Release notes

OwlOCR changelog

A history of the customer-facing improvements that shaped OwlOCR. Recent releases include detailed notes; older entries collect the major milestones from the project archive.

v7.11.0
June 21, 2026

Automatic page orientation

OwlOCR can now detect and rotate sideways or upside-down pages before recognizing their text.

  • Added an opt-in four-way orientation check for turned pages.
  • Kept previews, OCR text boxes, and searchable PDF exports aligned with the detected rotation.
  • Supported automatic orientation with both Apple Vision and OCR AI while preserving manual page rotations.
v7.10.2
June 20, 2026

More reliable OCR results

Successful OCR results now return reliably even when macOS emits an unexpected native diagnostic message.

  • Reserved the native helper output channel for structured OCR responses.
  • Ignored and recorded unrelated native diagnostics without discarding a valid OCR result.
  • Made progress and final-response decoding safer across single-page, multipage, and PDF export workflows.
v7.10.1
June 7, 2026

Reliable CLI Pro access

The command-line tool now recognizes active Pro licenses reliably across direct-download and Mac App Store installations.

  • Recognized validated direct-download Pro licenses when running CLI commands.
  • Preferred settings for the matching distribution so stale settings from another installation no longer mask active Pro access.
  • Kept direct-download license tokens isolated from Mac App Store CLI entitlement checks.
v7.10.0
June 6, 2026

More reliable OCR AI

Local AI recognition now resists repeated text loops and uses an updated runtime, while scanner batches open in a more natural page order.

  • Matched the recommended LightOnOCR sampling and image settings across the app and command line tool.
  • Added a conservative repetition penalty to stop long or dense documents from falling into repeated generation loops.
  • Updated the bundled llama.cpp runtime from b9442 to b9542.
  • Kept unsuffixed scanner pages before numbered continuation files such as scan_001 and scan_002.
v7.9.0
June 3, 2026

Faster searchable PDF exports

Large searchable PDF exports now finish faster and provide visible progress while separate document files are written.

  • Reduced the cost of fitting hidden searchable text into narrow OCR boxes, which speeds up PDF writing for large batches.
  • Added page-level progress while writing searchable PDFs, including the current filename and document count.
  • Added cancellation support while searchable PDFs are being written.
  • Kept account numbers and similar text contiguous in the searchable PDF layer.
v7.8.1
June 2, 2026

Pro access and accessibility

Direct-download builds can recognize existing Mac App Store Pro access, while dialogs, controls, and navigation are clearer and more predictable.

  • Recognized existing OwlOCR Pro access from a Mac App Store installation when using the direct-download build on the same Mac.
  • Improved accessibility labels across settings controls, dialogs, links, and navigation.
  • Used native dialog behavior for onboarding and release notes to improve focus and dismissal.
  • Hardened dependency installation policy for safer release builds.
v7.7.2
June 2, 2026

Long PDF reliability

Longer PDFs now process more predictably in the app and Finder Quick Actions, with smaller searchable PDF exports and more careful page handling.

  • Fixed searchable PDF exports that could become much larger than the original document.
  • Preserved page geometry more carefully for rotated PDFs to avoid clipped or blank output pages.
  • Reduced temporary memory pressure while Finder Quick Actions process long documents.
  • Kept multipage PDF OCR sequential within each document for the same stable behavior as single-page recognition.
v7.7.1
May 31, 2026

OCR AI performance controls

Local OCR AI can now be tuned for the balance of memory use, speed, and recognition quality that fits your Mac.

  • Added smaller Q3_K_S and Q2_K model variants alongside the balanced Q4_K_M default.
  • Added an Advanced options section for llama-server context size, GPU layers, CPU threads, batch sizing, and Flash Attention.
  • Added memory mapping and RAM locking controls for local runtime tuning.
  • Kept the app and command line OCR paths aligned with the selected model variant.
v7.7.0
May 31, 2026

Cleaner OCR, better control

Long-running OCR work is easier to follow and easier to stop, with a new set of text cleanup tools for the result.

  • PDF text extraction preserves more accurate document text when it is available.
  • OCR AI streams completed pages into your document while it works.
  • Stopping OCR AI is faster and keeps the local runtime ready for your next request.
  • OCR All resumes unfinished pages instead of repeating completed work.
  • A new Fixes section can join wrapped lines, repair split words, normalize punctuation spacing, and collapse repeated blank lines.
v7.6.0
May 26, 2026

Purchase and CLI reliability

This release makes Pro access easier to understand and command line workflows more dependable.

  • Mac App Store subscriptions are checked against current entitlements more accurately.
  • The redesigned Pro panel makes plan selection, checkout, and restoring purchases clearer.
  • The command line tool handles relative image and PDF paths more reliably.
  • Permission and file-format errors from the command line tool are easier to diagnose.
v7.5.0
May 23, 2026

OCR AI workflow fixes

OCR AI gained a smoother command line path and more predictable ordering for document batches.

  • Use `--ocr-ai --markdown` to write Markdown output from Terminal.
  • Numbered scans are loaded in natural filename order.
  • Finder Quick Actions and packaged Mac App Store builds received reliability fixes.
v7.4.0
May 13, 2026

Electron rewrite support fixes

A maintenance release tightened the new app after the OwlOCR 7 rewrite and refreshed its dependencies.

  • Fixed support regressions introduced during the Electron migration.
  • Updated packaged dependencies for the modern app.
v7.3.0
May 11, 2026

Local OCR AI

OwlOCR 7 added an optional second OCR engine for difficult pages while keeping document processing on your Mac.

  • OCR AI can handle messy screenshots, low-quality scans, dense documents, and unusual layouts.
  • Apple Vision remains the fast default for text boxes, highlights, and searchable PDF export.
  • Model and runtime downloads are managed from Settings.
  • The local OCR AI runtime is warmed up ahead of use for a faster first request.
v7.2.0
May 8, 2026

Pro purchase restoration and CLI

The modern app gained a supported automation path and more dependable Mac App Store purchase restoration.

  • Added the OwlOCR command line tool for OCR automation.
  • Moved Mac App Store purchases to StoreKit 2 entitlement checks.
  • Fixed the OwlOCR Pro purchase restore flow.
v7.1.0
May 7, 2026

A clearer upgrade path

The classic OwlOCR app became free to use while the new app added a clearer path for restoring and managing Pro access.

  • Added a restore prompt for existing customers.
  • Restored and refined the Pro settings pane.
  • Updated onboarding copy for customers moving from the classic app.
v7.0.0
April 30, 2026

A new foundation

OwlOCR was rebuilt as an Electron app with focused native Swift helpers for the Mac-specific work.

  • Rebuilt the main workspace, settings, menu bar workflow, and document state in the new app.
  • Kept native Apple Vision OCR, PDF rendering and export, screen capture, and Continuity import.
  • Preserved the three Finder Quick Actions: Extract Text, Create Searchable PDF, and Create Text File.
From the archive

Earlier milestones

The project started in 2020. These highlights are distilled from the historical commit record, with smaller fixes folded into the releases they improved.

2023 - early 2026

Refining the classic app

  • Added automatic OCR when opening a document and an option to open PDFs after screen capture.
  • Added OCR algorithm revision selection as Apple expanded Vision language support.
  • Added more line spacing and minimum text size controls.
  • Modernized launch-at-login behavior and expanded the available OCR languages.
2022

OwlOCR 5 and a major performance pass

  • Shipped OwlOCR 5 with fixes for file access and QR code scanning.
  • Refactored concurrency, loading, and document models to improve responsiveness.
  • Reduced PDF memory use and added parallel file loading.
  • Stabilized the Finder extensions after the broader refactor.
2021

Finder workflows and text cleanup

  • Added custom OCR words, post-processing rules, and smart quote handling.
  • Introduced Finder Quick Actions for clipboard text, text files, and searchable PDFs.
  • Added onboarding, page controls, separate PDF export, and adjustable text size.
  • Shared settings between the main app and Finder extensions.
2020

From Textify to OwlOCR

  • Started as Textify in January and became OwlOCR in February.
  • Added rotated PDF support, iPhone import, configurable screenshot shortcuts, and multi-document workflows.
  • Made OCR results editable, added language selection, and accepted files dropped onto the Dock icon.
  • Introduced Quick Export for one-step screen capture to searchable PDF.