What factors for OCR are important for translators?
Thread poster: Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray  Identity Verified
Netherlands
Local time: 09:22
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
Feb 4, 2004

G'day

I'm considering writing an article in a translators' journal about OCR for translators. I'd like your opinions on the following, please:

1. Which OCR software would you recommend (or wouldn't you recommend), and why?
2. If you've ever bought or considered buying OCR software, which factors or issues did you consider important in your decision?
3. What types of texts do you think should be included in a test if I were to test freeware and demo OCR s
... See more
G'day

I'm considering writing an article in a translators' journal about OCR for translators. I'd like your opinions on the following, please:

1. Which OCR software would you recommend (or wouldn't you recommend), and why?
2. If you've ever bought or considered buying OCR software, which factors or issues did you consider important in your decision?
3. What types of texts do you think should be included in a test if I were to test freeware and demo OCR software? Or, if you use OCR regularly, what types of texts do you often scan?

Thanks in advance.


[Edited at 2004-02-04 10:31]
Collapse


 
bergazy
bergazy  Identity Verified
Croatia
Local time: 09:22
Croatian to Italian
+ ...
Readiris Pro 8 Feb 4, 2004

Readiris Pro 8

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Eliminate time-consuming manual retyping with Readiris Pro 8.0, the award-winning and latest OCR software from IRIS! Readiris Pro 8 converts paper documents, PDFs (read only) and image files into fully editable text on your computer at up to 1600 characters per second. That's 5 times faster than any OCR available on the market. The process is quite simple; simply
... See more
Readiris Pro 8

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Eliminate time-consuming manual retyping with Readiris Pro 8.0, the award-winning and latest OCR software from IRIS! Readiris Pro 8 converts paper documents, PDFs (read only) and image files into fully editable text on your computer at up to 1600 characters per second. That's 5 times faster than any OCR available on the market. The process is quite simple; simply scan your document with your scanner, recognize it with Readiris Pro 8.0 and send it automatically to your favorite application. It's like retyping your document manually but 200 times faster. Readiris Pro 8.0 keeps the original format, reproduce your document(s) in Word, Excel, Adobe Acrobat, Internet Explorer, StarOffice and all the popular application. From complex lay-out to simple text, Readiris Pro 8.0 is the best combination between speed and accuracy available today.
Readiris Pro 8.0 also comes with extended PDF conversion that will enable you to archive and share all your documents as well as your ability to easily retrieve, search and re-use information.
Collapse


 
Gerard de Noord
Gerard de Noord  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 09:22
Member (2003)
English to Dutch
+ ...
Text boxes and frames Feb 4, 2004

Samuel Murray-Smit wrote:

2. If you\'ve ever bought or considered buying OCR software, which factors or issues did you consider important in your decision?

[Edited at 2004-02-04 10:31]


I never bought OCR software because all the products I tested used text boxes and frames to position differently aligned text. This is very impractical when you translate with a CAT tool.

Regards,
Gerard


 
mishima (X)
mishima (X)
Local time: 17:22
Italian to Japanese
+ ...
Pro or Corporate? Feb 5, 2004

Marko Kovacic wrote:

Readiris Pro 8

Readiris Pro 8.0 also comes with extended PDF conversion that will enable you to archive and share all your documents as well as your ability to easily retrieve, search and re-use information.


I went to the Iris Web Site and downloaded the Pro demo version. However, as I discovered later by reading the Readme file, the Pro version limits the PDF file conversion to only 50 pages while the Corporate version lets you scan any number of pages in a single document.

Have you found a way to overcome this limitation in case of over-50-page PDF files?

Thank you

Mishima


 
Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray  Identity Verified
Netherlands
Local time: 09:22
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Finereader 7.0 gave me nice results, though Feb 5, 2004

Gerard de Noord wrote:
I never bought OCR software because all the products I tested used text boxes and frames to position differently aligned text. This is very impractical when you translate with a CAT tool.


An eval version of Finereader 7.0 came with my new scanner and I used it to scan about 40 pages of text printed in two columns in what appeared to be a Poor Richard font (a very curly font). I had my doubts but Finereader converted it to MS Word with a 99%+ accuracy including formatting, and I was able to use Wordfast on the translation (which was a lifesaver).


 
Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray  Identity Verified
Netherlands
Local time: 09:22
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Can't you use the PDF995 converter? Feb 5, 2004

mishima wrote:
The Pro [of ReadIris] version limits the PDF file conversion to only 50 pages... Have you found a way to overcome this limitation in case of over-50-page PDF files?


Can't you convert it to MS Word and then convert it to PDF using PDF995?


 
mishima (X)
mishima (X)
Local time: 17:22
Italian to Japanese
+ ...
But I need to convert into Word Feb 5, 2004

Samuel Murray-Smit wrote:

mishima wrote:
The Pro [of ReadIris] version limits the PDF file conversion to only 50 pages... Have you found a way to overcome this limitation in case of over-50-page PDF files?


Can't you convert it to MS Word and then convert it to PDF using PDF995?


I was not clear in my previous posting: I need to convert files from PDF to Word, and the Pro version of ReadIris only lets me convert a maximum of 50 pages at a time, i.e. if you use it to convert a 70-page documents into Word only the first 50 are converted. While waiting to hopefully receive an answer to my original posting, I found out that I can easily partition a PDF file into two or more files, convert them separately into Word and then putting them all together. Not a real limitations, therefore.

Kind regards

Mishima


 


To report site rules violations or get help, contact a site moderator:


You can also contact site staff by submitting a support request »

What factors for OCR are important for translators?






Trados Studio 2022 Freelance
The leading translation software used by over 270,000 translators.

Designed with your feedback in mind, Trados Studio 2022 delivers an unrivalled, powerful desktop and cloud solution, empowering you to work in the most efficient and cost-effective way.

More info »
TM-Town
Manage your TMs and Terms ... and boost your translation business

Are you ready for something fresh in the industry? TM-Town is a unique new site for you -- the freelance translator -- to store, manage and share translation memories (TMs) and glossaries...and potentially meet new clients on the basis of your prior work.

More info »