Watched folders

Omnipage pro Watched folders   Folder watching jobs

This topic relates only to OmniPage Professional.

In OmniPage Professional, you can specify watched folders as job input. These allow processing to be started automatically whenever image files are placed in pre-defined folders. This is useful to have sets of files with predictable content arriving from remote locations processed automatically on arrival, even if no-one is in attendance. Typically these are reports or form-like documents that are delivered repeatedly or at recurring intervals, for example each week or month.

You can specify watched folders for Folder watching jobs, Barcode cover page jobs and mailbox watching jobs (Outlook or Lotus Notes).

To set up a Folder watching job:

  1. Prepare a set of folders to be watched for incoming image files.

You should not use these folders for other purposes, not even for barcode watching folders.

  1. Start the Batch Manager.

  2. Click the Omnipage tb bm new Watched folders   Folder watching jobs Create Job button in the Batch Manager toolbar or select Create Job in the File menu.

The Job Wizard will appear.

  1. Select Folder watching job as a job type.

  2. Type in a job name and click Next.

  3. In the Input Folders panel of the Job Wizard, select folders and the desired file types to be watched.

  4. Checkmark items to include subfolders then click Next.

  5. In the Start and Stop Options panel of the Job Wizard, set the timing instructions: a starting time and an end time for the watching to occur.

    You can start a folder watching job immediately, at a later time or repeatedly. You can specify a finishing time or run the job without time limit.

  6. Select other options, if required, then click Next.

  7. In the Workflow Assistant – Create New Job panel, select Fresh Start (when starting from scratch) or Existing Workflows, then click Next.

Follow steps as described under Creating workflows and Modifying workflows. At least one saving step is compulsory in a job.

  1. After all desired steps are added, click Finish.

 

  • You can specify recurrences, for instance to have the folder(s) watched only during your lunch hour (Start 12.15, End 13.05) every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, or overnight in the last three days of each month, when you keep your computer running to collect and process monthly reports arriving from afar. When files enter a watched folder, the program waits about 10 seconds for more files to arrive in order to process them together. When files cease to arrive, processing starts.

 

  • Use the Delete input image files option in the Start and Stop Options panel with care because you can check job results only after job completion.

To finish the watching early

  • Click Omnipage tb bm deactivate Watched folders   Folder watching jobs Deactivate Job in the Batch Manager toolbar or choose Deactivate Job from the File menu. Then you can modify the job freely. You can change the start or end time for folder watching.  

    Click Omnipage tb bm activate Watched folders   Folder watching jobs Activate Job when you want the job to be activated.

 

Watched folders – Folder watching jobs