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Ask HN: Are there any AI-enhanced solutions for converting PDFs to ePub?

Sep 13, 2023 - news.ycombinator.com
The article discusses the challenges of converting PDFs, especially those with complex formatting or scanned material, into ePub format. The author mentions that tools like Calibre often struggle with preserving the formatting of these documents. They are interested in finding an OCR solution, potentially enhanced with AI, that could better handle this conversion process.

Several responses suggest different solutions. One recommends trying vectorizer.ai, which is designed to convert images into vectors but has good line detection and color acquisition. However, this would require first converting the PDF into an image. Another response questions the issues with Calibre, stating that it generally preserves the formatting they need. The author clarifies that Calibre works well with clearly structured PDFs but struggles with multi-column layouts and scanned material.

Key takeaways:

  • The user is seeking an AI-enhanced solution for converting PDFs, especially those with complex formatting or scanned, into ePub format.
  • One suggestion offered is to use vectorizer.ai, which is designed to convert images into vectors, but it requires the PDF to be converted into an image first.
  • Calibre is mentioned as a tool for conversion, but the user finds it struggles with preserving complex formatting.
  • It's noted that the structure of PDFs, which lack inherent columns and only have text starting at different positions, makes preserving formatting during conversion challenging.
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