Any plans to generate Images in any of the Aspose products? We are always on the lookout for a good image generator, taking input from Word or PDF docs. Most image processors are print driver based and usually not automated. Thanks!
Dear Kevin,
I’m interested in your proposal but I would need your clarification.
1. What do you mean “taking input from Word or PDF docs”?
2. Most image processors are print driver based and usually not automated. Would you name some so I can google more info to get to know what you really need.
Thanks in advance.
Absolutely!
1. By input, it’s just like you said. The most popular (well, in fact, the only one I’ve found) is to use a printer driver to generate document images from Word, Excel, PDF, etc. And by document images, I mean full document images to a Tif file, or JPG, BMP, Fax.
2. A few of the better automated solutions are Amyuni, PeerNet and BlackIce. In all cases, they are print drivers to generate various image formats. LeadTools has a very comprehensive set of image producers, however, I’m not sure they have an automated solution for generating the image from printed document.
Really, what we are looking for is a way to image the document without a scanner. The quality is much better and faster. Many of the Enterprise document imaging solutions are very large and expensive, and out of the reach of the ‘little guy’.
Thanks Ben!
Dear Kevin,
Thanks for your more info and now I’m sure I have known what you need so I rename this discussion’s title as
Document Imaging
Unlike most traditional document generating solutions, all of our components are non printer driver based.
Per your request, We would also consider any non printer driver approaches to image documents. Shortly I will invite our lead developers to post their considerations.
But I need your further comments if you are willing to spend a little more time to post here.
Why aren’t you happy with automated printer driver imaging solutions from vendors such as Amyuni, PeerNet and BlackIce?
Additionally, LeadTools may be the biggest player in the document imaging component market, you are not happy with it either?
Our primary complaint with what is available now is that they are print drivers. Amyuni has a pretty dynamic installation, and may be controlled easily with interop through .NET, but it is still a printer driver. Additionally, it can only convert to JPG.
PeerNet Pro is licensed per printer and must be installed manually. It’s only around $135 per copy, which is reasonable, but the control of the driver is not the best. However, they do offer a nice variety of image formats, compression, etc.
Black Ice, we’d never used it. I downloaded a trial and tested it, however, it left alot to be desired from the automation standpoint. Black Ice also seemed to have a nice variety of formats.
From years of searching and reviewing, the document and imaging industry is seriously lacking in usable components, in my humble opinion. There is plenty of tools available to convert from one image format to another, and it’s very easy to do with .NET. However, what is missing is an automated way, without a Printer Driver, to generate a document, as an image. So, for example:
1. Create a Word document
2. Add merge information to the document
3. Merge the document to a new document
4. Render the document as a Single page TIFF
5. Save the TIFF to a folder and import to an storage and retrieval system
The one caveat to this, is it should be done via a multi-threadable service 
We are planning to implement document viewing, print, and print preview in Aspose.Word. It would be very easy to add ability to save generated images as files because they are essentially images in memory already. Thanks for the good idea, I’m sure it will be very useful.
We are also planning to implement document imaging in Aspose.Pdf.Kit. Previewing for PDF document as image is commonly used on web server.
Any time frame or still too early?
In another post (under Aspose.Word) Dmitry Vorobyev (Aspose.Word Developer) wrote:
“Unfortunately saving Word documents to images
will be available as soon as Aspose.Word.Viewer has been completed. We
are planning to release it until end of 2005 or so.”
What about a “Aspose.Viewer” where all document types (Word, Excel,
PDF, …) can be converted to TIFF - and not only in the Word and PDF
kits ?
If its possible via Aspose to open a file (Word, Excel, etc.) and printing it… then the print-driver solution is usable… !?
But it would be a better solution if Aspose could do everything, without another 3rd part product intalled…