Converting the stimulus plan to text?

[Recession]

over at http://appropriations.house.gov/ they have the entire plan available in PDF format, I ran it through OCR software and it ends up being around 200,000 words.

Do you think there would be any value in providing this online in plain text format?

Would it be better to leave it 100% untouched or should I trim it up?

From what I can see it will be around 1,000 pages which is really too much, I would likely convert it to 100 pages but I might be better off just sticking with a shorter summary, I just don't like that this isn't available in plain text anywhere.

What do you think?

[Bryan]

There are some searchable versions out there. I'll try to dig one up.

[angelatc]

over at http://appropriations.house.gov/ they have the entire plan available in PDF format, I ran it through OCR software and it ends up being around 200,000 words.

Do you think there would be any value in providing this online in plain text format?

Would it be better to leave it 100% untouched or should I trim it up?

From what I can see it will be around 1,000 pages which is really too much, I would likely convert it to 100 pages but I might be better off just sticking with a shorter summary, I just don't like that this isn't available in plain text anywhere.

What do you think?

Yes I like it. Maybe a torrent or something.

[Recession]

Yes I like it. Maybe a torrent or something.

well a torrent would be the same problem as a PDF, I want it to be plain text so anyone anywhere can view it.

I might just stick with the detailed summary for now and link to the PDF at the bottom.

http://recession.org/library/american-recovery-reinvestment-stimulus

[brandon]

I'm not going to read it...but having it available in a non-proprietary form will definitely be useful to someone, somewhere along the line.

Are you going to type it out, or do you have software that will convert it for you?

[Recession]

I'm not going to read it...but having it available in a non-proprietary form will definitely be useful to someone, somewhere along the line.

Are you going to type it out, or do you have software that will convert it for you?

The OCR software will convert it into text but I have to go through it and correct errors manually, if Bryan finds a searchable copy though it would be much easier.

[Bryan]

Don't have it yet- but this is related:

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=30700

[Bryan]

Here is a searchable PDF- it's 25MB so death for 56K people:

http://tweetcongress.s3.amazonaws.com/stimulus_bill.pdf

[Bryan]

I just downloaded it- it's only 285 pages, the bill is over 1K IIRC. I checking into it...

[Recession]

I just downloaded it- it's only 285 pages, the bill is over 1K IIRC. I checking into it...

1071 pages from the two PDF's on house.gov

[kpitcher]

You do realize that PDF is an open standard and there are countless conversion programs out there for people who don't like PDF? I'm glad it's in PDF and not some proprietary format like MS Word.

If you don't have the necessary programs to read the default PDF then do a simple conversion. A quick search brought this free tool up - http://www.a-pdf.com/text/download.htm. I tried it and it works alright on the stimulus PDF linked in this thread.

[Pepsi]

can this be confirm?

H.R. 45 ‘slipped’ into it, in ink just minutes prior to its passing by the US Congress (rendering them unable to read it), a provision titled “Blair Holt’s Firearm Licensing and Record of Sale Act of 2009” and named after a 16-year old honor student in President Obama’s hometown of Chicago who was murdered in May, 2007.

http://www.whatdoesitmean.com/index1207.htm

Or is this disinfo?

[Pepsi]

Ron Paul did said some parts of the bill were in handwriting

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hlszHekH6I&eurl=http://www.campaignforliberty.com/

[Pepsi]

Is all the text from the bill out now?

[IPSecure]

http://www.readthestimulus.org/

[HOLLYWOOD]

This about the best summary I could find that the Washington Post

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/graphic/2009/02/01/GR2009020100154.html

http://media3.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/graphic/2009/02/01/GR2009020100154.gif