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Re: Information Request regarding digital indexing and access to loca l history newspapers



Most of the commercial scanners I've seen and worked with have difficulty reading 19th century typefaces, making OCR applications awkward, and sometimes impossible.  I've heard of some that can be "taught" to read new (okay, "old") typefaces.  This is an application I'd be interested in hearing more about.

Linotype machines used in the latter part of the nineteenth, could create a more uniform lettering that OCRs might be able to "learn" but I suspect that newspapers printed earlier would be full of little irregularities that could preclude OCR legibility.  (Chipped serifs, ascenders and descenders being the most common culprits in well-used type.)

Typesetters were also known to be creative when the need arose--if they ran out of 9's they'd use upside-down 6's  or whatever it would take...

At any rate, I'd love to hear about anyone having success with OCRing such material!



Holly Hodges

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