We love us some PowerToys here at PCWorld, and it seems the semi-official add-on for Windows power users is only getting better. A recent update to the GitHub project for PowerToys indicates that “PowerOCR” is in the latter stages of approval and should land in the official app before too long. The tool will add in an easy way for Windows users to activate Optical Character Recognition (OCR) via a quick screenshot interface.

NeoWin spotted the changes to the PowerToys Github, with extensive documentation of the new PowerOCR tool and an apparent approval nod from a Microsoft manager. The tool is mostly the work of independent developer Joesph Finney, contributing code that works similarly to his paid Text Grab app. He posted a handy GIF showing how quickly and easily the tool works:

Joseph Finney

Joseph Finney

Joseph Finney

PowerOCR still needs a bit of work like an installer, icon, and basic documentation, but other members of the PowerToys team are already on it. There’s no official date for when it will hit the stable version of the app, but this portion of the project seems to be humming along nicely.

Author: Michael Crider, Staff Writer

Michael is a former graphic designer who’s been building and tweaking desktop computers for longer than he cares to admit. His interests include folk music, football, science fiction, and salsa verde, in no particular order.

Recent stories by Michael Crider:

Google’s Bard AI officially becomes GeminiPCWorld deal: Get Windows 11 and PC transfer software for just $60Opera GX browser adds a ‘boss button’ for instantly hiding your games…or other stuff