Ask HN: Book Scanner Recommendations

5 pointsyonisto3 comments

I've bunch of books that I cannot find in PDF/EPUB format (books from the 80s and the 90s that are not in English). So I wish to scan them and later use an OCR to convert them.

So I'm looking for recommendations about book scanners (Google search gave me some ideas about brands and actual features, but I couldn't find recommendations from people with actual experience)

Thanks.

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I have a Plustek Opticbook 3600 which is an old model that can be found on ebay. I used it on a windows 7 machine.

It is tolerable for a small number of books. Scanning a thousand pages is an ordeal that you will not be keen to repeat.

I spent a day trying different software. I don't remember for certain which software I used, it may have been naps2.

I know this is a horrible option and most likely not what you had in mind, but there is always the option to cut open the spine of the book and use a normal flatbed scanner. Many commercial digitalization services use this approach AFAIK.

Other than that, have you checked your local library if they have a book scanner? No need to buy your own ...

This would be like cutting open my own heart :-)

But maybe it would come to this. Thanks.

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