| OK, scanners don't technically print. You aren't | | | | can put 6-8 of these cards on the scanner at the |
| technically getting the most out of your scanner | | | | time. In a little while, you will have a fireproof |
| right now, so I guess you will have to forgive me. | | | | version of your contact list. You could even sync |
| Think about it, what do you actually do with your | | | | it to your email contacts. |
| scanner? | | | | - Business Cards: These things are the hardest in |
| I will give you 10-1 odds it's just a one-trick pony | | | | the world to keep up with. They are easy to lose, |
| for you. You use it to capture images, don't you? | | | | and they make a mess on your desk. OCR is able |
| You've captured Fluffy at the local dog park, | | | | to accurately recognize the itty-bitty type, and |
| Jimmy's picture with great-aunt whatshername, | | | | turn it into something legible and usable. You can |
| the trip to Sea World in '81. What if there's more? | | | | throw 8-10 on your scanner at any given time, |
| What if you could harness the power of your | | | | and go to town. |
| scanner to save you huge amounts of time and | | | | There are a ton of other uses for business, but I |
| money at home and work? | | | | can't go through all of them here. Let's turn our |
| You can, because I've done it. In fact, last week, | | | | eyes toward uses for school and home. |
| I saved my company 200 hours of labor. Even | | | | Uses for School and Home: |
| paying minimum wage(which we weren't), that | | | | - The Book Report: Don't you dislike typing in long |
| brings the total saved to over $3000. At first | | | | passages for book reports? I know I do. A quick |
| glance, this figure doesn't line up with basic math. | | | | run through the scanner, and you'll have a |
| $7 x 200 = $1400, not $3000. How did I do it? | | | | ready-made quote to plunk down in the middle of |
| The answer lies in economic theory, and a really | | | | your paper |
| old technology. | | | | - Lost Papers: How many times have you printed |
| Opportunity cost is a basic economic theory which | | | | out a paper, and accidentally deleted the original |
| calculates not only how much the visible costs | | | | on your hard drive? Once again, run it through, |
| are, but what it costs you not to do something | | | | and you will have an editable copy in minutes. |
| else. The most common illustration is a college | | | | - Contracts and Legal Documents: OCR makes it |
| education. If you pay $20,000 a year in visible | | | | easy to modify a buyer or seller's agreement |
| costs, the cost of not working a full time job | | | | before sending it back to your realtor or lawyer, |
| could be running you $18,000 in hidden costs. | | | | even if has just been sent as an image or hard |
| Thus, the total cost of a college education is | | | | copy. |
| actually $38,000 a year. The same goes for | | | | - Digitize your signature: This is not technically an |
| saving money. Not would you save your | | | | OCR feature, but I will throw it in as a freebie: Put |
| company $1500 in visible costs, by implementing | | | | your signature on a white sheet of paper using |
| the strategy I did, you may have made them an | | | | black ink. Scan the paper. Using GIMP or |
| additional $1500 by using that time in a more | | | | Photoshop, remove the white background. Save |
| productive manner. Now, you can see why I call it | | | | as a .png to preserve the transparency. The next |
| printing money. | | | | time you need to sign a document you are |
| The technology I used to get these results is | | | | typing, insert this image into OpenOffice or MS |
| called OCR or Optical Character Recognition. OCR | | | | Word. Email the doc, knowing you never had to |
| is not a new at all. The first patent for the | | | | waste the paper to print it. |
| technology was filed back in the '20s In fact, it | | | | Are you convinced now? If so, let me tell you |
| has been around in machine form since 1955. The | | | | what you will need to make sure you can convert |
| US Postal Service has been using it since the '60's. | | | | your text: |
| Essentially, it converts printed text or writing on a | | | | |
| page into digital form. That was the extent of the | | | | 1. You need a TWAIN compliant scanner. Most |
| technology's abilities for a great deal of it's lifespan. | | | | scanners released within the past 8 years or so |
| The field has seen some great strides since then, | | | | follow this specification. Unless your scanner is |
| including automatically formatting email addresses | | | | really ancient, you shouldn't have a problem with |
| into hyperlinks, duplicating exact replicas of page | | | | this |
| structure(including columns and breaks), and PDF | | | | 2. OCR Software: Most of the time, the software |
| support. | | | | is installed along with the drivers for your scanner, |
| Maybe you don't see how this could benefit you. | | | | and is completely free. Manufacturer versions are |
| Okay, I'll run you through a few scenarios, and | | | | not often as full-featured as If you want a cheap |
| show you how you'd save that time and money: | | | | solution, and are willing to settle for 97% or so |
| Uses for a Business: | | | | accuracy vs. 99% percent, you can go with a |
| - Invoices sent as pictures: I cannot stand it when | | | | free, open source option like GOCR. While I am |
| someone sends me a bill of lading or a packing list, | | | | not usually a big fan of commercial software, I will |
| and I can't select the text. Just run one of these | | | | pay for a great package. If you are looking for |
| images through OCR software, and you | | | | software for your company, I recommend |
| automagically have text you can copy, paste, or | | | | Omnipage Pro. You can pay 500 bucks for their |
| otherwise manipulate for another document. | | | | current version, or pick up an earlier release for |
| - The Trade Show Directory: Have you ever | | | | $50 on eBay like I did. It's easy to use, and super |
| gone to a trade show, and received that massive | | | | fast. |
| directory of attendees? Maybe you wanted to | | | | 3. While not necessary, I highly recommend a |
| get their names and addresses into your mailing | | | | scanner with an automatic document feeder, or |
| system, or you just want their email addresses | | | | ADF. This will make scanning large books a |
| for your contact list. What if I told you that you | | | | breeze, along with freeing you to do other things |
| could scan and digitize that 1200 page document | | | | while the software does it's magic. |
| in as little as 3 hours? At our company we did. | | | | 4. I would also recommend a larger amount of |
| We now have a digital directory of all suppliers | | | | RAM, as images can be quite memory intensive. |
| and buyers in our industry, for the entire | | | | The less time the application spends accessing |
| continent of North America, and we did it in just 3 | | | | your hard drive, the faster the processing will go. |
| hours. | | | | Now that I've given you some ways to save |
| - That Old Rolodex: Ah, yes. The trusty Rolodex. | | | | time and money, go invent some ways to do |
| You may have replaced yours with an email | | | | even more. If you find a way to print money, do |
| contact list, or maybe you still keep it closely by | | | | me a favor, and make an anonymous deposit to |
| your side, in case a natural disaster strikes. You | | | | my account. |