MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - Some perspective on why ebooks are so filled with errors.

JeremyR · 10-23-2011, 08:09 PM

There is a place what will scan a book for $1 per 100 pages, and then OCR it for another $1.

1 Dollar Scan it's called. So no, it doesn't start at $450. Oh I'm sure some firms will charge that, but they are making an obscene amount of profit.

As to correcting the OCR, sure, it's not fun. I've done it on some books I grabbed from the Internet Archive. But it's hardly the worst job in the world. Try doing manual labor sometime - digging ditches, working on a farm, etc.

I have, and I tell you, I'd much rather be proofreading books for minimum wage (except for course, companies apparently can't even be bothered to try to hire people to do it...). Even though I'm sure most publishers have no qualms about giving out huge bonuses to celebrities and politicians for book deals (most of which bomb) or cocktail parties and such.

10-23-2011, 08:09 PM	#63
JeremyR Guru Posts: 973 Karma: 2458402 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: St. Louis Device: Kindle Keyboard, Nook HD+	There is a place what will scan a book for $1 per 100 pages, and then OCR it for another $1. 1 Dollar Scan it's called. So no, it doesn't start at $450. Oh I'm sure some firms will charge that, but they are making an obscene amount of profit. As to correcting the OCR, sure, it's not fun. I've done it on some books I grabbed from the Internet Archive. But it's hardly the worst job in the world. Try doing manual labor sometime - digging ditches, working on a farm, etc. I have, and I tell you, I'd much rather be proofreading books for minimum wage (except for course, companies apparently can't even be bothered to try to hire people to do it...). Even though I'm sure most publishers have no qualms about giving out huge bonuses to celebrities and politicians for book deals (most of which bomb) or cocktail parties and such.