Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

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winkelmann
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Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by winkelmann »

Is it possible to program a kind of AutoStart in the editor? So, I would like to do an OCR in every document I open a PDF.
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by Paul - Tracker Supp »

Hi winkelmann,

it is possible to set an action via JavaScript on a per document basis but we do not have a way to make that an application default.

Perhaps you should consider setting up PDF-Tools with a watched folder to automatically process your files as you receive them. It would be far better to OCR the documents once than launch OCR every time even when not needed.
Best regards

Paul O'Rorke
Tracker Support North America
http://www.tracker-software.com
winkelmann
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by winkelmann »

Well I understand. And the idea of a watched folder sounds good. But
  • How to ensure the files are processed once only?
  • And can it get processed automatically? Or shall I process manually
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TrackerSupp-Daniel
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by TrackerSupp-Daniel »

Hello, winkelmann

The use of watched folders would ensure that the action is automatic, as soon as you place the files in a specific folder for processing. To ensure that they are only processed once, you have a few failsafe options available.
To begin, our Folder monitors keep a log of processed files and avoids re-processing those which have already been done.
I would also recommend configuring the folder monitor to move processed files to a different output folder which is not connected to a folder monitor, this will ensure that they cannot be auto-run again unless you manually move the files back to the input folder.
Finally, within the OCR action itself, there is an option that will ensure only pages without text content are processed, allowing you to skip documents where every page already has text in place.

You can find tutorials on how to setup a custom tool here, and folder monitors here.

Kind regards,
Dan McIntyre - Support Technician
Tracker Software Products (Canada) LTD

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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by winkelmann »

Meanwhile I've read about this monitor in the forum but could not find it.
Now it was a bit tricky. But it works fine.
These monitors are a fine feature!
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by winkelmann »

PS:
In dialogue it would be nice to differ which kind of files are meant. So e.g. to move which files after processing. Sure, when found the solution it sounds logical. But until…
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by TrackerSupp-Daniel »

Hello, winkelmann

Might I ask what version of the software you are running currently? I believe we have updated all instances of that sentence to be clearer already in a recent build. As you can see here, with the Tool options:
image.png
And folder monitors both:
image(1).png
Is there another instance that we missed here?

Kind regards,
Dan McIntyre - Support Technician
Tracker Software Products (Canada) LTD

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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by winkelmann »

grafik.png
Well, thank you. As written I found it meanwhile.
But: When I was happy first because it run so, now the job does not start (in the right way?). So, after log-in (not restart the computer) the files sleep in the folder.
Yesterday I found that the file names must differ (e.g. time stamp). But the files remain still in the folder.
So, I must restart the computer to get real monitoring. For how long?
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by TrackerSupp-Daniel »

Hello, winkelmann

Folder monitors do not automatically start when the system restarts. The article about them above includes mention on how to get them to auto-start, but it is making use of a windows feature, and not something that we ourselves offer.

Kind regards,
Dan McIntyre - Support Technician
Tracker Software Products (Canada) LTD

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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by winkelmann »

I put it into
“C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\StartUp”
as described at
https://www.pdf-xchange.com/knowledgebase/544-How-do-I-set-up-Folder-Monitors-in-PDF-Tools.
So, it MUST start with Windows, or? I am looking for the fault to correct die misbehaviour.
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by Dimitar - Tracker Supp »

Hello Goetz,

We just tested the steps exactly as listed in the KB article - and they appear to work correctly on our test machine. Can you please check it once again and ensure that you did all the steps at your end?

Also, could you please go to the StartUp folder and copy everything you have as a value into the shortcut's Target field:


image.png


This field is located in the File Properties window, accessible by clicking the right mouse button.


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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by winkelmann »

There I find:
"C:\Program Files\Tracker Software\PDF Tools\PDFXTools.exe" /RunFldMon "{63C4A815-ABEB-4070-860BD45BCB3FC422}"
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by TrackerSupp-Daniel »

Hello, winkelmann

That would be correct. The folder monitor is a background process in windows, so the application window will not appear during startup, but it should be running. Do also note that folder monitors are designed not to take up large amounts of resources, so you will not see an immediate response when dropping a file into the folder unless another action is already in progress. When no actions are ongoing, the monitor will do a periodic check to see if new files have been added to the monitored location, and then begin processing if it finds them.

As a test, simply restart the device, place a file in the folder, and then check back an hour later. You should find that the file has been processed.

Kind regards,
Dan McIntyre - Support Technician
Tracker Software Products (Canada) LTD

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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by winkelmann »

OK. Ill test again.
"1 hour". Can I influence the interval, i.e. shorten the waiting time?
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by Tracker Supp-Stefan »

Hello winkelmann,

The 1 hour was just a suggestion as in that 1h period your PC would most likely have had some idle time which would have allowed the background processes to execute - it could be as little as 5 minutes or if you are using the same machine for other intensive tasks (say rendering a CAD project or gaming) - it might be after those are done before the background ones start.

Kind regards,
Stefan
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by winkelmann »

PS:
To explain: I get many papers by "scani mail". So I habe to process documents piece by piece. And to scan before.
So, I need a monitor continously...
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by Tracker Supp-Stefan »

Hello winkelmann,

It will work continuously - it will just not be "immediate" as the monitoring is with a lower priority than other processes but if that machine is not constantly doing e.g. video encoding (both CPU and storage intensive process) - you should be fine and your files processed in a timely manner.

Kind regards,
Stefan
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by winkelmann »

At the moment (13:40 local time) I'm still waiting (see screenshot). So I think a batch with the specific job would be better here without the monitor
grafik.png
how can I coose this special job in a batch. This one I have to start every time - maybe by a link on the desktop...
grafik(1).png
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by winkelmann »

PS: Another solution would be to install PDF Tools on another PC. But the i would need one more license
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by Tracker Supp-Stefan »

Hello winkelmann,

We would recommend you give it a try as everything is currently set up and see if your files are processed in a timely manner - I believe they would. Only if they aren't you should consider setting up another machine.

Kind regards,
Stefan
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by winkelmann »

Well, I don't like the idea of ​​the second PC either. What I have in mind is a batch file that does what the monitor does, including deleting it afterwards. So "for i..." process the marked job and delete the input file. Is the possible? Waiting for the monitor is too long (as you have seen) and a batch is better than starting everything manually...
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by TrackerSupp-Daniel »

Hello, winkelmann

It is worth noting that, when you configure the folder monitor, you can manually set the priority to be higher. This will increase the frequency with which we check that folder, potentially using a bit more resources, but should see your files processed more quickly.
image.png
Then, after a restart, check that the folder monitor is actually running by opening Tools, clicking options > folder monitors, and looking here:
image(1).png
If you see "disabled" there, it would indicate that the folder monitor was not started by windows when you turned the PC back on.

Do note that simply logging out and back into your user account will not trigger the "startup" folder to be run by windows, this is only run after a system shut down and startup. If you do not turn your PC off at the end of the day, and instead only "log out" (stopping background processes) you will need to manually restart the monitor when you sign in each morning. As this is a windows feature, we cannot make any changes to this handling, only inform you of how it works.

Kind regards,
Dan McIntyre - Support Technician
Tracker Software Products (Canada) LTD

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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by winkelmann »

For now, switching the priority up seems to help. I still have to wait for that because - as described - I have to continue processing the files immediately after scanning. I wasn't aware that the tool would stop when I log out. "only" However, I would have expected it to start up again when I re-enable the shortcut (desktop). And there was no improvement before. But if that doesn't work either, I would want to come back to the batch file...
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by TrackerSupp-Daniel »

Hello, winkelmann

You can create a desktop shortcut to manually run the tool itself, by right clicking on the tool in question:
image.png
As for manually re-starting the monitor, that would be done either by opening the options > folder monitors menu and clicking "enable"
image(1).png
Or by creating desktop shortcut for the monitor itself and running it directly:
image(2).png
Kind regards,
Dan McIntyre - Support Technician
Tracker Software Products (Canada) LTD

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Our Web site domain and email address has changed as of 26/10/2023.
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Support@pdf-xchange.com
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Re: Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by winkelmann »

I see. That's fine.
For the nmoment I am content. I set the monitor on high priority and now it works in "real time".
But the informations is interesting ans I hope I'll remember on it when I need ist.
I THANK YOU. My time is used more effectively...
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Aautostart: OCR by opening PDF?

Post by TrackerSupp-Daniel »

:)
Dan McIntyre - Support Technician
Tracker Software Products (Canada) LTD

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Our Web site domain and email address has changed as of 26/10/2023.
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