How to Use a Scanner to Capture Text

By eHow Computers Editor

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OCR (optical character recognition) software, used with your scanner, converts a printed page into an editable computer text file almost as accurately as if you typed it. The specifics of these instructions will vary from one OCR program to another.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

  • Scanners
  • OCR Program Scanning Software

Step1
Place the printed page on scanner with the text facing the glass. Make sure it's straight.
Step2
Open your OCR program.
Step3
Select Acquire (or something similar) from the File menu.
Step4
Choose your scanner as the source.
Step5
Set resolution to between 200 and 400 dpi (dots per inch).
Step6
Select Line Art as image type or scan mode.
Step7
Click Prescan.
Step8
Evaluate the text quality on screen. If it looks too jagged, increase the resolution.
Step9
Drag the frame in the pre-scan window to select desired blocks of text.
Step10
Click Scan.
Step11
Repeat the process for additional pages of the same document.
Step12
If the OCR program does not automatically convert document to text, click Recognize or Convert.
Step13
Save the text file.
Step14
Open the file in a word-processing application.
Step15
Immediately run the spell checker.
Step16
Check the text for other errors.

Tips & Warnings

  • Try adjusting the scanner's brightness and contrast controls if results are unsatisfactory.
  • Most scanners come with an abridged edition of a popular OCR program. If you aren't satisfied with it, consider upgrading to the full version or a more sophisticated OCR program.
  • OCR programs frequently have trouble distinguishing between "m" and "n," "cl" and "d," and other similar-looking characters, depending on the font. Expect at least 90 percent accuracy with easily readable originals, however.
  • Basic OCR programs cannot handle forms or tables.

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on 6/4/2008 Great blog with lots of useful information and excellent commentary! Thanks for sharing.

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eHow Article:  How to Use a Scanner to Capture Text

eHow Computers Editor

eHow Computers Editor

Category: Computers

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