In the past several years many, if not most, observatory microphotometers have been made or adapted to give digital output. At the same time, astronomers have been faced with the task of specifying exactly all the folk lore and experience necessary to reduce microphotometer output, so that the task can be performed by a computer. In addition to the speed and accuracy gains therefore, we have also been obliged to separate the subjective from the objective in this processing, and this may be the most important improvement of all.

Knowing that many other observatories have developed similar programming systems, this paper presumably does not contain much that is startlingly new, but it is hoped that it may promote the exchange of ideas desirable to overcome common difficulties and avoid duplication (or multiplication) of effort.