It looks like every text or words seen on computer screen can be copied to clipboard and pasted into word processing application or text editor. But there is always something that cannot be highlighted with mouse or keyboard, and thus cannot be copied, saved or printed. Such properties or objects include Windows dialog box, error message box, splash screen, Flash animation, graphical image or picture, status bar, buttons, web pages protected by JavaScript, protected documents especially PDF and other components with text elements that just cannot be copied and pasted.

Just imagine if you have to type each and every single characters of an lengthy error message that cannot be copied to email to the helpdesk, or to archive in documentation. Not only is the process time wasting, but also subject to typo mistake. This is where screen capture software with OCR function which able to ‘read’ the text on screen will come in handy. Screen capture OCR program lets users extract and copy text from any application anywhere on the screen, including area or part that cannot be highlighted to copy and paste, or application interface and website that has disabled right click.

StructuRise Kleptomania

Kleptomania uses Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology to let users capture text from anywhere on the screen, including database lists, forms and reports, error messages, dialog boxes, status lines, folder trees and file lists. Kleptomania keeps track of all Windows fonts, even small serif fonts such as Times 8 and MS Serif 8, and can interpret text from all areas of screen. The program can recognize underlined text (including web and e-mail addresses), as well as lines of text containing mixed fonts, font sizes, styles, and colors. Kleptomania can place the captured text onto the clipboard as plain text or Rich Text Format (RTF). Users can copy and paste text into any editor or word processor, sum numbers in a column of copied data, count the number of words and characters that have been highlighted, and discover the properties of the font that is on your screen: font face, size and color (GRB).

Download Kleptomania (40 days fully functional trial or buy at $29.95).

Capture Text

Capture Text from CaptureText.com is a full-featured text recognition software (screen capture solution) that can recognize and save any text that otherwise cannot be saved or printed. The features including support text in any type of document (HTML, Word, Notepad, PDF, BMP or JPG image) or in any part of the screen and saves it to clipboard, and in any language that cannot be saved or printed. Capture Text can also recognizes “hidden” text ignoring blocking scripts on Internet pages works with virtually any character sizes, font proportional and fixed typeface. It also works with all American and European character sets, including the Central-European and Cyrillic.

Download Capture Text (21 days trial or purchase at $29.95).

Aqua Deskperience

Aqua Deskperience is an one-click professional text and screen capture. The Text Capture feature ability to extract and capture visible screen text from places where regular copy and paste does not work as in folder trees, error messages, status bars, protected documents, buttons, applications interfaces so you do not have to type all these words by yourself. Aqua is also able to preserve the formatting of the captured text, copy captured text to clipboard, see the font face, size and color of the captured text, recognize URL’s, and process captured text automatically.

Download Aqua Experience: AquaSetup.exe (current version 1.6, free 20 days trial or buy at $14.99 now freeware, search for download links).