mp3 files, split into 15 minute tracks.
(eReader files are produced directly from OCR. Thus, these conversions are not guaranteed 100% accurate, and are sold for 'personal use only'. If you intend to publish and require 100% perfection, you may use the accompanying HTML or Word file as a starting point--as most online publishers accept these formats--for further editing and proofing prior to submission.)

Are there limits to what books can be scanned?
Most books in circulation today should scan without a problem, with a few limitations to each (see below). If you feel your book may pose a potential scanning problem, please contact us first before ordering, so that we can review the request.

       Limitations of our Destructive scanning stations:
       Minimum inner margin of 1/4". Maximum page size 8.5"W x 14"H.
       Hardcovers/dust jackets cannot be scanned without additional fee.

       Limitations of our Non-Destructive scanning stations:
       Minimum inner margin 1/2". Maximum page size 8.5"W x 12"H.
       Maximum book thickness of 1.5".

What if there is a problem with the order?
No problem. Just let us know, and we will do what we can to resolve the issue, free of charge. Please also note, we retain the original scans in our archives for about 4 months, after which point they are deleted in order to free up storage space. However, we still retain a copy of the final product for up to 1 year.

What if I want to make changes to the final PDF files?
If the changes are to correct an oversight on our part, we will handle this for you free of charge. However, sometimes customers will want to make additional changes to the final PDF files, such as deleting certain pages, re-ordering, rotating, cropping, splitting, combining, changing the resolution, reducing the file size, etc. All this can be performed using a PDF editor such as Adobe Acrobat Pro or PDFill Tools. PDFill is a free program, and Adobe offers fully functional 30-day trial copy of Acrobat Pro.

Destructive or Non-Destructive? Which should I choose?
If the customer is undecided, we typically will recommend the Destructive service, as it is usually faster and comes out looking a little "cleaner" than Non-Destructive. We advise that you only choose Non-Destructive if you need the books returned in their original condition (such as rare out-of-print books for example).

What is your turn-around time?
About 5-9 business days, depending on size of order and options selected. To see a listed of our estimated lead times of various size orders, please see our list of estimated lead times page.

Do I qualify to use Blue Leaf's services?
In order to use our services, you must agree to our Terms and Conditions and meet at least one of the following;
      -Ownership of Rights - You are the author, you own the rights to the copyrighted material, or you have received                                        permission from the publisher to copy the material.
      -Startup Company or Small Business - For internal and lawful use of business related material.
      -Non-Profit Organization - You are an NPO or CSO and meet at least one of the 501c provisions (1-28)
      -Research or Educational Agency - For internal and lawful use
      -Non-Profit Personal Use - You are an individual interested in our services for personal use

What other limitations are there for using Blue Leaf's services?
While Blue Leaf is happy to make book scanning services more accessible to the consumer, there are certain materials that are in violation of our policy. The following list includes examples of such material (see list below). Please be sure that you understand and comply with this policy before ordering. All material considered to be in violation of our policy will immediately be returned to the customer.
     -any explicit, obscene, libelous material, or material with adult content (ex. "adult fiction")
     -material that promotes/encourages extramarital affairs, prostitution, pornagraphy, or is entirely themed around lust/sex
     -any material that promotes recourse to violence, whether political, fictional, or otherwise
     -any material that promotes the destruction of property (such as a pipe bomb manual)
     -any material that promotes the destruction of human life

Can I have my books sent directly from Amazon or another book vendor?
Certainly. All we ask is when you order the books from the vendor, to please include the BlueLeaf Order# in the shipping address label. (if possible, please include it in the "gift" option as well). This is very important, as it will allow us to process your shipment once it arrives.

What languages do you support?
Our OCR can recognize nearly 200 languages. To view a list of supported languages, please click here. Please also bear in mind that selecting multiple languages may decrease the accuracy of the OCR slightly.

How do I properly count my pages?
If your book is like most books in circulation, then all you need to do is flip to the last page to obtain the page count, then add a few additional pages for the Table of Contents, Index, etc. However, please try to be as accurate as possible in your page count. Orders that contain a significant discrepancy in page-count may be marked as low priority, and may not be scanned until the difference has been paid. Please also be sure to enter the total actual pages (not adjusted for the free 50 pages), as our order form automatically calculates the discount.

What if I only need a section of a book scanned?
When a customer sends a book to us, it is assumed that they require the entire book scanned. However, we can set our start-page and end-page at points specified by the customer (please use a post-it note to mark the start/end points), so long as they are relatively close to the ends of the book. But every page between the start-point and end-point must be scanned, and thus counted as a page.

What if the back of each page is blank?
It is important that all pages are counted, including blank pages (even if one side of every page is blank). This is necessary because the time and labor involved in scanning a physical page is the same as if both sides of the page contained content. We can also remove the blank pages for you free of charge.

Will online publishers such as Lulu.com accept your files for PDF publishing?
Yes. If you choose the option "PDF tailored for online publishers", we will be sure to configure the PDF settings for the greatest compatibility with online publishers. Although the exact requirements of some publishers may vary, they all generally require the same "essentials", such as; minimum bleed of .375", flattened text layer, .zip image compression, etc.

How do I place an order for loose Non-Bound material?
Each stack of loose pages will be treated as one "book". The cost is the same as Destructive scanning (on the order form, fill in the Destructive section). Please be sure the paper in each stack is the same size (ex. all 8.5"x11", or all 6"x9", etc.); no mixing sizes please. If you require the pages to be return to you, please be sure to select the "custom processing" option on our order form, and include a quick note in the text field.

How big will the files be?
The .zip file that we provide will generally be very large, sometimes up to 1 GB or more (depending on size of order). Thus, it is strongly recommended to be on a DSL or Cable connection to download the file. In addition, sometimes older Mac and PC computers may have difficulty unzipping larger .zip files. However, this can be resolved by using a free unzip utility such as 7-zip. Please also be sure that you have enough hard drive space for the files. The PDF files will take up the most space.

Do you accept international orders?
Absolutely. Just be sure to select the "custom processing" option on our online order form if you choose Non-Destructive scanning or DVD Delivery option. This fee is to cover the return shipping and handling costs of the books / DVD . Please also be sure your shipment to us is pre-paid by the customer.

Does Blue Leaf offer volume discounts?
From time to time, we will offer special coupon codes for customers who sign up for our newsletter. These discounts can sometimes be up to 25%, or sometimes based on quantity ordered. Only subscribers to our newsletter will receive these exclusive offers (please scroll down to the bottom of this page to subscribe). Also, we do have basic discounts built in to our pricing model. For example, our ebook conversion options--such as our Kindle conversion for $12--are a flat one time fee. Thus, the more books that are included in an order, the more the customer will save.

I have a large collection of books. What is the best way to proceed?
We do not accept orders of more than 30 books at a time. This is necessary to keep overhead costs low and avoid potential complications with shipping and file delivery. For new customers, we typically recommend placing a small order up front, so that you will know exactly what to expect with subsequent larger orders. If you have a library of books, then it is recommended to split the library into 30-book segments over a period of time.

I own a Mac computer or iPad. Is that a problem?
Sometimes we have heard reports of customers experiencing errors/slowness downloading/unzipping/viewing files on Mac computers. If you experience problems downloading the files on Safari, we recommend trying Internet Explorer or Firefox instead. If you experience issues unzipping files, please try using a free unzip utility called 7-zip (it is availble for mac as well on their website). If you experience slowness/stalling viewing large PDF files on a Mac or iPad, try re-saving the file again from the Mac viewer. Our customers have reported this to be a fix on the Mac system.

How can I make my PDF view faster on iPad/iPhone?
The above fix (re-saving the PDF from the Mac viewer) will also result in faster viewing on any Mac based system.

What about copyright law?
It is the responsibility of the customer to insure compliance with all copyright laws, as stated in our Terms and Conditions, as Blue Leaf cannot be held liable for any unlawful activity. By placing an order, the customer certifies full compliance with our Terms and Conditions and all applicable copyright law. For information on US copyright law, please contact the US Copyright Office.

It has been more than 9 business days. Why haven't I received my scanned files yet?
Some situations may delay the delivery beyond our estimated lead times. If our workload is particularly busy, then we may be delayed by a day or two. However, unreasonably extended delays are usually caused by the following;

      1. Our email of the files was rejected as SPAM, and we were never notified about it (more common with corporate emails).
      2. Customer did not include a printed receipt in the shipment. As a result, the package was never tagged for scanning.
      3. The order contains more than 5 books (please see the following page for our estimated lead times)
      4. The order contained multiple additional options, which may add to processing time.

When will I receive the physical books back in the mail?
After we deliver the electronic files over email, we will then hold the books for an additional 2-6 business days to give the customer a chance to look over the files to make sure everything is in order. If we do not hear from the customer, we will assume there were no issues with the order, and then send the books back.

What charities does Blue Leaf donate to?
10% of Blue Leaf's profit is donated to charitable organizations. We donate to legit international charities, as well as those who serve the poor and infirm within our nation's borders, such as homeless shelters, organizations for people with mental or physical disabilities, nursing homes, and other charities.

Are you currently offering any promotional discounts?
Yes! For starters, for reading our FAQ to the very bottom, you will receive an instant 5% discount on your order (enter faqdiscount in the coupon code on our order form). For even greater savings, sign up for our newsletter to receive coupon codes up to 25% off. Just for signing up, you will receive an instant 10% savings on your next order.

Get 10% OFF your order. Just sign up for our newsletter to receive the coupon code.*

*We rarely send newletters, so you will hardly be bothered by us. Each newsletter will contain new coupons for even greater savings up to 25% off. Our mailing list is kept private. Your email address is gauranteed safe with us.

**ebook and audiobook options are intended for personal use only.