How to Use ScanJet IIc
Scanner
with
OmniPage Pro Software
Introduction
OmniPage Pro is a program that allows you to make use of documents
such as reports or magazine articles without having to retype the entire
piece of work. This type of technology is referred to as Optical
Character Recognition, or OCR. This software will permit you
to take scanned documents and image files and use them in your favorite
applications with editable (notice this does not say edible) text.
Continue on in this section to find out more about:
What is Optical Character
Recognition (OCR)?
OCR is the process of converting an image file
into computer-editable text. This means an electronic picture of
text, such as a sanned document or fax file, can be recognized as editable
text by your computer. OmniPage Pro, in addition to performing OCR,
can also retain graphics, text formatting, and page formatting in the files
that it reads. There are four basic steps in OmniPage Pro OCR:
-
Bring a document image into OmniPage Pro.
-
Create zones to identify areas you want to recognize as text or retain
as graphics.
-
Perform OCR to convert text information into editable text characters.
-
Export the document to the desired location.
The OmniPage Pro
Desktop
Omni Page Pro's desktop displays the pages of a document in its thumnbqail
viewer, image viewer, and text viewer. You can use buttons in the
Standard, AutoOCR, and Zone toolbars to perform various tasks on the document.
h
i
AutoOCR Toolbar
This toolbar contains buttons that can activate each step of the OCR
process.
j
o
Set certain commands in the AutoOCR toolbar for the operations you wish
to perform. Do this using the drop down menus.
-
The AUTO button lets you activate automatic processing or the OCR Wizard.
-
The Image button allows you to bring in images by scanning or loading pages.
-
The Zone button permits you to automtically create zones on images based
on their original page layouts or predefined templates.
-
The OCR button allows you to perform OCR or train characters for OCR.
-
The Export button gives you the option of saving, copying, or sending your
recognized document as a mail attachment.
Standard Toolbar
The standard toolbar contains buttons and drop-down lists for performing
various tasks.
]
=
Zone Toolbar
This toolbar contains buttons that allow you to draw and define zones
on a page image.
[
\
Zones are borders created around areas
of a page image to identify what will be recognized as text or tretained
as a graphic during OCR. Zones play a big part in determining OCR
results. You can create zones automatically, manually, or with a
template.
Options Dialog Box
You can select settings for OmniPage Pro in the Options dialog box.
To open it, click the Options button or choose Options... in the
Tools Menu.
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x
Getting Online
Help
After installing OmniPage Pro, you can use its online help system to
get information on features and procedures.
Help Menu
Use commands in the Help menu to open topics that provide information
on features and procedures.
-
Choose OmniPage Pro Help Topics to get contents and index listings
for OmniPage Pro help topics.
-
Choose Getting Started to get introductory topics to OmniPage Pro,
including tutorial exercises.
-
Choose Product Support to find out how to get product support services
for OmniPage Pro.
-
Choose Tip of the Day to get hints for using OmniPage Pro.
Context-Sensitive Help
You can get on-the-spot information about a particular OmniPage Pro
command, toolbar button, or dialog box option in the following ways.
-
Click the Help button in the Standard toolbar and then click any toolbar
button, menu command, or area of the OmniPage Pro desktop to display information
about that item.
-
Click the question-mark button in the upper-right corner of a dialog box
and then click an item in the dialog box to get an explanation of that
item.
-
Some dialog boxes have a Help button. Click Help to
ginformation about that dialog box.
Product Support
For the fastes and easiest way to get help, please lok for solutions
in this manual or in the online help.
For troubleshooting tips, see General
Troubleshooting Solutions. If you need additional help, product
support and information are available to registered users through the services
listed in this table.
Service |
How to Contact |
World Wide Web home page |
http://www.caere.com |
Download Service (BBS) |
(408) 395-1631 |
Automated Fax Response Service |
(408) 354-8471 |
Telephone Support in North America |
(408) 395-8319 |
For international telephone numbers, pelase refere to the Caere
Product Support insert in your OmniPage Pro package. |
pppp |
Please have the following information ready for the best service if you
call Caere Product Support:
-
OmniPage Pro version and serial number
-
The make and model of your computer system, scanner, and other peripheral
devices (printer, monitor, and so on)
-
The names and version numbers of any other scanning software you use
-
The amount of memory (RAM) on your system. To get memory information,
choose Start/Settings/Control Panel in the Windows
taskbar. Double click the System icon in the Control Panel to open
the System Properties dialog box. On Windows 95, click the Performance
tab to see memory information.
-
The amount of free hard disk space on your system. To get disk space
information, open Windows Explorer and select the drive letter for your
hard disk. The status bar will report how much free hard disk space
is available.
Processing
Documents
This section describes how to work with documents
in OmniPage Pro, along with each step in the OCR Process.
Ways
to Process Documents
OCR is the process of turning and image into
computer editable text so you do not have to retype the text manually.
The basic steps of this process were stated earlier and are repeated below:
Using the OCR Wizard
The OCR Wizard guides yuou through the entire OCR process by asking
you questions about your document and selecting the appropriate settings
for you.
To process your document using the OCR Wizard:
-
Set OCR Wizard as the command in the AUTO button's drop-down list.
-
Click AUTO or choose OCR Wizard in the Process menu. The first
wizard screen will appear.
-
Answer the question in the first screen and click Next.
-
Conitnue answering questions in the screens that follow.
Automatic Processing
Use the AUTO button to process a new document from start to finish
or finish processing an open document.
To process your document automatically:
-
Set AutoOCR as the command in the AUTO button's dropdown list.
-
Set the desired Image, Zone, OCR, and Export commands. See
Setting
AutoOCR Toolbar Commands for more information.
-
Choose Options... in the Tools menu and check that settings are
appropriate for your document. See Settings
Guidelines for more help.
-
Place your document in your scanner if you are scanning.
-
Click AUTO or choose AutoOCR in the Process menu.
Each page of the document is processed and finished in order according
to the selected commands. If page images in an open document already
have zones, OmniPage Pro will skip zoning for those pages and continue
with the selected OCR and export operations.
Performing Multiple Tasks at Once
OmniPage Pro takes advantage of your computer's ability to handle more
than one process at a time. You can simultaneously scan, create zones,
recognize, and edit documents. You do not have to wait for any process
to complete before moving on to the next task. For example, if you
scan a multiple-page document, you can draw zones on an image as soon as
the first page is scanned and you can edit recognized text as soon as it
appears in the text viewer. These tasks can be done at the same time other
pages are being scanned and recognized.
Starting the OCR Process Outside OmniPage Pro
You can start the OCR process outside Omni Page Pro in a variety of
ways. For example, you can use the OCR Aware feature to initiate
OCR from another application and paste recognized text into an open document.
See Using OCR in Other Applications
for more information.
Bringing
Document Images into OmniPage Pro
You can bring document images into OmniPage Pro by:
Scanning Pages
You can scan paper documents to convert them to electronic images in
OmniPage Pro. If a document is already open, scanned pages are inserted
as new pages. To scan in OmniPage Pro, you must install the Scan
Manager and select your default scanner.
To scan pages into OmniPage Pro:
-
Place your page in your scanner. You can scan a stack of pages if
you have an automatic document feeder (ADF).
-
Set Scan Image as the command in the Image button's drop-down list.
-
Choose Options... in the Tools menu and click the Scanner
tab to make sure the appropriate settings are selected. Select Scan
Until Empty if you want to scan all pages in an ADF at once. Otherwise,
you must click the Image button to scan each subsequent page.
-
Click the Image button or choose Scan Image in the Process menu.
Pages are scanned in order and combined into one working document.
Loading Image Files
An image file is an electronic picture of text, Such as a scanned paper
document or an electronic fax, that is saved in an image file format such
as PCX or TIFF. You can load image files into OmniPage Pro. If a document
is already open, loaded image files are inserted as new pages.
To load image files into OmniPage Pro:
-
Set Load Image as the command in the Image button's dropdown list.
-
Click the Image button or choose Load Image in the Process menu.
The Load Image dialog box appears.
-
Select the folder location and file type of the file you want to load.
See Supported File Formats for
more information.
-
Select the files you want to load. You can Shift-click or Ctrl-click
to select multiple files in the same folder.
-
Click Advanced if you want to select files from more than one folder.
-
Select a file and click Add to put it in the Selected Files
list.
-
Click Add All to add all files from the current folder.
-
Click Open when you have selected all the files you want to load.
Image files are loaded in the order selected and combined into one working
document.
Loading Exchange Faxes
You can load fax images into OmniPage Pro from Microsoft Exchange or
Outlook if you have the Microsoft Fax component installed with those applications.
Please see Microsoft documentation for information oil configuring these
applications. If a document is already open, loaded faxes are inserted
as new pages.
To load Exchange faxes into OmniPage Pro:
-
Set Load Exchange Fax as the command in the Image button's drop-down
list. This command only appears in the drop-down list if you have
the Microsoft Fax component installed with Microsoft Exchange or Outlook.
-
Click the Image button or choose Load Exchange Fax in the Process
menu. The Exchange dialog box appears.
-
Select the folder that contains the faxes you want to load.
-
Select the faxes you want to load. You can Shift-click or Ctrl-click
to select multiple faxes.
-
Click Open when you have selected all the faxes you want to load.
Exchange faxes are loaded in the order selected and combined into one working
document.
Creating Zones
for OCR
Page images are displayed in OmniPage Pro's image viewer where zones
are created before OCR. Zones are borders that identify areas of
an image that will be recognized as text or retained as graphics. Any part
of an image not enclosed by a zone is ignored during OCR.
Creating Zones Automatically
OmniPage Pro can analyze a page and create zones automatically for
you. It uses the selected setting in the Zone button to determine
the text flow on a page and breaks it into ordered zones.
To create zones automatically:
-
Choose a setting in the Zone button's drop-down list that most closely
matches the format of your document. You can choose Single-Column
Pages, Multiple-Column Pages,Tables, Mixed Pages, or a template of
your own. See Zone Button Commands
for more information on these settings.
-
Click the Zone button or choose Auto Zones in the Process menu.
OmniPage Pro automatically draws zones on the current page in the image
viewer. Each zone has a number indicating its order and a letter
indicating its zone properties. Make sure zones are identified correctly
before performing OCR. For example, if you want to retain an area
as a graphic, that area should be identified as a Graphic zone type.
See Changing Zone Properties
for more information.
Performing
OCR on a Document
Performing OCR converts an image to editable text. This is also
referred to as recognizing text.
To perform OCR:
-
Choose Options... in the Tools menu and click the Page Format
tab.
-
Select an Output Format setting for your document. OmniPage
Pro uses this setting to determine the output formatting of a document
during OCR.
-
Set OCR and Check as the command in the OCR button's drop-down list.
Or, set Perform OCR as the command if you do not want error checking
to begin automatically after OCR.
-
Click the OCR button. The page is recognized according to the current
zones and settings. If there are no zones on the page, zones are
created according to the current command in the Zone button.
Checking OCR Results
After performing OCR, recognized text appears in the text viewer where
you can check for errors. Error checking starts automatically if
you chose OCR and Check as the OCR process command. OmniPage
Pro marks suspected errors in green and inserts a red "reject" character
for any character it cannot recognize. To turn off these color markers,
choose Show Markers in the View menu.
To check and correct errors:
-
Click the Check Recognition button or choose Check Recognition...
in the Tools menu. The Check Recognition dialog box displays the
first suspected error and a picture of how it originally looked in the
image.
-
Select one of these options for the word:
-
Click Ignore to allow the word to remain as is.
-
Click Ignore All to ignore all instances of the word in the current
document.
-
Click Change to replace the word with the word in the Change
to edit box.
-
Click Change All to replace all instances of the word with the word
in the Change to edit box.
-
Click Add to add the word to the current user dictionary.
-
After you choose an option for the word, OmniPage Pro automatically continues
to find the next possible error.
-
Click Done to stop checking recognition. Color markers are
removed from words that have been checked.
Verifying Text
After performing OCR, you can compare recognized text against the original
image to verify that the text was recognized correctly.
To verify text against its original image:
-
Double-click any word in the text viewer or select a word and choose Verify
Text in the Tools menu. The Verify Text window opens and shows
a picture of the original word and its surrounding area.
-
Click inside the window to enlarge or reduce the picture.
-
Continue double-clicking words that you want to verify. The window
display changes as you select new words.
-
Click the standard Close button to close the window.
Checking OCR Results
in Microsoft Word
You can check for OCR errors directly in Microsoft Word 7 or Microsoft
Word 97 if you have those versions installed on your computer.
To check and correct errors in Microsoft Word:
-
Perform OCR on your document and then save it as the appropriate file type:
-
Save as Word for Windows 7.0 if you are using that version.
-
Save as Word 97 if you are using that version.
-
Open the document in Microsoft Word.
-
An OmniPage menu appears in Microsoft Word's menu bar along with a corresponding
toolbar:
-
Choose Check Recognition... in the OmniPage menu. When the
first suspected error is located, the Verify Text window appears displaying
the original image of the text. The Check Recognition dialog box
also appears.
-
Select one of these options for the word:
-
Click Ignore to allow the word to remain as is.
-
Click Ignore All to ignore all instances of the word in the current
document.
-
Click Change to replace the word with the word in the Change
to edit box.
-
Click Change All to replace all instances of the word with the word
in the Change to edit box.
-
Click Add to add the word to the current user dictionary.
-
After you choose an option for the word, OmniPage Pro automatically continues
to find the next possible error.
-
Click Done to stop checking recognition. Color markers are
removed from words that have been checked.
To verify text against its original image in Microsoft Word:
-
Follow steps 1 and 2 in the preceding instructions if your document is
not already open in Microsoft Word.
-
Select a suspect word. Suspect words are marked in the color that
was selected in the Microsoft Word section of OmniPage Pro's Options
dialog box.
-
Choose Verify Text... in the OmniPage menu. The Verify Text
window opens and shows a picture of the original word and its surrounding
area.
-
Repeat steps 2 and 3 to continue checking other suspect words. The
window display changes as you select new words.
-
Choose Close Image Viewer in the OmniPage menu to close the window
when you are done.
Using
OCR in Other Applications
You can use OmniPage Pro's OCR Aware feature to use OCR in other
applications. For example, you can scan, recognize, and paste text
directly into a word-processing document without ever leaving the application.
You can use OCR Aware with 32-bit (and some 16-bit) applications that have
been registered with OmniPage Pro. An application must be installed on
your computer in order to use it with OCR Aware. See OCR
Aware Settings for more information on registering applications with
OCR Aware.
To use OCR Aware in an application:
-
Align your document in your scanner if you plan to scan.
-
Open the application in which you want to insert recognized text.
The application must be registered to work with OCR Aware. You do
not need to open OmniPage Pro itself.
-
Place the cursor at the location in your document where you want to insert
recognized text. If no document is open, recognized text will be
pasted to the Clipboard.
-
Choose Acquire Text Settings... in the application's File menu if
you want to check the current settings.
-
Choose Acquire Text... in the application's File menu when you are
ready to start the OCR process. OCR processing occurs according to
the selected settings. Recognized text appears at the cursor location
in your application. If no document is open, text is pasted to the Clipboard.
Working with
Documents
OmniPage Pro's thumbnail, image, and text viewers to look at and work
with pages in the current document. This section describes the following
procedures:
Saving a Document as You Work
Click the Save button in the Standard toolbar or choose Save
in the File menu to save changes to the current document as you work.
The first time a document is saved, the Save As dialog box appears.
See Saving a Document for more
information. If a document has been saved as an OmniPage Document
(*.met), all the changes you make in the open document are saved.
If a document has been saved as a text-based file type, only the text changes
are saved out to that file. For example, suppose you save the current
document as a text file called Memo.txt but continue to work with
the recognized text in OmniPage Pro. Whenever you click the Save
button, changes in the recognized text will overwrite the Memo.txt
file.
Resizing a Page View
You can resize a page displayed in the image viewer or text viewer
to enlarge or reduce the view.
To resize a page view:
-
Click in the viewer you want to enlarge or reduce to make it active.
-
Choose a size option in the Zoom drop-down list in the Standard toolbar.
-
Or, choose Zoom in the View menu and select a size option in the
drop-down list. The page resizes as specified.
Changing Pages
The thumbnail viewer, image viewer, and text viewer all display the
same page in a document. You can change pages in a document in the
following ways:
-
Click the thumbnail of the page you want to display.
-
Click the Next Page or Previous Page buttons at the lower-right comer of
the OmniPage Pro desktop.
-
Choose Next Page, Previous Page, or Go to Page... in the
Edit menu.
Reordering Pages
You can reorder pages in a document by dragging their thumbnails to
different positions in the thumbnail viewer.
Deleting Pages
If you delete a page from a document in OmniPage Pro, the thumbnail,
original image, and recognized text for that page are all deleted.
To permanently delete pages:
-
Choose Delete Current Page in the Edit menu to delete the currently
displayed page.
-
Select one or more thumbnails of pages you want to delete and press the
Delete key.
Printing a Document
You can print the current document's original page images or recognized
text.
To print a document:
-
Choose Print... in the File menu and choose one of the following
in the submenu:
-
Choose Image... to print original page images.
-
Choose Text... to print recognized text.
-
Select the desired print settings in the Print dialog box.
-
Click OK to start the print job.
Closing a Document
Choose Close in the File menu to close a document. You
are prompted to save your document if you have not saved it or have modified
it since the last save. Save a document as an OmniPage Document (*.
met) if you want to reopen it in OmniPage Pro again.
Closing OmniPage Pro
Choose Exit in the file menu to close OmniPage Pro. You
are prompted to save the current document if you have not saved it or have
modified it since the last save.
Exporting Documents
You can export a document to other applications by:
Saving a Document
You can save recognized text and original images to disk in a variety
of file types.
To save recognized text:
-
Choose Save As... in the File menu. You can also click the
Export button with Save As selected in the drop-down list.
The Save As dialog box appears.
-
Select a folder location and file type for your document. See
Supported
File Formats for a complete list of supported file types.
-
Type in a file name and select save options.
-
Click OK. The document is saved to disk as specified. Graphics
and formatting are saved in the document only if the selected file type
supports them.
To save original images:
-
Choose Save Image... in the File menu. The Save Image dialog
box appears.
-
Select a folder location and file type for your document. See
Supported
File Formats for a complete list of supported file types.
-
Type in a file name and select Save and Image options.
-
Click OK. The image is saved to disk as specified (zones and
recognized text are not saved with the file).
Copying a Document to the Clipboard
You can copy every page of a recognized document to the Clipboard and
then paste the text directly into another application.
To copy a document to the Clipboard:
-
Set Copy to Clipboard as the command in the Export button's drop-down
list.
-
Click the Export button or choose Copy to Clipboard in the Process
menu. The document is copied to the Clipboard.
Sending a Document as
a Mail Attachment
You can send a recognized document as a file attached to a mail message
if you have a MAPI-compliant mail application, such as Microsoft Exchange
or Outlook, installed.
To send a document as a mail attachment:
-
Choose Send Mail... in the File menu. You can also click the
Export button with Send Mail selected in the drop-down list.
The Send Mail dialog box appears.
-
Specify a file type and attachment options for your document.
-
Click OK.
-
Log into your mail application if you are prompted to do so. A new
message appears ready for addressing.
-
Address your mail message as desired and click the Send button. The
document is sent as an attachment to the mail message.
OmniPage Pro Settings
Setting
AutoOCR Toolbar Commands
The AutoOCR toolbar buttons allow you to take a document through each
step of the OCR process. Every toolbar button has different process
commands that can be set for the operations you want to perform.
OmniPage Pro can go through all steps automatically, or you can start each
step individually.
You can set AutoOCR Toolbar commands in two locations:
-
Click the down arrow next to each AutoOCR toolbar button and select a process
command in the drop-down list.
-
Choose Process Settings... in the Process menu or click the Options
button and select process commands in the Options dialog box.
AUTO Button Commands
Use the AUTO button to process a document from start to finish. The
AUTO button's drop-down list contains the AutoOCR and OCR Wizard
commands.
AutoOCR
Select AutoOCR to finish processing a new or open document according
to the selected process commands. See Automatic
Processing on page for more information.
OCR Wizard
Select OCR Wizard to have the OCR
Wizard guide you through the entire OCR process.
Image Button Commands
Use the Image button to bring a document image into OmniPage Pro's
image viewer. The Image button's drop-down list contains the Load
Image, Load Exchange Fax, and Scan Image commands.
Load Image
Select Load Image to load existing image files such as TIFF
or PCX files.
Load Exchange Fax
Select Load Exchange Fax to load faxes from Microsoft Exchange
or Outlook. This command only appears in the drop-down list if you
have the full Microsoft Fax application installed.
Scan Image
Select Scan Image to scan paper documents in your scanner.
This command only appears in the drop-down list if you have installed the
Caere Scan Manager and have selected your default scanner.
Zone Button Commands
Use the Zone button to automatically create zones on document images.
Zones are boxes that specify what will be recognized as text or retained
as graphics on an image. The Zone button's drop-down list contains the
Single-Column
Pages, Multiple-Column Pages, Tables, Mixed Pages and HP AccuPage
commands and the names of any zone templates you have created. See
Creating Zones for OCR for more
information.
Single-Column Pages
Select Single-Column Pages to have OmniPage Pro automatically
draw and order zones on single-column document images such as letters or
memos.
Multiple-Column Pages
Select Multiple-Column Pages to have OmniPage Pro automatically
draw and order zones on multiple-column document images such as magazine
or newspaper articles.
Tables
Select Tables to have OmniPage Pro automatically draw and order
zones on table format document images such as spreadsheets, or any page
that contains a table.
Mixed Pages
Select Mixed Pages if your document contains multiple pages
with a variety of page layouts. OmniPage Pro will automatically draw and
order zones on each page.
HP AccuPage
If you use a scanner that supports HP AccuPage, you can select HP
AccuPage as the auto zoning option for scanned pages.
Zone Templates
Select a zone template to create zones on document images using that
template. See Creating Zone
Templates for more information.
OCR Button Commands
Use the OCR button to perform the selected OCR operation on document
images. The OCR button's drop-down list contains the Perform OCR, OCR
and Check, Train OCR, and Defer OCR commands.
Perform OCR
Select Perform OCR to recognize text on document images. During
OCR, OmniPage Pro analyzes the image and identifies characters to produce
editable text. See Performing
OCR on a Document for more information.
OCR and Check
Select OCR and Check to recognize text on document images and
automatically start checking for errors after OCR. See Checking
OCR Results for more information.
Train OCR
Select Train OCR to teach OmniPage Pro how to recognize special
characters. These pre-recognized characters are saved in a training file,
which OmniPage Pro can use to compare with the characters in document images
during OCR. See Training
OCR for Special Characters for more information.
Defer OCR
Select Defer OCR to delay text recognition during automatic
processing. OmniPage Pro will process your document up to the point of
OCR and then ask if you want to schedule the document to be finished later.
See Scheduling OCR for more information.
Export Button Commands
Use the Export button to export recognized text and retained graphics
to other applications. The Export button's drop-down list contains the
Save
As, Send Mail, Copy to Clipboard, and Defer Export commands.
Save As
Select Save As to save a recognized document to disk in a specified
file format. See Saving a Document
for more information.
Send Mail
Select Send Mail to send a recognized document as a file attached
to a mail message if you have a MAPI-compliant mail application, such as
Microsoft Exchange or Outlook, installed. See Sending
a Document as a Mail Attachment for more information.
Copy to Clipboard
Select Copy to Clipboard to place a copy of a recognized document
on the Clipboard. See Copying a
Document to a Clipboard for more help.
Defer Export
Select Defer Export if you do not want to export your document
right after automatic processing. OmniPage Pro will process your document
up to the point of export and then stop.
Selecting
OmniPage Pro Settings
Click the Options button or choose Options... in the Tools menu
to open the Options dialog box. This is the central location for OmniPage
Pro settings.
=
Accuracy Settings
Click the Accuracy tab to select settings that affect OCR accuracy
the most.
Scanner Settings
Click the Scanner tab to select settings for scanning pages.
Page Format Settings
Click the Page Format tab to select settings that determine
how the formatting of a page is handled during OCR.
Language Settings
Click the Language tab to select language settings for your
document.
OCR Aware Settings
Click the OCR Aware tab to select settings for the OCR Aware
feature. OCR Aware allows you to initiate OCR from another application.
See Using OCR in Other Applications
for more information.
To register an application with OCR Aware:
-
Launch the application you want to register and open a document in it.
This will ensure that the application name appears in the list box in step
5.
-
Choose Options... in OmniPage Pro's Tools menu.
-
Click the OCR Aware tab in the Options dialog box.
-
Make sure that Enable OCR Aware is selected.
-
Select the name of the application you want to register in the Unregistered
list box.
-
Click Add >> to add the selected application to the Registered
list box and then click OK. OmniPage adds the Acquire Text...
and Acquire Text Settings... commands to the File menus of registered
applications.
Process Settings
Click the Process tab to set commands and settings for each
step of OCR.
Microsoft Word Settings
Click the Microsoft Word tab to select settings for performing
check recognition directly in Microsoft Word. See Checking
OCR Results in Microsoft Word for more information.
Settings Guidelines
The settings you select in OmniPage Pro can greatly affect OCR results.
Make sure that settings are appropriate for your document before
you begin processing. You may have to experiment with different settings
to get the results you want. Answer the following questions to get
settings recommentdations for your documents.
-
What type of document
are you processing?
-
What is the quality
of the original document?
-
How much original formatting do you want to keep?
-
Do you want to retain graphics in your document?
-
How many languages are in your document?
-
Are you processing a multi-page document?
Magazine and newspaper pages
-
Select Multiple columns in the Page Format settings.
-
Select the appropriate page size and orientation in the Scanner
settings if you are scanning.
-
Draw zones manually or modify automatically created zones if auto zoning
does not successfully create zones around all page areas you want to process.
See Customizing Zones for more information.
Keep associated sections of text, such as paragraphs, together in one zone.
Omit unnecessary parts of the page such as separator lines between columns.
Memos and letters
-
Select Single column in the Page Format settings.
-
Select the appropriate page size and orientation in the Scanner
settings if you are scanning.
-
Identify graphics that you want to retain as Graphic zone types.
Spreadsheets and tables
-
Select Table in the Page Format settings.
-
Select the appropriate page size and orientation in the Scanner
settings if you are scanning.
-
Select Retain flowing columns in the Page Format settings.
-
Identify the zone type as Graphic for zones that contain graphics
you want to retain.
-
Identify the zone content as Numeric for zones that only contain numbers.
Legal documents
-
Select Multiple columns in the Page Format settings if text
appears in two or more columns.
-
Select Single column in the Page Format settings if the document
has one, page-wide text column.
-
Select the appropriate page size and orientation in the Scanner settings
if you are scanning.
-
Draw zones manually or modify automatically created zones to omit unnecessary
parts of the page. For example, do not include line numbers in a
zone if you plan to renumber lines in your word processor.
-
Select Table in the Page Format settings and select Hard
carriage return after every line in the Save As dialog box if you want
to preserve line numbering.
Mixed formats or not sure
-
Select Mixed pages in the Page Format settings.
-
Select the appropriate page size and orientation in the Scanner
settings if you are scanning.
-
Draw zones manually or modify automatically created zones if auto zoning
does not successfully create zones around all page areas you want to process.
See Customizing Zones for more information.
Keep associated sections of text, such as paragraphs, together in one zone.
Omit unnecessary parts of the page such as unwanted graphics.
Poor or not sure
Degraded copies, colored or shaded backgrounds or text, run-together
or broken text characters.
-
Select Grayscale with 3D OCR in the Accuracy settings if
you have a grayscale scanner and your page contains grayscale graphics,
colored background, or colored text.
-
Select Grayscale with HP AccuPage in the Accuracy settings
if you have an HP scanner that supports HP AccuPage, and you selected HP
AccuPage in the Scan Manager.
-
For best accuracy, use the Black and white setting if your pages
are black and white. Lighten the setting for thick, run-together
text characters or dark backgrounds. Darken the setting for thin,
broken text characters.
-
Try to scan original documents rather than photocopies.
-
Select Use Language Analyst in the Accuracy settings.
OmniPage Pro will evaluate words and make logical replacements for hard-to-recognize
characters.
-
Draw zones manually to omit any smudges or scribbles on the page.
-
Choose Check Recognition... in the Tools menu to locate possible
errors after OCR.
-
Ask senders to select Fine or Best mode when they send faxes
that you plan to recognize.
Good
Clear, well-formed, black text characters on a clean, white background.
-
Select Black and white in the Accuracy settings for the fastest
processing if you are scanning. Use a setting near the middle of
the slider box.
-
Deselect Use Language Analyst in the Accuracy settings for
faster processing.
Minimal
You plan to keep one font and one font size only.
-
Select Remove formatting in the Page Format settings.
-
Click Font Mapping... in the Page Format settings and select
one font and one font size to be used for all text.
-
Select ANSI in the Save As dialog box if you want to be able to
open the document in any application.
Some
You want to keep font characteristics and paragraph formatting.
-
Select Retain font and paragraph formatting in the Page Format
settings.
-
Click Font Mapping... in the Page Format settings and select
the fonts you want mapped to various font types.
-
Save to a file format, such as Rich Text Format (RTF), that supports the
formatting. Text formatting, such as bold and italics, is retained
if the application supports RTF information. Otherwise, only plain
text will be retained. Graphics are retained if the application supports
bitmap images.
As much as possible
-
You wish to keep font characteristics, paragraph formatting, column formatting
and graphic positioning.
-
Select True Page in the Page Format settings to retain the
original appearance of a page using homes. The formatting will be more
precise but will be more difficult to edit.
-
Select Retain flowing columns in the Page Format settings
if your page contains multiple columns and you want text to flow between
paragraphs and columns in your target application. The formatting
may be less precise than True Page but will be easier to edit.
-
Click Font Mapping... in the Page Format settings and select
the fonts you want mapped to various font types.
-
Make sure all parts of the page are included within zones. Any part
not enclosed within a zone is ignored during OCR and will not appear in
the recognized document.
-
Save to a file format, such as Rich Text Format (RTF), that supports the
formatting. Text formatting, such as bold and italics, is retained
if the application supports RTF information. Otherwise, only plain
text will be retained. Graphics are retained if the application supports
bitmap images.
Yes
You are going to keep graphics such as logos photos during OCR processing.
-
Select Grayscale with 3D OCR in the Scanner settings if you
are scanning with a grayscale scanner or loading a grayscale image file
and you want to retain grayscale graphics.
-
Select Black and white in the Scanner settings if you are
scanning line-art drawings.
-
Select Multiple columns or Mixed pages in the Page Format
settings. The Single column setting will not automatically
detect graphics.
-
Manually draw zones around graphic areas if necessary.
-
Make sure separate zones are drawn around graphic areas and text areas.
-
Make sure graphic zones are identified as Graphic zone types.
These are marked with a G in the upper-right corner.
-
Select Retain graphics in the Save As dialog box when you save a
document to another file format.
-
To save graphics separately from text after OCR, choose Save Image...
in the File menu and select Save each graphic zone to a file.
No
You have decided to ignore graphics such as logos and photos during
OCR processing.
-
For best accuracy, select Black and white in the Accuracy
settings if your page contains block text on a white background.
-
Deselect Retain graphics in the Save As dialog box when you save
a document to another file format.
One Language
-
If your document contains a language that is not installed in OmniPage
Pro, you can add languages to OmniPage Pro by uninstalling and then reinstalling
it.
-
Select the document language in the Language settings.
-
For faster processing and more accurate results, select only the language
that appears in your document in the Language settings.
More Than One Language
-
If your document contains languages that are not installed in OmniPage
Pro, you can add languages to OmniPage Pro by uninstalling and then reinstalling
it. You will be prompted during installation to select which languages
you want installed. Select all languages that your document contains,
as well as any other languages you commonly use.
-
Select the main document language and any additional languages in the Language
settings.
-
For faster processing and more accurate results, select only the languages
that appear in your document in the Language settings.
Yes
-
Select Scan until empty in the Scanner settings to scan a
stack of pages at once if you have an Automatic Document Feeder (ADF).
Otherwise, you must click the Image button to scan each subsequent page.
-
Select Double-sided pages to scan pages with print on both sides.
You will be prompted to turn the stack over. Insert blank pages to
separate more than one job within a stack of pages. You can save
pages between blank pages as separate files after OCR.
-
Set the desired process commands and click AUTO to automatically
process each page of your document in order.
-
Create and use a zone template if all pages have similar zoning requirements.
See Creating Zone Templates for more
information.
-
Choose Schedule OCR... in the Process menu to schedule processing
for a specific time. Pick a time that you plan to be away from your
computer.
-
After OCR, choose Save As... in the File menu. You can select
an option to save the recognized document as a single file, one file per
page, or a new file after each blank page.
No
-
Set the desired process commands and click AUTO to automatically
process the page.
-
Click the Image button to add more pages to the document by scanning or
loading images.
Customizing OCR
OmniPage Pro has many features that allow you to customize the way
your documents are handled during OCR. This section describes how to use
these features. Please continue reading for information on these topics:
Adjusting
Page Images Before OCR
You can rotate and straighten page images in OmniPage Pro's image viewer
before zoning and OCR take place. This is recommended to improve OCR accuracy
on pages that are not oriented correctly.
To rotate a page image:
-
Click on the page image to make the image viewer active.
-
Click the Rotate Image button to rotate the image 90-degrees (clockwise)
at a time. Or, choose Rotate in the View menu and select 90,180,
or 270 degrees.
To straighten a page image:
-
Click on the page image to make the image viewer active.
-
Click the Straighten Image button. Or, choose Straighten Image
in the View menu. OmniPage Pro straightens the page image up to a
maximum of 10 degrees. OmniPage Pro will not straighten a page if it determines
that it is unnecessary.
Customizing Zones
Zones are borders created around areas of a page image to identify
what will be recognized as text or retained as a graphic during OCR. Zones
play a big part in determining OCR results. You can create zones
automatically, manually, or with a template. Topics in this section
describe how you can customize zones including:
Zone toolbar
The Zone toolbar contains buttons for drawing and modifying zones.
p
;
Drawing Zones Manually
You can draw zones manually on a page image using buttons in the Zone
toolbar. Rectangular zones are the most common, but you can also draw irregular-shaped
zones.
To draw rectangular zones:
-
Click the Zone Properties button and select the zone type and content for
the zone you are about to draw. See Changing
Zone Properties for more information.
-
Click the Draw Rectangular Zones button. The mouse pointer in the
image viewer becomes a drawing tool.
-
Enclose an area of the image you want as a zone by holding down the mouse
button and dragging the drawing tool to form a rectangular box. Try
to keep areas of text, such as paragraphs or single columns, together in
the same zone. (3)
-
Release the mouse button when you are done. A number appears within
the zone indicating its processing order. (4)
-
Repeat steps 3 and 4 until you have finished drawing zones around the desired
areas of the page.
To draw irregular-shaped zones:
-
Click the Zone Properties button and select the zone type and content for
the zone you are about to draw. See Changing
Zone Properties for more information.
-
Click the Draw Irregular Zones button. The mouse pointer in the image
viewer becomes a drawing tool.
-
Position the drawing tool where you want to start drawing the first side
of the zone.
-
Click the mouse button once.
-
Drag the drawing tool to form the first side of your zone.
-
Click the mouse button when you have drawn the desired line length.
(6)
-
Draw a perpendicular line in either direction to form the next side of
the zone. (7)
-
Repeat steps 6 and 7 to finish drawing each side of your zone. You will
not be allowed to draw a line if it constitutes a restricted shape. The
following zone shapes are restricted:
p
p
Modifying Zones
You can modify zones by moving, resizing, reordering, extending, subtracting,
connecting, or dividing them.
To move zones:
-
Deselect the buttons in the Zone toolbar. (If one of the first two
drawing buttons is selected, you do not have to deselect it.)
-
Place the mouse pointer inside a zone.
-
Hold down the mouse button and drag the zone to the desired location.
To resize zones:
-
Deselect the buttons in the Zone toolbar. (If one of the first two
drawing buttons is selected, you do not have to deselect it.)
-
Select the zone you want to resize by clicking inside it. The selected
zone is shaded and handles appear on its border. Place the mouse
pointer over a handle so that it changes to a two-way arrow.
-
Hold down the mouse button and drag the handle in the direction that you
want to enlarge or reduce the zone.
-
Release the mouse button when you are done. The zone border changes
to display the modified zone area.
To reorder zones:
-
Click the Reorder Zones button. The numbers in the zones disappear.
-
Click within the zone you want recognized first. The number 1 appears
in the zone.
-
Click within the zone you want recognized next. The number 2 appears
in the zone. (3)
-
Repeat step 3 until all the zones are appropriately ordered. If you
do not number all the zones, they are automatically numbered for you when
you start OCR.
To extend an area of a zone:
-
Click the Add to Zone button. The mouse pointer in the image viewer
becomes a drawing tool with a plus sign.
-
Position the drawing tool at the point where you want to start extending
the zone.
-
Hold down the mouse button and drag the drawing tool in the direction that
you want to extend the zone.
-
Release the mouse button when you are finished extending the zone.
The zone border changes to display the modified zone area.
To subtract an area of a zone:
-
Click the Subtract from Zone button. The mouse pointer in the image
viewer becomes a drawing tool with a minus sign.
-
Position the drawing tool at the point where you want to start subtracting
from the zone.
-
Hold down the mouse button and drag the drawing tool in the direction that
you want to subtract from the zone.
-
Release the mouse button when you are finished subtracting from the zone.
The zone border changes to display the modified zone area.
To connect two or more zones:
-
Click the Add to Zone button. The mouse pointer in the image viewer
becomes a drawing tool with a plus sign.
-
Hold the mouse button down and drag the drawing tool over the area where
you want the zones to be connected.
-
Release the mouse button when you are done. The zone border changes
to display the modified zone area.
To divide a zone:
-
Click the Subtract from Zone button. The mouse pointer in the image
viewer becomes a drawing tool with a minus sign.
-
Hold the mouse button down and drag the drawing tool over the area where
you want to divide the zone.
-
Release the mouse button when you are done. The zone border changes
to display the modified zone area.
Deleting Zones
You can delete the current zones if you want to create new zones.
You can also delete individual zones that you do not want to process during
OCR. Any part of a page image not enclosed by a zone is ignored during
OCR.
To delete zones:
-
Select the zone you want to delete by clicking inside the zone.
-
Shift-click to select additional zones.
-
Choose Select All in the Edit menu to select all zones on the current
page. Selected zones are shaded.
-
Press the Delete key or choose Clear in the Edit menu. The
selected zones disappear.
Changing Zone Properties
You can set certain properties for zones to customize how each zone
will be treated during OCR. The Zone Properties dialog box contains
settings for zone type and zone content.
t
o i
Zone Type
Every zone on a page has a zone type setting. You can select
the following zone types:
-
Single-column zone for text zones that contain a single column
-
Multiple-column zone for text zones that contain multiple columns
-
Table zone for text zones that contain text in tabbed columns
-
Mixed zone for text zones that contain a mixture of column layouts
-
Graphic zone for photos, drawings, and areas of text that you want
to retain as a graphic. The letter G appears within graphic zones.
OCR is not performed on graphic zones.
Zone Content
All text zones on a page also have a zone content setting. This
specifies the characters OmniPage Pro looks for within a zone during OCR.
You can select Alphanumeric or Numeric as the zone content
setting. The letter A appears within an alphanumeric zone
and the letter N appears within a numeric zone. For example,
if a particular zone only contains numbers and mathematical signs, you
can specify the contents of that zone to be Numeric. OmniPage Pro
will only look for numeric characters in that zone during recognition.
To change the properties of a zone:
-
Select the zone you want to modify by clicking it. You can Shift-click
to select multiple zones. Selected zones are shaded.
-
Click the Zone Properties button to open the Zone Properties dialog box.
-
Select a zone type for the selected zones.
-
Select a zone content for the selected zones. You can only select
a zone content setting for text zones.
-
Click the standard Close button when you are done.
Creating Zone Templates
You can use zone templates to create zones on a page image. A
zone template contains zone attributes including size, shape, position,
order, type, and content. Zone templates are useful if you frequently
process documents that have the same layouts and similar content.
To create a zone template:
-
Load a page image and create the desired zones.
-
Choose Save Zone Template... in the Tools menu. The New Template
dialog box appears.
-
Type a name for your file in the File name text box.
-
Click OK. The zone template file is saved in the data folder
in your installation folder. It can be selected in the Zone button
drop-down list.
To create zones with a template:
-
Select the zone template that you want to use in the Zone button drop-down
list.
-
Click the Zone button or choose Template in the Process menu.
OmniPage Pro creates zones on the page image using the zone template.
Specifying Fonts
You can retain the font characteristics in your document during OCR
if you select an Output Format option other than Remove formatting
in the Page Format section of the Options dialog box. OmniPage
Pro automatically maps detected font types to specified fonts. To map fonts,
OmniPage Pro analyzes text and categorizes it as one of these font types:
-
Proportional Serif--Character spacing varies depending on the character;
short lines finish off the letter strokes. The body text in this manual
is an example of this font type.
-
Proportional Sans-Serif--Character spacing varies depending on the
character; letter strokes do not have finishing lines. The headings in
this manual are an example of this font type.
-
Monospaced Serif--Character spacing is the same for each character;
short lines finish off the letter strokes. Courier is an example of this
font type.
-
Monospaced Sans-Serif--Character spacing is the same for each character;
letter strokes do not have finishing lines. Letter Gothic is an example
of this font type.
To customize the font mapping for font types:
-
Choose Options... in the Tools menu to open the Options dialog box.
-
Click the Page Format tab.
-
Click Font Mapping... to open the Font Mapping dialog box.
-
Select the font you want mapped to each font type. The fonts available
in the drop-down lists depend on the True Type fonts installed on your
system.
-
Click OK when you are done.
Training
OCR for Special Characters
A training file is a set of pre-recognized text characters that
OmniPage Pro compares with characters on a page image during OCR. You can
create a training file for special characters that might normally be difficult
to recognize such as the copyright symbol © or the registered trademark
symbol ®.
To create a training file:
-
Open the image file or scan the page that includes characters you want
to train.
-
Create zones around the text that you want to train.
-
Set Train OCR as the command in the OCR button's drop-down list.
-
Click the OCR button or choose Train OCR in the Process menu.
OmniPage Pro analyzes the document and then opens the Train Characters
dialog box.
-
Double-click a character you want to train. Or select it and click Specify.
The Specify Character dialog box shows how the selected character appeared
in the original page image. (5)
-
Specify how you want OmniPage Pro to interpret the character during OCR
by entering a character in the Character edit box. (6)
-
Click OK to return to the Train Characters dialog box. (7)
-
Repeat steps 5-7 to continue specifying characters.
-
Click Save to save the specified characters to a training file.
Or, click Append to add the specified characters to another training
file. After saving or appending to a file, you are asked if you want
to make this the current training file. Click Yes to recognize
the current page using the training file you just created. Click
No
to return to the image without recognizing it.
To edit a training file:
-
Choose Edit Training File... in the Tools menu. A dialog box
appears listing all your training files.
-
Double-click the training file you want to edit. Or, select it and
click Edit. The Train Character dialog box displays characters
in the
-
selected file.
-
Edit the characters as desired.
-
Double-click a character that you want to edit.
-
Click a character that you want to remove and click Delete.
-
Do one of the following after editing the training file:
-
Click Save to save changes in the training file.
-
Click Append to add all trained characters to another training file.
-
Click Cancel to exit without saving the edits to the training file.
Creating
User Dictionaries
A user dictionary is used when you perform OCR and check for errors
afterward. You can select a user dictionary in the Language section of
the Options dialog box.
To customize a user dictionary:
-
Choose Edit User Dictionary... in the Tools menu. A dialog
box lists all user dictionary files.
-
Do one of the following:
-
Select a file and click Edit to edit an existing user dictionary.
-
Click New to create a new user dictionary. Enter a name in
the dialog box that appears and click OK.
-
Add or delete words as desired:
-
Type a word in the User word edit box and click Add to add
it.
-
Select a word in the list box and click Delete to delete it.
Click Delete All to remove all words from the dictionary.
-
Click Import... to add words from a text file.
-
Click Close when you are finished editing the user dictionary.
OmniPage Pro's user dictionaries are saved in the data folder in your installation
folder.
Saving Settings
Files
You can save OmniPage Pro settings to a file. A settings file
is useful for quickly loading particular settings that you need for certain
documents.
To save settings to a file:
-
Choose Options... in the Tools menu.
-
Select the desired settings in the Options dialog box.
-
Click Save Settings... to open the Save Settings dialog box.
-
Select a folder location for the settings file.
-
Type in a file name for the settings file and click OK. All
the current settings in the Options dialog box are saved into a settings
file with an .ini extension.
-
Click OK to close the Options dialog box.
To load a settings file:
-
Choose Options... in the Tools menu to open the Options dialog box.
-
Click Load Settings... to open the Load Settings dialog box.
-
Select the folder location of the settings file you want to load.
-
Select the name of the settings file you want to load and click OK.
The settings change according to the selected file.
-
Click OK to close the Options dialog box.
Scheduling OCR
You can schedule OCR to take place on one or more OmniPage Documents,
supported image files, and pages in your scanner. This processing
can take place while you are away from your computer as long as OmniPage
Pro is still running. Scheduled documents are opened at the specified
time, unfinished pages are recognized, and the documents are saved in a
preselected format and location.
Topics in this section include:
Scheduling Individual Documents
You can schedule individual documents from different folders. Scheduled
documents are recognized at the specified time and then saved in the designated
output folder.
To schedule individual documents:
-
Choose Schedule OCR... in the Process menu. The Schedule OCR
dialog box appears.
-
Click Add... to open the Add Jobs dialog box.
-
Locate and select the files you want to add to the schedule. You
can select OmniPage Documents and supported image files.
-
Click Open after selecting the desired files. The Schedule
OCR dialog box displays the newly added files.
-
Select the time that you want OmniPage Pro to process the scheduled documents.
Select Finish now if you want OmniPage Pro to process all scheduled
documents as soon as you close the dialog box.
-
Click OK in the Schedule OCR dialog box to save your settings as
specified. All scheduled files are processed, in order, at the scheduled
time.
Scheduling Documents from
an Input Folder
You can set up OmniPage Pro to automatically schedule documents from
a specified input folder. Scheduled documents are recognized at the
specified time and then saved in the designated output folder.
To schedule documents from an input folder:
-
Choose Schedule OCR... in the Process menu. The Schedule OCR
dialog box appears.
-
Click the Options... button to open the Schedule OCR Options dialog
box.
-
Select Auto add new jobs from folder and select the desired input
folder.
-
Click OK in the Schedule OCR Options dialog box to accept the selected
settings. The Schedule OCR dialog box reappears and adds documents
from the input folder to the processing queue.
-
Select the time that you want OmniPage Pro to process scheduled documents.
-
Click OK in the Schedule OCR dialog box to save the settings and close
the dialog box. Processing begins at the specified time. Right
before processing begins, OmniPage Pro checks the input folder again and
adds any new documents to the processing queue.
Modifying Output Options
for Documents
All newly scheduled documents have the same default output folder and
file format assigned to them. The default output file name uses the
original file name and the extension of the output file format. You
can modify all of these output options for any scheduled document.
To modify the output options for an individual document:
-
Choose Schedule OCR... in the Process menu. The Schedule OCR
dialog box appears.
-
Select a scheduled file and click Modify... to open the Modify Scheduled
Job dialog box.
-
Select the desired options for the document.
-
Click OK to accept the selected options. The Schedule OCR
dialog box reappears.
-
Click OK to close the Schedule OCR dialog box.
Technical Information
This section provides troubleshooting and other technical information
about using OmniPage Pro. Please also read the Release Notes and
Scanner Setup Notes that came in your OmniPage Pro package. These
contain the latest information on OmniPage Pro and its supported scanners.
Please continue reading for information on these topics:
General
Troubleshooting Solutions
Although OmniPage Pro is designed to be easy to use, problems sometimes
occur. Many of the onscreen error messages contain self-explanatory
descriptions of what to do--check connections, close other applications
to free up memory, and so on. Sometimes that is all the troubleshooting
help you need.
Topics in this section include:
Solutions to Try First
Try these possible solutions if you experience problems using OmniPage
Pro:
-
Make sure that your system meets all requirements listed under Minimum
System Requirements.
-
Restart your computer and make sure other applications are functioning
properly.
-
Make sure that your scanner is plugged in and that all cable connections
are secure.
-
Turn off your computer and your scanner, turn your scanner back on, and
then restart your computer.
-
Use the software that came with your scanner to verify that the scanner
works properly before using it with OmniPage Pro.
-
Make sure you have the correct drivers for your scanner, printer, and video
card. See the Scanner Setup Notes for more information.
-
Run ScanDisk for Windows 95 or Check Disk for Windows NT to check your
hard disk for errors. See Windows online help for more information.
-
Defragment your hard disk. See Windows online help for more information.
-
Uninstall and reinstall OmniPage Pro and the Scan Manager.
Testing OmniPage Pro
Restarting Windows 95 in safe mode or Windows NT in VGA mode
allows you to test OmniPage Pro on a simplified system. This is recommended
when you cannot resolve crashing problems or if OmniPage Pro has stopped
running altogether. See Windows online help for more information.
To test OmniPage Pro in safe mode (Windows 95):
-
Restart your computer in safe mode by pressing F8 immediately after you
see the "Starting Windows 95" message.
-
Launch OmniPage Pro and try performing OCR on an image. Use an existing
image file such as the Sample.tif file.
-
If OmniPage Pro does not launch or run properly in safe mode, then there
may be a problem with the installation. Uninstall and reinstall OmniPage
Pro, and then run it in Windows safe mode.
-
If OmniPage Pro runs in safe mode, then a device driver on your system
may be interfering with OmniPage Pro operation. Troubleshoot the
problem by restarting Windows in Step-by-Step Confirmation mode.
See Windows online help for more information.
To Test OmniPage Pro in VGA mode (Windows NT):
-
Restart your computer.
-
Select Windows NT Workstation Version 4.00 [VGA mode] and press
Enter.
-
Press Ctrl+Alt+Delete and select Task Manager.
-
In the Task Manager dialog box, select all background applications and
click End Process. See your Windows documentation for more information.
-
Launch OmniPage Pro and try performing OCR on an image. Use an existing
image file such as the Sample.tif file.
Low Memory Problems
OmniPage Pro may run poorly under low memory conditions. This
may be indicated by various error messages or if OmniPage Pro works slowly
and accesses the hard drive often. Try these solutions for low memory
conditions:
-
Restart your computer.
-
Close other open applications to free up memory.
-
Close unnecessary OmniPage Pro windows.
-
Defragment your hard disk to free up contiguous blocks of disk space. See
Windows online help for instructions.
-
Increase the amount of free hard disk space.
-
Increase your computer's physical memory (RAM). More memory optimizes
OCR performance. See Minimum System Requirements for more information.
Low Disk Space Problems
Problems may occur if your system runs low on free disk space.
Try these solutions for low disk space problems:
-
Empty the Windows Recycle Bin.
-
Delete the *.tmp files in the Temp folder. This folder is usually
located in your Windows folder.
-
Run ScanDisk for Windows 95 or Check Disk for Windows NT to check for errors
that may be using up disk space. See Windows online help for instructions.
-
Back up unneeded files onto floppy disks or other media and delete them
from your hard disk.
-
Remove Windows applications that you do not use.
-
Defragment your hard disk. See Windows online help for instructions.
-
Clean the cache for your web browser and limit its size.
Using Visioneer
Scanners with OmniPage Pro
During installation, OmniPage Pro automatically integrates with your
Visioneer PaperPort software. However, you cannot scan directly into
OmniPage Pro if you use a Visioneer scanner or if your scanner is set up
to work with PaperPort software (such as the HP ScanJet 5s). Instead,
scan pages into PaperPort and then drag the page images onto the OmniPage
Pro icon at the bottom of the PaperPort Desktop. The page images
will be loaded into OmniPage Pro. See OmniPage Pro's online
help for more information.
Supported
File Formats
OmniPage Pro can open these file formats:
-
Bitmap (*.bmp)
-
DCX (*.dcx)
-
JPEG (*.gif)
-
OmniPage Document (*.met) -- Caere Documents from version 6.0 and earlier
can only be opened if the original images were preserved.
-
PCX (*.pcx)
-
TIFF (*.tif) --TIFF files can be single- or multiple-page, line art or
grayscale, compressed or uncompressed. They can be 200, 300, 400
dpi, but 300 dpi is recommended. OmniPage Pro stores and displays
TIFF files as 300 dpi line art.
OmniPage Pro can save original images to these file formats:
-
Bitmap (*.bmp)
-
OmniPage Document (*.met)
-
PCX (*.pcx)
-
TIFF Uncompressed (*.tif)
-
TIFF Packbits (*.tif)
-
TIFF Group 4 Compressed (*.tif)
OmniPage Pro can save recognized text to these file formats:
Ami Professional 2.0, 3.0, 3.1 |
FrameMaker |
Text Only |
ANSI |
HTML** |
Ventura Publisher (MS Word) |
ANSI Standard |
Lotus 123 |
Windows Write 3.x |
ANSI Stripped |
Microsoft PowerPoint (*.rtf) |
Word for DOS 5.0, 5.5 |
ASCII |
Microsoft Publisher |
Word for Windows 2.0, 6.0, 7.0, 97 |
ASCII Standard |
OmniPage Document (*.met) |
Wordpad |
ASCII Stripped |
PageMaker (MS Word) |
WordPerfect 5.0, 5.1, 6.0, 6.1 |
dBase III, III+, IV |
Quattro Pro 4.0 |
WordPerfect for Windows 5.1, 5.2, 6.0, 6.1 |
DisplayWrite (DCA/RFT) |
Quattro Pro for Windows 4.0 |
WordPro 96, 97 |
Excel 3.0, 4.0, 5.0, 6.0, 7.0, 97 |
Rich Text Format |
WordStar for Windows 1.x, 2.0 |
|
|
XyWrite IIIPlus, IV |
**When saving to HTML, all graphics are saved as separate image files using
JPEG format.
Scanner Setup
Issues
This section contains information on scanner setup and solutions for
scanning problems you may encounter. Topics in this section include:
Scanner Drivers Supplied by
the Manufacturer
Many scanners are shipped with one or more scanner drivers.
This is software that allows your computer to communicate with your scanner.
Some scanners do not require drivers and other scanners require more than
one driver. Refer to your scanner documentation for information about
installing any required scanner drivers. Make sure that your scanner
and scanner drivers are properly installed and configured before installing
OmniPage Pro. Make sure that you have installed the appropriate scanner
drivers supplied by the manufacturer.
Scanner Drivers Supplied by Caere
OmniPage Pro is shipped with special scanner drivers that allow it
to communicate with supported scanners. These scanner driver files
are installed on your computer when you install the Caere Scan Manager.
These drivers often work in conjunction with the drivers from your scanner
manufacturer. In order to use your scanner with OmniPage Pro, you
must select the appropriate scanner in the Caere Scan Manager. See
Setting Up Your Scanner with OmniPage Pro for more information.
Problems Connecting
OmniPage Pro to Your Scanner
Try these solutions if you experience a problem between OmniPage Pro
and your scanner or if you receive a scanner error message when you launch
OmniPage Pro.
-
Make sure the scanner is supported by OmniPage Pro with your version of
Windows 95 or Windows NT. A list of tested scanners is provided in
the Scanner Setup Notes. If your scanner is not listed, call
your scanner manufacturer to find out if it is supported.
-
Make sure the Caere Scan Manager is installed and that you have selected
the correct scanner in the Scan Manager. See Setting Up Your Scanner
with OmniPage Pro.
-
Make sure you have installed the appropriate scanner driver. See
the Scanner Setup Notes for more information.
-
Make sure your scanner is connected, compatible with your system, and runs
with the software provided by the manufacturer before you use it
with OmniPage Pro.
-
Make sure your scanner is connected securely and turned on before you start
Windows. Scanner drivers must be loaded at startup. Turn on
your scanner first and then restart your computer.
-
Make sure the scanner is not in use by another application.
-
Uninstall and then reinstall the Caere Scan Manager.
Missing Scan Image Command
The Scan Image command does not appear in the Image button's
dropdown list in the following cases:
-
You did not install the Caere Scan Manager or select an appropriate scanner.
-
Your scanner is not connected to your computer or is not functioning properly.
See Scanner Setup Issues.
-
You use a Visioneer scanner or your scanner is set up to work with Visioneer's
PaperPort software such as the HP ScanJet 5s. See the Scanner
Setup Notes for more information.
Scanner Message on Launch
The first time you launch OmniPage Pro after installing or changing
your current scanner in the Caere Scan Manager, you may get this message:
This scanner's configuration is set using the system-level driver.
If it asks for no more information, click OK in the dialog box.
You may also have the option to select the following:
-
SCSI ID or scanner configuration information (Consult your scanner documentation
for the correct information.)
-
Page size information (Enter the largest size page that your scanner supports.)
System Crash Occurs While
Scanning
Try these solutions if a crash occurs during a scan:
-
Turn your computer off. Turn your scanner off and on again to return
the scanner to its default state. Then restart your computer.
-
Check your scanner setup. See Scanner
Setup Issues for more information.
-
Check the TWAIN Scanner Settings tab in the Caere Scan Manager if
you are using a TWAIN scanner.
-
Check with the scanner manufacturer to make sure you have the appropriate
driver for your scanner.
-
Resolve low memory problems. See Low
Memory Problems for more information.
-
Resolve low disk space problems. See Low
Disk Space Problems for more information.
-
Check Caere Corporation's web site
for Scan Manager updates.
Scanner Not Listed in Supported
Scanners List Box
Try these solutions if your scanner is not listed in the Scan Manager
Supported
Scanners list box:
-
Check Caere Corporation's web site for
Scan Manager updates.
-
Select TWAIN scanner as your current scanner in the Supported
Scanners list box.
Scanning Tips
OCR results will be poor if an image is not scanned properly.
Remember the following tips when you scan:
-
Take the color and quality of your document into account when scanning.
High-quality documents return better recognition results than low-quality
documents. Shaded, colored, or low-quality documents may result in poor
recognition accuracy unless adjustments are made before scanning.
See What is the quality
of the original document? for more information.
-
Always try to scan an original document instead of a photocopy.
-
Make sure the page is properly aligned in the scanner. Select Automatically
straighten page image in the Page Format settings of the Options
dialog box to automatically straighten a page image by up to 10 degrees
if necessary.
-
Check the glass, mirrors, and lenses on your scanner for dust, smudges,
or scratches. Clean if necessary.
-
Make sure the proper settings are selected in the Scanner section
of the Options dialog box before scanning.
OCR Problems
This section contains information and solutions for possible OCR problems.
Topics in this section include:
System Crash During OCR
Try these solutions if a crash occurs during OCR or if processing takes
a very long time:
-
Resolve low memory problems. See Low
Memory Problems for more information.
-
Resolve low disk space problems. See Low
Disk Space Problems for more information.
-
Minimize all applications or click Alt+Tab to check for Windows error messages.
-
Check the quality of the image you are recognizing. See What
is the quality of the original document? for more information.
See Scanning Tips in the previous section
for ways to improve the quality of scanned images.
-
Break complex page images (lots of text and graphics or elaborate formatting)
into smaller jobs. Draw zones manually or modify automatically created
zones and perform OCR on one page area at a time. See Customizing
Zones for more information.
-
Restart Windows 95 in safe mode or Windows NT in VGA mode and test OmniPage
Pro by performing OCR on Sample.tif. See Testing
OmniPage Pro.
-
If you are performing multiple tasks at once, such as recognizing and printing,
OCR may take longer.
Text Does Not Get Recognized Properly
Try these solutions if any part of the original document is not converted
to text properly during OCR:
-
Look at the original page image and make sure that all text areas are enclosed
by text zones. If an area is not enclosed by a zone, it is ignored
during OCR. See Creating Zones for
OCR for more information.
-
Make sure text zones are identified correctly. Alphanumeric text
zones are marked by an A. Graphic zones are marked by a G. Reidentify
zones, if necessary, and perform OCR on the document again. See Changing
Zone Properties for more information.
-
Make sure the correct main and secondary document languages are selected
in the Language settings. Only languages included in the document
should be selected.
-
Select Use Language Analyst in the Accuracy settings.
The Language Analyst evaluates words and corrects likely errors during
OCR.
-
Train OmniPage Pro to recognize special characters that might normally
be difficult to recognize, such as the copyright symbol © or the registered
trademark symbol ®. See Training
OCR for Special Characters for more information.
-
If you use True Page as the Output Format setting, recognized text gets
put into frames (formatting boxes) in the text viewer. Some text may be
hidden from view if a frame is too small. To view the text, place the cursor
in the text frame and use the arrow keys on your keyboard to scroll to
the top, bottom, left, or right of the frame.
-
Check the glass, mirrors, and lenses on your scanner for dust, smudges,
or scratches. Clean if necessary.
Problems With Fax Recognition
Try these solutions to improve OCR accuracy on fax images:
-
Ask senders to select Fine or Best mode when they send you
a fax. This produces a resolution of 200x200 dpi.
-
Ask senders to transmit files directly to your computer via fax modem if
you both have one. You can save fax images as image files and then
load them into OmniPage Pro. See Supported
File Formats for more information.
-
Ask senders to use clean, original documents if possible. Sans serif
fonts (such as the one used for headings in this manual) are easier to
recognize than serif fonts (such as the one used for body text in this
manual).
Uninstalling
the Software
Sometimes uninstalling and then reinstalling OmniPage Pro and the Caere
Scan Manager will solve a problem. OmniPage Pro's Uninstall program
will not remove any files saved to the OmniPage Install directory
or subdirectories, in addition to the following files:
-
Zone templates (*.zon)
-
Training files(*.trn)
-
User dictionaries(*.ud)
-
Temp files(*. tmp)
To uninstall OmniPage Pro:
-
Close OmniPage Pro.
-
Click Start in the Windows taskbar and choose Programs/Caere
Applications/Uninstall OmniPage Pro.
-
Click Yes to confirm that you want to remove OmniPage Pro.
-
Restart your computer.
To uninstall the Caere Scan Manager:
-
Close OmniPage Pro.
-
Click Start in the Windows taskbar and choose Settings/Control
Panel/Add/Remove Programs.
-
Select Caere Scan Manager 3.0 and click Add/Remove.
-
Click OK to confirm that you want to remove the Caere Scan Manager.
-
Restart your computer. Some icons and program files may remain on
your system if they have been renamed, modified, or moved to different
locations.