OCR a Selection of Text Rather Than the Full Page

[Modify_inc]

Regarding a scanned document, is there a way to OCR only a selection of text rather than the entire page?

I just need to change two words, yet every time I click to edit, Acrobat does an OCR of the entire page, which alters the formatting of all the text since it tries to find the closest matching fonts for everything on the page. This can be very noticable at times, especially with this current document I'm working with.

If this is not possible, does anyone have any suggestions?

[gary_sc]

No, you cannot select regions on a page for the OCR to occur. It's the entire page or nothing.

On the other hand, if you edited these words in the original document and then re-created the PDF, it would probably go a lot faster. 

When it comes to editing a PDF, NOT editing the PDF and editing the original and recreating the PDF is always the best way.

[Modify_inc]

Thank you for the quick reply! I figured that was the case.

The only problem with correcting and rescanning is that the text is typed and not hand written, so I know of  no easy way to correct those two words.

[gary_sc]

Ah, well, with that new information, then yes, you will have to OCR the entire page.

However, you might try changing the three scanning modes available to you: one of these might work better than the others:

OCR type Options

Searchable Image

Ensures that text is searchable and selectable. This option keeps the original image, deskews it as needed, and places an invisible text layer over it. The selection for Downsample Images in this same dialog box determines whether the image is downsampled and to what extent. Consequently, #1 is typically not acceptable to a FedGov agency (or any entity with an interest in a document of record having the proper "provenance").

Searchable Image (Exact)

Ensures that text is searchable and selectable. This option keeps the original image and places an invisible text layer over it. Recommended for cases requiring maximum fidelity to the original image. Typically this is what a FedGov agency requires if submitting a scanned image of text.

Editable Text & Images

Synthesizes a new custom font that closely approximates the original and preserves the page background using a low-resolution copy.