Converting Scanned Documents Into Editable Text

You can scan a document and convert the text into a format data that you can edit with a word processing program. This process is called OCR (Optical Character Recognition). To scan and use OCR, you need to use an OCR program, such as the ABBYY FineReader program that came with your scanner.

ABBYY FineReader Sprint Plus may not be included in some countries.

OCR software cannot recognize or has difficulty recognizing the following types of documents or text.

Handwritten characters

Items that have been copied from other copies

Faxes

Text with tightly spaced characters or line pitch

Text that is in tables or underlined

Cursive or italic fonts, and font sizes less than 8 points

See one of these sections to scan and convert text using ABBYY FineReader.

Office Mode: Converting into Editable Text in Office Mode

Home Mode: Converting into Editable Text in Home Mode

Professional Mode: Converting into Editable Text in Professional Mode

Converting into Editable Text in Office Mode

Place your document on the document table or in the ADF. See Placing Documents or Photos or Loading Documents in the Automatic Document Feeder for instructions.

Windows: Select the start button or Start > Programs or All Programs > ABBYY FineReader 6 Sprint > ABBYY FineReader 6 Sprint.

Mac OS X: Select Applications > ABBYY FineReader 5 Sprint Plus, and double-click the Launch FineReader 5 Sprint icon.

Click the Scan&Read icon at the top of the window. Epson Scan starts in the last mode you used.

If you do not see a Scan&Read icon, choose Select Scanner from the Scan&Read menu, select EPSON GT-1500, and click OK. Then select Scan&Read from the Scan&Read menu to start Epson Scan.

Change the scan mode to Office Mode if necessary. See Changing the Scan Mode for instructions.

Select Color, Grayscale, or Black&White as the Image Type setting.

Select one of these settings as the Document Source setting.

Auto Detect: This setting automatically determines whether to load your document from the ADF or scan it from the document table.

Document Table: Select this setting when you want to scan using the document table.

ADF: Select this setting when you want to scan using the ADF.

Select the size of your original document as the Size setting

Click Preview to preview your document. The Preview window appears and displays your document. See Previewing and Adjusting the Scan Area for instructions.

Modify the image quality if necessary. See Adjusting the Color and Other Image Settings for instructions.

Click Scan. Your document is scanned, processed into editable text, and opened in the ABBYY FineReader window.

If the characters in your text are not recognized very well, you can improve recognition by selecting the Text Enhancement check box or adjusting the Threshold setting. See Adjusting the Color and Other Image Settings for instructions.

Follow the instructions in ABBYY FineReader Help to edit and save your document.

Converting into Editable Text in Home Mode

Place your document on the document table. See Placing Documents or Photos for instructions.

Windows: Select the start button or Start > Programs or All Programs > ABBYY FineReader 6 Sprint > ABBYY FineReader 6 Sprint.

Mac OS X: Select Applications > ABBYY FineReader 5 Sprint Plus, and double-click the Launch FineReader 5 Sprint icon.

Click the Scan&Read icon at the top of the window. Epson Scan starts in the last mode you used.

If you do not see a Scan&Read icon, choose Select Scanner from the Scan&Read menu, select EPSON GT-1500, and click OK. Then select Scan&Read from the Scan&Read menu to start Epson Scan.

Change the scan mode to Home Mode if necessary. See Changing the Scan Mode for instructions.

Select Magazine, Newspaper, or Text/Line Art as the Document Type setting.

Select Black&White or Color as the Image Type setting.

Select Printer or Other as the Destination setting.

If you select Other, select 300 as the Resolution setting.

Click Preview to preview your document. The Preview window appears and displays your document. See Previewing and Adjusting the Scan Area for instructions.

Modify the image quality if necessary. See Adjusting the Color and Other Image Settings for instructions.

Click Scan. Your document is scanned, processed into editable text, and opened in the ABBYY FineReader window.

Follow the instructions in ABBYY FineReader Help to edit and save your document.

Converting into Editable Text in Professional Mode

Place your document on the document table or in the ADF. See Placing Documents or Photos or Loading Documents in the ADF for instructions.

Windows: Select the start button or Start > Programs or All Programs > ABBYY FineReader 6 Sprint > ABBYY FineReader 6 Sprint.

Mac OS X: Select Applications > ABBYY FineReader 5 Sprint Plus, and double-click the Launch FineReader 5 Sprint icon.

Click the Scan&Read icon at the top of the window. Epson Scan starts in the last mode you used.

If you do not see a Scan&Read icon, choose Select Scanner from the Scan&Read menu, select EPSON GT-1500, and click OK. Then select Scan&Read from the Scan&Read menu to start Epson Scan.

Change the scan mode to Professional Mode if necessary. See Changing the Scan Mode for instructions.

Select one of these settings as the Document Source setting.

Document Table: Select this setting when you want to scan using the document table.

ADF: Select this setting when you want to scan using the ADF.

Select Black & White, 24-bit Color, or 48-bit Color as the Image Type setting.

Click Preview to preview your document. The Preview window appears and displays your document. See Previewing and Adjusting the Scan Area for instructions.

Click Scan. Your document is scanned, processed into editable text, and opened in the ABBYY FineReader window.

If the characters in your text are not recognized very well, you can improve recognition by adjusting the Threshold setting. See Adjusting the Color and Other Image Settings for instructions.

Follow the instructions in ABBYY FineReader Help to edit and save your document.