Editing Text in ABBYY FineReader

Note: If the ABBYY FineReader Text window does not display characters correctly (i.e. "?" or "□" can be seen in place of some or all of the letters), this means that your current font does not support your recognition language alphabet in full. Select a font that supports your entire recognition set (for example, Arial Unicode or Bitstream Cyberbit) on the Save tab (Tools>Options menu) in the Fonts group, and recognize the document again. See "Fonts for Recognition Languages that may be Displayed in Text Editor Incorrectly".

After a page is recognized, its text is displayed in the Text window. When you send your text to an external application, the text layout is retained according to the layout retention options chosen. Set these options on the Save tab (Tools>Options menu) and in the dialogs of the respective formats.

Uncertainly recognized characters are highlighted. To cancel this feature, unselect the Highlight uncertain characters item on the View tab (Tools>Options menu).

ABBYY FineReader editor features two document viewing modes: full mode (the full layout is displayed) and draft mode. 

In full mode blocks with recognized text, tables and pictures are displayed exactly as they are to be found on the original image. The complete original layout, therefore, is retained: columns, tables, pictures, and dropped capitals (oversized letters that take up several lines of space in a paragraph). The block in which the pointer is currently located is the active block. If the pointer is moved using the arrow keys, the order of navigation between blocks is determined by their numbering on the original image. If the amount of text inside a particular block becomes too large for the block concerned (e.g. following editing), parts of other inactive blocks may become invisible. If this is the case, the borders of the block(s) concerned will be displayed with red markers. When a block is active, its borders are enlarged so as to display the entire block text. 

The following text features are not displayed in draft mode: left indent; paragraph alignment (all paragraphs are aligned to the left); text and background color. A same-size font (12pt by default) is used throughout to display text in draft mode. Effects (bold, italic, underlined, superscript and subscript) are all retained.

Switch between draft and full modes by clicking the (full mode) or (draft mode) buttons in the Text window.

To change font size in draft mode:

1. Select the Options item in the Tools menu. 
2. Set your preferred font size by selecting in the Draft editor font size item on the View tab.

The ABBYY FineReader built-in editor is supplied with the following text editing features:

• Copy, cut, paste
• Search and replace
• Font effects
• Text alignment
• Undo and redo

Copy, cut, paste

1. Before you use the copy, cut, and paste commands, highlight the relevant text.
2. Follow the instructions below depending on the action you wish to carry out:

   To copy the selection:
   Copy button	Either click the Copy button on the Standard toolbar         or Select the Copy command in the Edit menu or local menu         or  Press CTRL+C
   To cut the selection:
   Cut button	Either click the Cut button on the Standard toolbar         or Select the Cut command in the Edit menu or local menu         or Press CTRL+X
   To paste the copied text:
   Paste  button	Either click the Paste button on the Standard toolbar         or  Select the Paste command in the Edit menu or the local menu         or Press CTRL+V

Back to Top

Search and replace

To find a word or phrase in the text you are editing:

1. Perform one of the following actions: 

   • Either select the Find item in the Edit menu, or
   • Press CTRL+F

2. The Search dialog will open. Type the word or phrase you wish to find in the Find what line of the dialog and set the search parameters.
   Note: To search for the same word again using the same parameters, press F3.

To search and replace a word or phrase in the text you are editing: 

1. Perform one of the following actions:

   • Either select the Replace item in the Edit menu, or
   • Press CTRL+H

2. The Replace dialog will open. Type the word or the phrase you want to find in the Find what line of the dialog, type the word or phrase that is to replace the search pattern in Replace with line, and set the search parameters.

Back to Top

Font effects

1. Click the word or highlight the text the font of which is to be changed.

2. Perform one of the following actions:

   • Either click the font-effect button (e.g. ) of your choice on the Formatting bar, or
   • Right-click the Text window and select Character Properties in the local menu. The Character dialog will open. Select the font type you wish to use and set the required font parameters in the dialog, or  
   • Press CTRL+B  - for boldface, CTRL+I - for italics, CTRL+U - to underline a word or text.

   Note: You can also set the following additional text formatting parameters in the Font dialog: character spacing, character scale, and use of lowercase capitals. Keep in mind, however, that any formatting changes involving the latter will not be displayed in ABBYY FineReader's built-in text editor. These changes will only become visible once you export your document to an application that supports the latter formatting options (e.g. Microsoft Word).

Back to Top

Text alignment

1. Select the text you wish to align.

2. Perform one of the following actions:

   • Either click the alignment button (e.g. ) of your choice on the Formatting bar, or
   • Right-click the Text window and select the Character Properties item in the local menu. The Character dialog will open. Select the necessary item in the Alignment field.

Back to Top

Undo and redo

Perform one of the following actions:

	To undo an action:
	Undo button	Either click the Undo button on the Standard toolbar, or Select the Undo item in the Edit menu, or Press CTRL+Z.
	To redo an undone action:
	Redo button	Either click the Redo button on the Standard toolbar, or Select the Redo item in the Edit menu, or Press CTRL+Y.

Back to Top