Can I turn an essay into text by scanning it?

[Lucid Dreamer]

13. My experience

Note that this may be a bit dated and there may have been great advances in OCR systems.

Back in 1990-91 I agreed to publish a family history book for my wife's side.

Source was over 100 pages of typewritten text.

I had a New MacIntosh with OCR, word-processing and desktop publishing software.

My original thought was to scan docs to WP and make a few corrections as necessary. Then export the WP doc to the publishing suite.

I scanned in the first 10 pages, but the error rate was high enough that I found it more convenient to type the doc myself. At that time I could do over 75 wpm. Also, it allowed me to edit on the fly for spelling, grammar and clarity. Net time saver for me.

OCR scanning today may well be more accurate. Today. If it is just one doc you might want to make contacts to people who use the technology on a production basis and ask for help. Local colleges may be able to help if you have any contacts.

I don't know how long your essay is. I know I could hire secretarial services to do this for me quickly.

Those are just a few suggestions. If you find another solution that really works well for you, please let us know.