Microsoft has rolled out a highly practical update to its Snipping Tool in Windows 11, incorporating Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology. This enhancement empowers users to effortlessly extract text from screenshots, streamlining workflows for copying information into documents or sharing text directly. This new functionality, dubbed “Text Actions,” is currently being tested by Windows Insiders in the Canary and Dev channels, suggesting a wider rollout to all Windows 11 users in the near future if testing proceeds smoothly.
The “Text Actions” feature is integrated into Snipping Tool version 11.2308.33.0. Dave Grochocki, Principal Product Manager Lead for Windows Inbox Apps at Microsoft, described the feature: “We’re introducing ‘Text Actions’ that recognise text in your captured screenshots so you can easily copy and share text from an image or paste it into another application.” This addition significantly boosts productivity by eliminating the need to manually retype text from images.
To utilize this new text scanning capability, users first need to activate “Text Actions” by clicking the designated button in the Snipping Tool toolbar. This action prompts the tool to recognize and highlight the text within the screenshot, making it selectable. Users can then copy specific portions of text using their mouse or opt to copy all recognized text using the “Copy all text” button located on the toolbar. Keyboard shortcuts like Ctrl+A (select all) and Ctrl+C (copy) are also supported for efficient text extraction.
Windows 11 Snipping Tool Text Actions feature highlighted in the toolbar, showing the option to scan text from a screenshot for easy copying and pasting
Beyond simple text extraction, the Snipping Tool also provides a useful redaction feature. This allows users to remove sensitive information from the scanned text before pasting it elsewhere or sharing it. By clicking “Quick Redact” in the toolbar, the tool intelligently identifies and redacts email addresses and phone numbers automatically. Alternatively, users can manually select specific text portions and redact them via the “Redact text” option in the right-click context menu, providing granular control over information privacy.
In conclusion, the integration of text recognition into the Windows 11 Snipping Tool marks a significant improvement for user convenience and efficiency. The ability to quickly scan text from screenshots and the added redaction feature enhance the tool’s utility for both personal and professional use. As this feature progresses beyond the Insider channels, Windows 11 users can anticipate a more seamless experience in handling text within images.
