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Yuvan Shankar
Yuvan Shankar

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OCR SOFTWARE AND TOOLS

What is OCR?
OCR (Optical Character Recognition) is a technology that reads text from images or scanned documents and converts it into editable and searchable text.
It helps us change paper documents or image files into digital text that we can copy, edit, and store easily.

PAID OCR SOFTWARE:

  1. ABBYY FineReader PDF
    ABBYY FineReader is a professional OCR software mainly used for document digitization. It can convert scanned PDFs and images into editable formats while keeping the original layout, tables, and formatting intact.

  2. Adobe Acrobat Pro DC (OCR-Enabled)
    Adobe Acrobat Pro DC includes OCR functionality that allows users to recognize text in scanned PDFs and export them into formats like Word, Excel, or PowerPoint. It is widely used in offices and enterprises.

  3. Nanonets OCR
    Nanonets OCR is an AI-based OCR software used for automated document processing. It is commonly used in business workflows such as invoice processing, form extraction, and data automation.

COMMAN DRAWBACKS OF PAID OCR SOFTWARE:

1.High cost: Paid OCR software usually requires monthly or yearly subscriptions, which can be expensive.

2.Complex to use: Advanced features make the software powerful, but also increase the learning curve for new users.

3.Resource heavy: Some paid OCR tools need powerful systems or cloud credits to work efficiently.

FREE OCR SOFTWARE:

  1. Tesseract OCR
    Tesseract OCR is a free and open-source OCR engine. It is used to extract text from images and PDFs and is commonly integrated into custom applications and student projects.

  2. OCRFeeder
    OCRFeeder is a free OCR software that provides a graphical interface and works as a front-end for OCR engines like Tesseract. It helps users manage and process scanned documents more easily.

  3. GOCR
    GOCR is a free GNU OCR tool mainly used for basic text extraction from simple images. It is an older OCR technology but still useful for simple OCR tasks.

COMMAN DRAWBACKS OF FREE OCR TOOLS:

1.Lower accuracy: Free OCR tools usually struggle with complex layouts and handwritten text compared to paid software.
2.Limited support: Free tools have less technical support and fewer updates than commercial products.
3.Fewer advanced features: Features like batch processing and table extraction are limited or missing.
4.Technical setup required: Some free OCR tools do not have a proper graphical interface and require technical knowledge to use.

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