[Solved] Inserting docs from scanner (Canon MX515)

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belson
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[Solved] Inserting docs from scanner (Canon MX515)

Post by belson »

I cannot scan a doc from my MX525 into TEXT DOCUMENT. This was simple using Microsoft Office (early versions) but not possible in Microsoft Office (Current Version) Hence my return to this, otherwise, excellent piece of kit. Help!
Last edited by Hagar Delest on Thu Dec 21, 2017 12:11 am, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: tagged [Solved].
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jrkrideau
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Re: Inserting docs from scanner (Canon MX515)

Post by jrkrideau »

A scanned document is usually a PDF file. You need to further process it using an Optical Character Recognition program before it will import into Writer or Word.

I would guess your computer was set up to do this automatically in earlier versions of Windows but does not do this now.

Some Windows user should be along soon to give you some suggestions.
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Bill
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Re: Inserting docs from scanner (Canon MX515)

Post by Bill »

It's been years since I did this with Word 2000, but IIRC, the OCR software that converted the file to text came with the scanner or was purchased separately. It wasn't a function of MS Office. OpenOffice can't do the conversion.
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belson
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Re: Inserting docs from scanner (Canon MX515)

Post by belson »

Thankyou JKR RIDEAU & BILL. However the docs I wish to copy are not compatible with OCR being either Crossword submissions or Pictures and photos.
Belson
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RoryOF
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Re: Inserting docs from scanner (Canon MX515)

Post by RoryOF »

Then I suggest using your scanner software to scan them as an image (PDF, TIFF, PNG or perhaps something else) and insert them into your OO file as an image (/Insert /Picture from file).
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belson
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Re: Inserting docs from scanner (Canon MX515)

Post by belson »

Thanks Rory OF.
I should have thought of that but I WAS born before computers were !!!
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RoryOF
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Re: Inserting docs from scanner (Canon MX515)

Post by RoryOF »

Et tu, Brute?
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John_Ha
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Re: Inserting docs from scanner (Canon MX515)

Post by John_Ha »

belson wrote:I cannot scan a doc from my MX525 into TEXT DOCUMENT. This was simple using Microsoft Office (early versions) but not possible in Microsoft Office (Current Version) Hence my return to this, otherwise, excellent piece of kit. Help!
I think it is because of a problem with the TWAIN driver for the scanner and that AOO and MS Office need the TWAIN driver. I have a memory somewhere that TWAIN and W10 can be problematic but I could be wrong. Also, some scanners only have 32 bit TWAIN drivers so if you now are running 64 bit W10 you will need a 64bit TWAIN driver.

Ask on the scanner forum.
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Villeroy
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Re: Inserting docs from scanner (Canon MX515)

Post by Villeroy »

Your scanner dumps pictures of paper sheets to a certain directory and that's it. This is completely unrelated to OpenOffice.
Please, edit this topic's initial post and add "[Solved]" to the subject line if your problem has been solved.
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RoryOF
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Re: Inserting docs from scanner (Canon MX515)

Post by RoryOF »

A scanner is basically a camera that photographs sheets of paper. Its output is a picture. You can read any text in that picture, but the computer cannot. For the computer to do this, it needs a special program called an OCR (Optical Character Recognition) program; these are often supplied with the the scanner and will read the scan (the "photograph" of the page) into a text file - sometimes .doc, sometimes .html, sometimes .txt. You then open (or insert) this file into an OO document and can proceed to edit it. Complete integration of this process, so that a scanner produces a text file directly in OO, is very complex and has not been implemented.
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Villeroy
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Re: Inserting docs from scanner (Canon MX515)

Post by Villeroy »

RoryOF wrote:Complete integration of this process, so that a scanner produces a text file directly in OO, is very complex and has not been implemented.
Without any integration it takes 10 more seconds. Your Optical Character Recognition software loads a picture and dumps the resulting characters into a plain text file. The plain text file can be opened with any text processing software such as OpenOffice Writer.

However,
Thankyou JKR RIDEAU & BILL. However the docs I wish to copy are not compatible with OCR being either Crossword submissions or Pictures and photos.
Belson
Please, edit this topic's initial post and add "[Solved]" to the subject line if your problem has been solved.
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John_Ha
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Re: Inserting docs from scanner (Canon MX515)

Post by John_Ha »

Try this:

1 Download the MX515 driver for Windows from Canon Software and install it.

2 Start AOO. Go Insert > Picture > Scan > Select Source... Choose the scanner in the pop-up window.

3 Go Insert > Picture > Scan > Request. The scan will start and thye image will be inserted.

Alternatively, use the scanner to scan the paper and save the image as a PNG file. Drag the PNG file into the document.

Or use the scanner to scan the paper and save the image as a PDF file. Open the PDF with Adobe Reader. Go Edit > Take Snapshot ... Left-click at top left > drag the mouse to bottom right and left-click. This copies the image to the clipboard. Open Writer. Edit > Paste ..., pastes the image into Writer.

If you want to convert the paper to text do not start with AOO. Use the scanner to scan an image and save the image as a PNG file. Start the OCR software and use it to process the saved PNG file. Copy the text into AOO.
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See the Writer Guide, the Writer FAQ, the Writer Tutorials and Writer for students.

Remember: Always save your Writer files as .odt files. - see here for the many reasons why.
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Hagar Delest
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Re: [Solved] Inserting docs from scanner (Canon MX515)

Post by Hagar Delest »

From OP on the admin mailbox:
Thanks John Ha
This looks like a solution. I have tried (rather cumbersome) scanning into PHOTOSHOP and emailing the resulting file but it is hardly a quick fix. I'll try your suggestion hoping my crossed fingers don't get in the way!
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