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We haven't been particularly blown away by the DVD menu reading abilities of the instant OCR capability of JAWS V13. However, on the subject of reading inaccessible, image-only PDF files this may be more of a chance for the feature to shine.
First though, how does it all work? Let's have a basic walkthrough:
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Open any PDF file in Adobe Reader and press Control 1 to ensure that the current view setting is set to Actual Size. You can also check the current zoom setting by opening the main View menu (Alt V) and navigating to the Zoom submenu. Make sure that the View setting is Actual Size before moving on to step 2.
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Begin the OCR process by pressing the following keystrokes: Insert Spacebar, O then W. You will hear a sharp clicking sound, JAWS will state "OCR" then, when you press the W key, you will hear "OCR started." If you do not hear these statements being echoed, then follow the keystrokes again.
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When the OCR process has completed, JAWS will automatically switch to the JAWS Cursor mode allowing you to read the text output from the OCR process.
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When you have finished reading the text, press the Plus key on the numberpad to return to the PC Cursor focus and carry on as normal.
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I'm very interested to hear how you all get on with this feature. I have found it to be mildly effective - if the PDF is a simple black on white document - but overall the process struggles with complex layouts and colourings.
Another note of caution concerns the use of the JAWS Cursor (which can be an unpredictable beast at the best of times) we've certainly found it tricky to find our way around the electronic text output from the OCR. Still, with less challenging materials and as a last resort, this may be a process worth trying.
Tag: Access technology
Posted at: 23/01/2012 3:15 PM by Moderator