After many years of "doing the same thing", the famous Microsoft Snipping App, which comes standard on all our PCs, was completely revamped. It was so popular with users that it opened the door to further improvements. We discuss one of them here to show you what Copying tables is now easier with the Windows Snipping Tool.
In the most recent version of the Snipping Tool from Microsoft, which was introduced in early October only for members of the program Windows 11 Insider, this is one of the most striking new features.
It should be said that before this, it was already possible to use the Snipping Tool to rTake screenshots and copy the text contained in the images (we talked about this and other things here in a Previous post). The new technology that has now been presented goes one step further. Text recognition technology has evolved enough to detect rows and columns with a high degree of precision.
This means that from now on, the task of copying tables will also be possible through the Windows Snipping Tool. The user will be able to do this extract data from tables (as long as they are well structured) from the screenshots and paste them directly where you want: emails, text documents, spreadsheets.
Without a doubt, this is a very easy-to-use resource that, in certain circumstances, can save the user enormous amounts of time and effort.
How to use the Snipping Tool to copy tables
Running the action of copying tables from the Windows Snipping Tool is quite simple. And if you have already used this tool before for other tasks, it is even simpler. When we have the table we want to capture on the screen, we simply have to follow these steps:
- To begin with we open the Snipping application. For example, by typing its name into the Windows start search engine and clicking on the result.
- Then we made a screenshot that contains the table we want to copy.
- In the capture window, we go to the toolbar and select «Text actions».
- Next, we select the option «Copy as table».
In this simple way we can "capture" the data contained in the table and paste it where we want. Something that was previously impossible and that with this new update will become part of the list of practical functions of this application. It sounds very interesting.
OCR technology
The wonder of copying tables with the Windows Snipping Tool is possible thanks to the OCR technology (Optical Character Recognition). Optical character recognition is nothing new, as it has already been used in other areas for years. Basically, it is a technology that allows us to convert printed or handwritten text into an editable digital format.
Its process is divided into several stages: image capture and segmentation of the image containing text (in this case, a table), text recognition and conversion.
The applications OCR technology practices are well known. It can be a accessibility tool that facilitates the reading of documents for people with visual disabilities, as well as an instrument of digitization of books and documents. In fact, it is what is used to create and edit ebooks.
In summary, it can be said that OCR technology provides us with a very useful tool to automate text recognition in images or scanned documents. This makes editing, searching and storing data considerably easier.
Other new features of the Microsoft Snipping feature
In addition to this practical utility for copying tables, the Windows Snipping Tool brings with it many other features. More news worth knowing, because we will undoubtedly use many of them on more than one occasion. Here is a brief summary of them:
- Updating previews from the taskbar, which now feature improved animations and handy dialog boxes.
- La “Disconnect and Log Out” option Task Manager now supports the dark mode and text scalingInter alia.
- Other Improvements to the “Performance” section of the tool, thanks to functions such as disc labeling.
At the moment, all this is only available to the select few who are part of the Windows Insider program. Of course, they also have the mission of testing the new functions and dealing with any possible problems that may arise. The great advantage of this for the rest of the users is that, once the testing phase is over, the function of copying tables and the rest of the application improvements will reach us without problems in the next release. stable version of Windows 11. We will be closely monitoring all the news.