SCANNING TIPS MESSAGE 3 OF 3
- From: Catherine Thomas <braille@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: optacon-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Fri, 5 May 2006 01:22:44 -0400 (EDT)
As I explained previously, I am a Braille transcriber. I use a
scanner all the time and find the Optacon absolutely essential and
helpful.
KNOW YOUR SCANNER
If there is any way at all that you can control the settings of
your scanner it may be worth doing.Most scanning softweare especially the
software designed for visually impaired users is pre-set to automatically
interpret wheter a document has multiple columns, is portrait or
landscape, or is oriented up-side-down on the scanner glass. If you have
any doubts about any of these issues, it is best to leave the settings on
automatic.
When any scanner setting is automatic, each page is interpreted
separately. This pre-processing of each page tends to slow down the
scanner. If you know that a document is in a single column or that the
entire document is portrait, you can speed up the scan and improve the
results by changing the scanner settings for that document. If all of your
documents are always portrait, make this setting change permanent.
Learn how to change scanner options in the middle of a document.
This can be very helpful if you come to that one landscape page in a
portrait document or the one page of multiple columns in a single-column
document.
INVEST A LITTLE TIME TO SAVE A LOT OF TIME
Seek sighted assistance or use the Optacon to find out certain
things about a document and save yourself time and frustration.
1. Does a document have a lot of pictures? If so, check each page
before scanning to see if you need to bother.
2. Are headings and picture captions in a different color or
typeface? Many times pieces of documents are missing from a scan because
the print is not seen. Most scanners can accommodate different colors but
not necessarily at the same time. A page might require two passes through
the scanner, each with different settings.
3. Does the document have multiple columns or is it all just one
or does it vary?
4. Where (on which page) does the text begin? Many times a lot of
preliminary pages are scanned that are not necessary. This takes time and
often slows down the scan because of the unique layouts of the preliminary
pages.
5. Is there a lot of italic printing or different type styples?
Sometimes if italic print is also written in a different typeface,
scanning software gets indigestion. Sometimes it's worth running a page
that seems to be slow because of the changes in print two or three times
in a row through the scanner. Sometimes on the second or third try, the
results improve.
6. Are there any tables or other things in columns that I need to
read across? Probably you usually won't need to ask this question but
sometimes it is helpful. You also might want to know if there is any
bi-directional printing or landscape pages stuck in the document.
WHEN IS A COLUMN NOT A COLUMN?
The Optacon is the best at detecting this kind of thing. An
example would be a list in two columns showing the days and hours your
local library is open. You would want to scan such a list as a single
column so that the day of the week and the hours the library is open would
appear on the same line.
WHEN IS A BORDER NOT A BORDER?
We are all accustomed to finding book titles and authors across
the top or bottom of a page. Recently some publishers have opted to place
this information along the side of a page. This is called bi-directional
printing and it is becoming increasingly common. The Optacon can detect
and read this print. You may need to use the invert switch. This print
serves as scan-proofing as well because it creates a lot of gibberish on
each page. To improve your scan and remove the gibberish, use some plain
paper on the scanner glass to corepond to where this print appears in the
document. The scanner won't see it or respond to it.
BEWARE OF BOXES AND THICK LINES
Many visually impaired scanner users do not realize that scanners
often miss print that is surrounded by thick lines or placed above or
below such lines. Often headings are missed because of this. Sometimes the
first or last line of a page might not scan because of a thick page
border.
SPACES REVEAL SECRETS
Don't be too hasty in removing all of the multiple spaces from
your scanned documents. They tell you things you need to know that the
Optacon can help your verify. Here are a few examples.
You are reading a document to correct and edit it. You come to
some spaces in the middle of a sentence. Use the Optacon to check the
document to make sure all the words are present. Sometimes, a mark on the
original print or a color-change in the print can cause the words not to
show up in a scan. In some cases, this kind of thing can change the
emphasis of the whole section of the document In insurance material for
instance in the phraise "items NOT covered" if the NOT doesn't scan, you
could misinterpret what the document actually says. This often happens in
recipes. "---- at 350 degrees." You get the point.
Spaces can also warn you of a change in text layout. A new
heading, text that is off-set as part of a list, and text that is
surrounded by other text of another color can all be detected by the
location of the spaces in the scanned version of a document.
THE OPTACON AS DETECTIVE
The Optacon can be used to find all kinds of problems with
ordinary scanning it can:
1. Locate and read bi-directional printing.
2. Find a picture on a page.
3. Locate text in various colors and sizes on the same page.
4. Detect fancy print which might give the scanner problems.
5. Locate text that is missing from the scanned version of a
document.
6. Help to skip preliminary pages or pages that have no text.
7. Verify that a side of a page is blank.
8. Verify that two pages contain identical information without
scanning both of them.
9. Verify that a page is not up-side-down.
10. Verify that the page you plan to scan is the one you meant to
scan.
In all these ways and many more, the Optacon serves as a valuable
addition to any scanning software program.
HOPE THESE TIPS HELP. HAPPY SCANNING!
Catherine
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-Catherine Thomas
braille@xxxxxxxxx /
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