Please help me understand the OCR and Optimization Workflow

[Gast]

I'm trying to use Acrobat Pro DC to make existing PDFs searchable as well as optimize - reduce file size, make clearer, deskew, etc... - but I'm having some confusion regarding different options and hoping someone can explain the differences and what an ideal workflow would be.

The Enhance tool has options for Optimization and for Text Recognition, but then there are standalone tools for "Recognize Text" as well as Optimization (Reduce File Size, Advanced Optimization, Optimize Scanned Pages and Preflight). The 3rd option there - Optimize Scanned Pages - seems to be the same as Enhance. 

So, what should I be doing? Is Enhance/Optimize Scanned Pages "the full works" - it will deskew, sharpen, etc.. then recognize text, then reduce file? Or do I Enhance first, then Recognize text on its own, then Optimize? I'd like to have relatively small file sizes in the end, but obviously I don't want to do that prior to Text Recognition. How does this all work? 

Thanks!

[ls_rbls]

File optimization gives you a custom option to define what you really want to keep and what to get rid of without sacrificing the display quality of your document after file compression and other file reduction methods are applied.

When you go to File, Save As Other,  you'll see the two options:

• Reduced Size PDF
• Optimized PDF

Reduced Size PDF is part of the file optimizer but with a fair preselection of file reduction settings.

Depending on the type of PDF that you're working on, Sometimes this works great and sometimes it doesn't.

So if you use Optimized PDF you'll get flexibility and a wide range of settings to have full control of what needs to be removed, what needs to be compressed,  or   choosing the  emebedding and unembedding  of fonts, for example. 

[Gast]

Thank you very much. Optimize sounds like a "better" choice for me than Reduce Size.

But my main question is regarding OCR - how do the "Enhance" and "Recognize Text" tools within "Scan and OCR", and the "Optimize Scanned Pages" tool within "Optimize PDF" all compare? Enhance and Optimize Scanned Pages seem to be the same thing, but I'm not sure. And I am wondering if Recognize Text is embedded within the other two, or is it a distinctly different process?

Overall, what's the best tool(s) to be using to prepare, deskew, recognize text and reduce file size?

Thanks! 

[Bernd Alheit]

prepare what?

[Gast]

What I meant by prepare was whatever adjustments the Enhance function applies - Deskew, remove background, sharpen etc... - in order to make a more presentable and better OCR'd pdf.

[Bernd Alheit]

It depends on the scan.

[default05zkxfrumrkx]

did you ever get an answer to this question?  If I want to OCR, deskew and compress file, what is the correct command?

Do I have to OCR first and then optimize as a second step?