The scientists successfully used the method with an ancient copy of the Bhagwad Gita - the most likely manuscript that archivists and librarians would allow to be copied with new technology, a report in the journal Current Science says.

Sangeeta Menon and George Williams first used a video camera camcorder to image the text. Later, they improvised using a still digital camera. The `DV video' format simply records everything as a binary code onto a mini-digital videotape. The digital image can be manipulated as a graphic or converted into text. The computerisedimages can be stored on compact discs, which have at least a 50-year life. In Current Science, the scientists recommended that India should immediately begin a 10-year project to digitally copy all ancient manuscripts with the relatively inexpensive technology. There will be no additional cost on filming and processing. Comparatively, traditional methods of preservation, such as photography, microfilming and photocopying are costly, have sometimes damaged the original and help preserve for only a few decades more. Manuscripts could get lost during microfilming, while scanners are relatively slow and can damage manuscripts, especially those that are deteriorating.