Instructions and FAQ for Pretext Beta 1.0

What a Beta test is

A software product is tested internally (an Alpha test) and when the developer is satisfied, they let people use the software - for free - so that bugs can be fixed, and features added or improved.

If you have OCR needs, you should download Pretext Beta 1.0, use it, and at the same time, report any problems you find.

It is best that if you have any comments after using Pretext Beta 1.0, that you email them to San Fran Systems.

What Pretext is for 'in the real world'

There are a few applications:

How much Pretext will cost

For Windows, $20 a copy.

But this is a beta test phase, which means it's free as long as you report feedback on bugs, but it stops working on the 25th of July 2010.

Where Pretext fits in the OCR process

As follows:

The source can be a scanner or an image file on your disk:


Requirements

You need at least:

Linux, Mac OSX and iPhone/iPad

Pretext will be available for those platforms in a few months. We're focusing on Windows right now.


Guide to GUI

  1. This lets you specify the 'cluttered' image you want to find text in
  2. This lets you specify a folder to put the resulting image in
  3. When you've selected an input file, the filename goes here
  4. When you've selected an output folder, the filename goes here
  5. If this is ticked, the first thing you see on loading Pretext is an input file requester, for speed of use
  6. When processing an image file, this shows you how far along Pretext is, and how long it has left to go
  7. Click this and Pretext does its work
  8. Displays a short message describing the program and its version
  9. Click this to quit Pretext
  10. Once you have run Pretext on an image, click this to open the resulting image file

Text and Pretext logo (c) 2010 San Fran Systems