OmniPage Pro 14 Office

By Dale Farris, Vice-President Golden Triangle PC Club February 2005 When you think of the number of paper-based documents we still are dependent on in our society, such as loan requests, employment applications, insurance reports, purchase orders, or invoices, you soon realize just how many of these paper-based documents still serve as the original and end point steps in the processes represented by the paper. The day of a "paper-less" society has not arrived, and I think this never will. Ironically, with the higher quality of laser print output, I think the amount of paper we depend on has increased, instead of decreased. While we certainly continue to move toward such an electronic dependent means of communicating with and informing one another, in truth I suspect that in many situations there will always be a need to use paper as a means by which this communication occurs. We are still making decisions on and referring to information solely based on paper, at least at the end-point of the process. Once received, now we have many optional ways by which we can archive and store these documents, that go beyond the vertical file cabinet. With the rapidly increasing quality and speed of scanners, many computer owners have begun to convert their paper documents into an electronic version. This allows them to maintain a digital, archival record of the document, as well as to electronically transmit the document from their computer to others, bypassing the need for the copy machine. In addition, with the explosion in digital photography, this has also stimulated an increased interest in scanners. This newly emerging market for digital processing of paper-based information has resulted in numerous low-cost scanners that are filled with features and are easily integrated, via USB, into computer systems. This has resulted in an accompanying increased interest in high quality scanning software. Answering this market need for quality scanning software, ScanSoft announces the latest new edition of OmniPage Pro 14 Office that contains a multitude of new and improved features that further entrench ScanSoft's dominance in this field of OCR (Optical Character Recognition). OmniPage Pro 14 Office is an important program that converts a blank paper document into a fully editable electronic form that can be viewed on screen, stored, printed, and electronically distributed to others. The many powerful features in this program are all easily accessed via the streamlined user interface, hiding some very clever programming that is doing much very hard work behind the scenes to enable you to convert and work with a paper document. Among the many new features is the ability now, for the first time, to convert PDF files into documents you can edit, including Word, Excel, and HTML, while maintaining the page layout. You can also convert paper documents to PDF for archiving and sharing. This new feature alone merits a serious consideration of this newest version of OmniPage Pro 14 in all companies. Many folks may already be very familiar with the ubiquitous PDF file format, and likely have created many of these standard files using the Adobe Exchange program. However, up till now, once the file is stored in the PDF format, you cannot then edit the PDF version of the file. Instead, you had to enter the original source application used to create the document, and then again convert it to PDF. Now, with OmniPage Pro 14, opening and editing PDF files has become much easier. The Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology converts text on paper documents into editable text, and it even recognizes vertical oriented and reversed out (white on black) text. When buying scanners today, in most all cases the OCR program bundled with the hardware will likely come from ScanSoft. These OCR applications provide basic OCR capabilities and introduce owners to the OCR experience.  OmniPage Pro 14 is dramatically more accurate, and the company claims it is "better than 99% accurate." This fully developed version provides powerful features that make OCR tasks faster, easier, and more sophisticated than the "lite" versions attached with new scanner devices. OmniPage Pro 14 Office is an extremely powerful productivity tool that delivers the most accurate and precise document conversion available today. Quickly turn PDF files and stacks of paper - letters, contracts, tables, manuals - into easily editable word processing and spreadsheet documents. Ideal for desktop, workgroup and enterprise use, OmniPage Pro 14 Office delivers everything you need to efficiently convert, edit, process, and share your paper and PDF documents. Save time and money like never before with the world's most complete paper and PDF conversion application. OmniPage Pro 14 Office will help your organization reach new levels of productivity by eliminating the manual reproduction of documents. Precision OCR technology, advanced layout analysis and powerful editing capabilities allow business professionals to quickly and cost effectively turn office documents into over 30 different PC application file formats for editing, searching and sharing with a single application. Custom workflow creation makes it easier than ever to handle large volumes of paper - helping to streamline the conversion process and complete your work faster than ever. Robust new tools enable you to print to PDF, turn text documents into audio books and add digital signatures to your electronic documents. Save time and money like never before using the world's most powerful document conversion application. Key Benefits Instantly convert paper into useable Microsoft Office documents Turn PDF files into editable documents while retaining their layout Create unlimited searchable PDF files for electronic archives Automatically process images from network MFPs and scanners Scan and convert documents into XML, PDF, TIFF and more Share documents using e-mail, Web, XML and e-Books New and Improved Features in Version 14 OmniPage Pro 14 Office's new advanced automation and output features make the document conversion and archiving process faster, easier and more secure than ever before. Version 14 includes powerful automation and customization features, in addition to improved accuracy, allowing the software to be tailored to fit your exact business needs. Complete PDF functionality is at your fingertips with the addition of PDF print, encryption and signature capabilities to enable easier editing, archiving and sharing of documents, and the integration of our market leading voice control and audio output technology help to boost productivity to new levels. Make the most of your limited time by working smarter with OmniPage Pro 14 Office. Accuracy Accuracy is increased approximately 35% with significant improvements for the processing of degraded images, improved recognition algorithms for despeckling and new language capabilities coupled with a new financial dictionary and expanded legal and medical dictionaries. Formatting Formatting is enhanced with better handling of embedded graphical elements contained within a document's text. Total PDF Support - Scan, Convert & Print OmniPage Pro 14 Office supports the creation of searchable PDF files from any paper or electronic document. OmniPage also allows users to turn PDF Files (even image-only files) directly into their favorite editable document format. These collective PDF capabilities enable editing, archiving and processes sharing to save valuable time and money. Automated Conversion Automated conversion takes a big leap forward with new custom workflows that can be accessed instantly or shared with coworkers and expanded unattended processing features that allow better control and execution of jobs during off hours. Editing and Proofing Editing and proofing are more robust with additional correction selections and better processing of hyphenated words. Document Output Document output options are broadened with the additions of support for Microsoft Office 2003, Word ML and the Microsoft .lit standard for viewing on PDAs and tablet PCs. Speech Capabilities Speech capabilities add exciting new voice automation and text-to-speech options to greatly enhance worker productivity by creating more flexible input and output methods that do not rely upon an individual's typing or reading skills. Advanced Productivity Features Advanced productivity features customize the response of the software to suit your unique business needs with adjustable OCR speed, zoning, file saving, resolution and process sharing controls. Additional Features Additional features include Microsoft SharePoint support and enhanced manipulation of documents in your back office document management systems via ODMA and FTP. Key Features OmniPage Pro 14 Office is the most comprehensive OCR product we've ever developed. ScanSoft spent four years refining its recognition and formatting accuracy in addition to adding key features that boost productivity by automating daily routines and allowing flexible processing customization to fit your exact business needs. Whether you're creating, converting, editing, processing or sharing paper or digital documents, OmniPage Pro 14 Office will save you time and money by increasing your efficiency. Accuracy is the single most important feature of an OCR program because greater accuracy translates directly into time savings. Increased accuracy reduces the time required for proofreading to a minimum, boosting productivity. Electronic archive & retrieval efforts also depend heavily on OCR accuracy. The more accurate the conversion, the more accurate the retrieval. Despeckle Module Converting difficult to read documents improves recognition dramatically. The despeckle module reduces background noise allowing colored, shaded and previously unrecognizable documents to be converted with ease. The Most Accurate Conversion in 119 Languages ScanSoft's sophisticated multi-engine voting capabilities deliver unprecedented accuracy in 119 different languages. The new release increases accuracy up to 35% over the previous version, resulting in an accuracy level greater than 99%. Breakthrough PDF Conversion Our PDF overlay matching technology provides an accuracy level 80% greater than other solutions for PDF normal and image/text conversion. OmniPage Pro 14 Office helps businesses easily re-purpose information trapped in PDF files by instantly converting them into editable word processing and spreadsheet documents complete with layout, text, graphics and tables. Financial, Legal and Medical Recognition A new financial dictionary plus expanded recognition dictionaries for legal and medical terminology ensure the accurate conversion of important industry specific documents using this language. Formatting When it comes to saving time and effort, formatting is almost as important as accuracy. Reconstructing the layout of a document can be a costly and time consuming process especially if there are columns, tables or graphics involved. OmniPage Pro 14 Office delivers precise layout retention to maintain the look and text flow of the original page. The result is minimized page reconstruction time saving you more effort than ever before. Flowing Page Output Flowing page output offers the combination of page fidelity and editability. Columns, tables, lists and graphics remain in place, while text flows naturally around these embedded objects. Superior Page Analysis Before recomposing the layout of a document, the software must first understand all of the objects on the page and their relationship to one another. OmniPage Pro 14 Office offers improved detection of individual page objects, in particular tables. This feature ensures tables and spreadsheets, with or without gridlines, are formatted correctly. Total PDF Support - Scan, Convert & Print PDF files have become the de-facto imaging file standard. Ideal for both archiving and file sharing, PDFs are image perfect representations of the original document. OmniPage Pro 14 Office supports the creation of searchable PDF files from any paper or electronic document. OmniPage also allows users to turn PDF Files (even image-only files) directly into their favorite editable document format. These collective PDF capabilities enable editing, archiving and processes sharing to save valuable time and money. Edited PDF Output This output mode allows you to significantly rework a document's text and formatting from within the OmniPage proofreader and republish a formatted and searchable PDF file. PDF Printing Archiving and sharing information has never been easier. OmniPage now has the ability to create PDF files. Simply use print to PDF to turn any application file into a perfectly formatted and searchable PDF file. PDF Converter for Microsoft Word Turn PDF files into Microsoft Word documents with the click of a single button. OmniPage Pro 14 Office includes PDF Converter for Microsoft Word. As a separate plug-in application that works from within Word, Windows Explorer, Outlook or Internet Explorer PDF Converter instantly converts PDF files into Word documents to save you time when editing or repurposing information found in PDF files. Overlay Matching OmniPage is the first product to combine image OCR and text capture for superior results on all types of PDF files. PDF files (even image-only files) can be converted into many different formats with up to 100% accuracy. The ability to work with PDF files in an editable format saves countless hours of file re-creation time. PDF Output Create searchable archives. Paper can be quickly converted into any number of searchable PDF formats - helping business create space-efficient and easily retrievable digital archives. Because our OCR is the most accurate, the retrieval process will be as well. A search is only as accurate as the OCR that indexed the document. Tagged PDF Output Turning paper documents into tagged PDF files will improve document layout, ensuring that PDF files look exactly like the original. Signed/Encrypted PDF Output Document security and authenticity are ensured with adoption of support for digital signatures and encryption. Automated Conversion OCR Software is designed to save time and money by replacing manual processes with automated ones. OmniPage Pro 14 Office takes a great leap forward by allowing the execution of all processing tasks more quickly and with less intervention. OmniPage adapts to the way you work by transforming your most frequent multi-step document conversions into a single mouse click. Automation is taken a step further with the new batch manager that can be set up to perform unattended processing and convert multiple batches of files without any user intervention. Custom Workflows Custom Workflows are designed to take you to the next level of productivity. OmniPage tailors itself to the way you work when you distill your favorite multi-step conversion processes into single mouse click or voice command. For example, you can set up a template to automatically recognize a 20 page PDF file, convert it into a Word document, e-mail it to a co-worker and save a copy to your local hard-drive with a single click of the mouse. Instant Workflow Access Once you've created your favorite workflows you will be able to access them from of outside OmniPage for improved ease-of-use and increased speed. These custom workflows can be made available by either a voice command or mouse click from the Windows toolbar. Workflow Sharing Now all the OmniPage users in your office can leverage the same custom workflows you've created. OmniPage allows importing and exporting of workflows for enhancing group productivity. Barcode Cover Page Capabilities Utilizing cover pages simplifies the scanning process and enhances time saving by entering key document and job set up information automatically. Simply place a barcode cover page on top of a stack of documents before scanning to automatically signal OmniPage to execute a specific pre-defined workflow for that particular set of documents. Email Notification Configure OmniPage to route informational e-mail notifications to key personnel alerting them to the completion of key processing events or intervention requirements to optimize system performance and efficiency. Batch Manager Unattended batch processing of documents allows users to concentrate on other tasks while OmniPage does the OCR work for them. The new Batch Manager allows files or entire folders to be processed and shared automatically. It can continually search folders on the network, OCR all contents and route results to other network or local folders. Perfect for organizations that need to turn volumes of documents into easily retrievable electronic files. Editing and Proofing Proofreading your converted documents ensures the highest accuracy possible. OmniPage Pro 14 Office's proofreader offers increases in speed and flexibility to make the proofing process easier, faster and more intuitive than ever before. IntelliTrain Proofing System The IntelliTrain proofing system "learns" your editing style by recording your previous text corrections to generate better OCR results in each successive document. Improvements to the proofing algorithms result in better correction suggestions and handling of hyphenated words. Context Specific Correction Confirming the accuracy of questionable words is much easier because suspect words are now shown within a wider context of the document's text to facilitate more accurate corrections. Dynamic Verification The proofreading mode now provides a more dynamic view of the original document's text image so you do not have to second guess if your corrections are appropriate or not. Individual Character Training IntelliTrain proofing also allows specific individual characters or symbols to be learned, thus ensuring better accuracy in subsequent document conversions. RealSpeak Voice Readback OmniPage not only recognizes your documents, it will even read them back to you! The award winning RealSpeak voice read-back technology enables you to proof by ear, not just by eye. Document Output The ability to turn paper or PDF documents into your favorite program is what makes OmniPage Pro 14 Office so versatile. Whether you want to edit a document, create a searchable archive, share information on the Web, or integrate information into other applications, OmniPage allows you to make the conversion quickly and accurately. Output to Microsoft Office 2003 This version of OmniPage adds support for all the Office 2003 applications, including the new Word ML format. WYSIWYG HTML WYSIWYG HTML allows you to turn documents directly into Web pages with just a click of a button. Converted Web pages will include graphics and pictures while maintaining the precise look and feel of the original document. ODMA Export OmniPage includes robust support for ODMA, the international standard for the transference of data, into your back office information and document management systems. XML Output Use OmniPage to transform paper and images into intelligent data that can be used in countless ways once it has been linked to the schema. The newest version adds support for Word ML. Open e-Book Output OmniPage Pro 14 Office now includes support for the Microsoft .lit standard allowing you to republish information to emerging electronic publishing standards. Turn your documents into e-Books for viewing on standard Web browsers; pocket PCs, and the tablet PC. Speech Capabilities As the world's leading provider of speech technology, ScanSoft realizes that voice automation and text-to-speech functionality can greatly enhance productivity. OmniPage now benefits from our market leading technology through voice control and audio book publishing. These exciting new features allow users to work faster and leverage information as never before. Audio Book Publishing Take documents with you wherever you go with OmniPage's new Audio Book Publishing. Paper and electronic documents can now be converted into natural sounding audio files for playback or burning to CD. This .wav file output allows any document to be converted into an audio book for increased portability and convenience. Voice Controlled Workflow Save time by activating your conversion workflows with a simple voice command. Voice Assisted Proofing In addition to voice read back of text, OmniPage now allows you the flexibility to correct words using your voice instead of typing text. Advanced Productivity Features Optimize time savings and productivity for your particular business needs. A host of adjustable controls allow you to transform documents with speed, formatting, and output styles that are specifically tailored to the way your enterprise works. Concurrent File Saving Now archiving, editing and sharing efforts can co-exist in a single step. Save to multiple file formats at the same time. For example, you can save a searchable PDF for your archive, a Word document for editing and the original image for verification simultaneously. Resolution Control Choose your desired resolution for saved images and for images embedded in recognized pages. Adjustable Speed Control Customize recognition performance by selecting the speed and accuracy settings that are optimized for your business process. Manual Speed Zoning Speed up the manual zoning process by viewing auto-detect zones and double-clicking to select the one you want. Process Sharing Share user dictionaries and zone templates over your network so that all the OmniPage users in your office can become more productive by leveraging power-users' application expertise. Improved OPD Files OmniPage document files now contain training files, user dictionary and zone information to make follow-up OCR sessions faster and easier. Custom Converters Create custom documents according to your business standards. Document output can be tailored for specific attributes so that each time documents are converted to specific programs they have specific properties pre-selected to minimize required completion work in the target application. Direct OCR Save time by performing OCR from directly within your favorite program. Use OmniPage to place fully formatted text within Word, Excel and many other popular word-processing programs without ever needing to launch OmniPage. OLE Automation Use OmniPage to create a programmable submit with a simple C/C++ or VB call. Network Installable OmniPage Pro 14 Office is network friendly and supports the software being "pushed" out to all your client computers without the need to visit each individual workstation. Your IS department will save time and money by utilizing Microsoft Windows 2000 Server and System Management Server (SMS) to administer OmniPage software easily across your entire enterprise. Convert to XML OmniPage Pro 14 Office allows you to automate the conversion of paper and PDF documents into industry-standard XML documents. XML is a native format for a growing list of database and content management applications, including Microsoft SQL Server, SharePoint, and Oracle 9i. The XML documents created by OmniPage include tagged data for all of the text in a document, as well as precise page segmentation information on the location of graphics and tables. When combined with its batch processing capabilities, the XML support in OmniPage provides unmatched power and application interoperability. Document Conversion OmniPage Pro 14 Office is not only a paper-to-digital conversion application; it also allows you unlock the information that is trapped in static image and PDF files. Using OmniPage you can convert almost all image formats into editable files for your existing PC applications, including Microsoft Word and Excel. Better still, OmniPage can be used to convert a document from one format to another (TIF to PDF for example,) and to make static image documents searchable on your PC and within content management applications. Text, Tables and Graphics Most people think of OCR as a way to extract text and spreadsheet data from existing documents. Because OmniPage has advanced page segmentation capabilities, it is also a powerful way to re-use pictures, clip-art, graphics and charts within documents. Simply zone-over the area you want to extract, and OmniPage will let you save the area in a wide range of image formats. Image Format Conversion Images of scanned documents contain a "picture" of the document, which can be viewed but not edited or searched. OmniPage converts static images into documents that can be edited and searched. The product supports converting all popular image formats, including TIF, JPG, BMP, PCX, GIF, PDF, MAX and more. Additional Features A host of other features allow OmniPage to work more efficiently independently and with your existing back office systems. Microsoft SharePoint Support OmniPage can submit converted documents directly into SharePoint for archive storage. Documents stored in SharePoint can also be directly accessed for format conversion. DMS/FTP Support OmniPage allows you to easily move documents in to and out of document management systems through ODMA and FTP so they can be shared across your entire organization. 2 Page Scanning Cut your scanning time in half by using OmniPage to separate and independently recognize each page from books, magazines and journals. 508 Compliance The Americans With Disabilities act requires computer programs to be easily navigated by visually impaired users. This software effectively addresses their needs and is fully compliant with Section 508. Multithreading OmniPage can be configured to execute multiple processes in parallel in order to decrease the total amount of time it takes to convert large documents. For example, the software can begin the OCR process while it is still capturing additional images through the scanner. Install and Setup Installation should proceed with little difficulties, although your system should already have installed whatever selected scanner you will be using with the program. I would suggest that if you have an earlier version of OmniPage Pro on your system that you first uninstall the earlier version in order to not have 2 versions of the program on your machine. Also, be sure you are prepared for the slight learning curve required to master the many powerful features of this vital program. The included Help files and the intuitive user interface and toolbars do make this initial process go smoothly. Recommendations Any business or organization that finds itself still burdened with a dependence on paper as their means of capturing key operational data should seriously consider this excellent program that will enable them to quickly convert these paper documents into more meaningful computer files. OmniPage Pro 14 definitely applies in those environments where users are more used to sending and receiving paper documents, but now, with the new PDF capabilities, this opens up OmniPage Pro for use in any company. Don't let the user-friendly interface fool you. This is a powerful program packed with features that on first use are simply amazing. With the use of paper still so common in most all companies, OmniPage Pro 14 definitely has a place in just about all these companies. Price $599 System Configuration Requirements P-III or higher, or equivalent processor Win 98SE, 2000 (SP2), ME, XP, NT4 (SP6), Windows Server 2003 128MB RAM (256MB RAM recommended) 135MB free hard disk space for application files and sample images 40-45MB working space during installation 20-67MB hard disk space per RealSpeak speech module 343MB total hard disk space for nine languages 2MB hard disk space per ASR speech recognition language 15MB total hard disk space for seven languages 18MB hard disk space for ScanSoft PDF Converter 3.4MB hard disk space for ScanSoft PDF Printer Driver 5MB for Microsoft Installer (MSI) if not present 5MB additional disk space may be required for various system updates IE 5.01 (SP 2 or later) 800 x 600 pixel color monitor 16-bit color or greater video card CD-ROM drive for installation A compatible scanner with its own scanner driver software if you plan to scan documents Web access is needed for product registration, Scanner Wizard database updating and obtaining live updates for the program Performance and speed will be enhanced if your computer’s processor, memory, and available disk space exceed the minimum requirements. About ScanSoft, Inc. ScanSoft, Inc. develops digital imaging software that enables users to leverage the power of their scanners, digital cameras, and other electronic devices. The product line now includes several well known applications, in addition to OmniPage Pro 14, including OmniPage Pro Scan Suite Plus, OmniForm 4, PagisPro, TextBridge Pro, , PageKeeper, Kai's PhotoSoap2, Kai's SuperGoo, Kai's PowerShow, PhotoFactory, along with PaperPort Deluxe. If many of these programs sound familiar, you would be right in thinking these used to be developed and sold by other companies. At this point, ScanSoft now dominates this market with their full line of programs, many formerly developed by other companies, and only time will tell if this multi-product line will merge into fewer applications. With this dominance, don't be surprised to find ScanSoft software bundled with newly purchased scanners or digital cameras in the future. Also, Microsoft has licensed ScanSoft OCR software for use in future Microsoft products, a feat that will be of keen interest to any computer owner. Contact ScanSoft, Inc. 9 Centennial Drive Peabody, Massachusetts 01960 978-977-2000 800-443-7077 FAX 978-977-2412 www.scansoft.com