"Copy Paste It" app cures your Android copy-and-paste woes

[wuyanks]

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Vanilla Android is a speedy, lightweight, clean-looking operating system. However it is not without fault, as quite a few basic features have been longing for improvements since the Cupcake days. And this is why savvy coders out there found the perfect opportunity to improve or reinvent these features by developing replacement apps. In my personal experience, Swype and Swiftkey have replaced my stock Android keyboard, ADW did the same to my stock Launcher, and Handcent SMS replaced stock Android Messaging. But one feature that I find lacking, compared to the (*gulp*) iOS is copy-and-paste. Current implementation is limited to text, doesn't work in some apps (the stock email app, gtalk and others), and is just plain awkward to use. Well, those aggravated by this should breathe a little easier, as the first decent copy-and-paste replacement app has hit the Android Market.

Called Copy Paste It, this replacement app is indeed a copy clipboard, but much more than that. Copy Paste it will linger in your notification bar after you launch it, and you will be able to copy to your clipboard any text within any app. How does it work? Basically, Copy Paste It takes a screenshot of your device, then searches out all the text on the screen. It will even copy text in pictures! I tested it in the Browser and it transcribed the text relatively well, including some text from our Droid Forums logo.

1. Copying text is relatively easy. Click the notification in the pulldown. Then move around and re-size the selection box to select the text you want copied.

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2. The text re-appears in a new dialog. This is where you can save the selected text to the clipboard. Note, there are a few errors, but that can easily be edited before publishing.

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3. You then paste from clipboard as you've done previously. Long-press in a dialog box, then click paste. Here's how it looks in Documents to Go:

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Copy Paste It is developed by Edward Kim, the same guy behind Car Locator, so rest assured that the copy/paste replacement app will be updated frequently. Copy Paste It requires root, because of the fact that a screenshot is needed to capture the text. There is a free Trial available from the Market, which allows you 10 copy/pastes. The full version costs $3.99, which may seem rather steep, but I believe Copy Paste It is worth every penny.

Check out a video of Copy Paste It:

[video=youtube;CBIhv12xpkA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBIhv12xpkA&feature=player_embedded"]YouTube - Copy Paste for Android Phones[/video]
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QR Code for Copy Paste It Trial:

QR Code for Copy Paste It for Root Users (Full version):

via Droid-Life

 

[hookbill]

You know that's great but why are people making apps like this for root users only? Why can't people who aren't rooted have these apps?

It doesn't seem fair. I'm rooted now but I'm concerned about the update being forced on my Droid. I don't want to use anybody's ROM and I don't want to lose my great apps.

 

[Lemurion]

You know that's great but why are people making apps like this for root users only? Why can't people who aren't rooted have these apps?

It doesn't seem fair. I'm rooted now but I'm concerned about the update being forced on my Droid. I don't want to use anybody's ROM and I don't want to lose my great apps.

I have a sneaking suspicion it's because it's easier to create these apps for root users than for those who aren't.

 

[hookbill]

I have a sneaking suspicion it's because it's easier to create these apps for root users than for those who aren't.

I imagine that's what it is too, but it seems that they are limiting themselves to a smaller market. Which could explain the higher price.

It's truly an app that Android has needed for some time. I'll wait and see how I'm affected by the update before purchasing.

 

[wuyanks]

You know that's great but why are people making apps like this for root users only? Why can't people who aren't rooted have these apps?

It doesn't seem fair. I'm rooted now but I'm concerned about the update being forced on my Droid. I don't want to use anybody's ROM and I don't want to lose my great apps.

it's only for root users because the app requires the device to take a screenshot, which is only possible with superuser permissions.

 

[mattg1]

I gotta agree with hook, while I usually run rooted alot of user's outside of the tech savvy crowd don't, while I'm in no way a dev so I can't comment on how much harder it would be to develop for stock user's, but they shouldn't short themselves that extra exposer. (sp?)

 

[gadgetrants]

You know that's great but why are people making apps like this for root users only? Why can't people who aren't rooted have these apps?

It doesn't seem fair. I'm rooted now but I'm concerned about the update being forced on my Droid. I don't want to use anybody's ROM and I don't want to lose my great apps.

it's only for root users because the app requires the device to take a screenshot, which is only possible with superuser permissions.

wuyanks, I am so tempted to tease and ask "if you did a google search before answering" but seriously I'm behind you 100% on this one! Not only does your explanation make sense, but I'm also super impressed that they threw in OCR "for free". WOW. I would love to see the algorithm!

-Matt

 

[Tanknspank]

You know that's great but why are people making apps like this for root users only? Why can't people who aren't rooted have these apps?

It doesn't seem fair. I'm rooted now but I'm concerned about the update being forced on my Droid. I don't want to use anybody's ROM and I don't want to lose my great apps.

it's only for root users because the app requires the device to take a screenshot, which is only possible with superuser permissions.

wuyanks, I am so tempted to tease and ask "if you did a google search before answering" but seriously I'm behind you 100% on this one! Not only does your explanation make sense, but I'm also super impressed that they threw in OCR "for free". WOW. I would love to see the algorithm!

-Matt

It either impossible, or so close to it to make an app take a screenshot on an unrooted device that no one has dared to try to.

Btw, I tried the app, and it failed to even copy the tutorial sentence, let alone anything else I tried. I uninstalled and refunded, and hope they can figure out a way to make it a bit better...

 

[heem]

Screenshot to OCR to clipboard? Seems a little overcomplicated to me. The fact that it requires root to take the screenshot only further complicates it. Considering there is already built in clipboard functionality, I see no reason to take this convoluted way of copy/paste

 

[gadgetrants]

Screenshot to OCR to clipboard? Seems a little overcomplicated to me. The fact that it requires root to take the screenshot only further complicates it. Considering there is already built in clipboard functionality, I see no reason to take this convoluted way of copy/paste

Clunky? yep
Root only? unfortunate

But the appeal of working through screenshot is the user can crop the image to the relevant text. Not sure how easy that is on the Droid, but (a) it's a great idea for text embedded in images, and (b) a lot easier than entering text targets to search for.

-Matt

 

[Tanknspank]

Screenshot to OCR to clipboard? Seems a little overcomplicated to me. The fact that it requires root to take the screenshot only further complicates it. Considering there is already built in clipboard functionality, I see no reason to take this convoluted way of copy/paste

Clunky? yep
Root only? unfortunate

But the appeal of working through screenshot is the user can crop the image to the relevant text. Not sure how easy that is on the Droid, but (a) it's a great idea for text embedded in images, and (b) a lot easier than entering text targets to search for.

-Matt

Also, you can't copy in all apps, or at all on a phone like the Droid, and it would take recoding of the OS and all apps you would want to copy in to get it to work. This works without all that, though I found out not very well...

 

[wuyanks]

wuyanks, I am so tempted to tease and ask "if you did a google search before answering" but seriously I'm behind you 100% on this one! Not only does your explanation make sense, but I'm also super impressed that they threw in OCR "for free". WOW. I would love to see the algorithm!

-Matt

haha. don't worry, i checked my sources on this one!

but yeah very interesting algorithm indeed. seems to work like Google Goggles, which scans images for text.

and it may be a bit clunky, but i found the app nifty and very usable. especially since there is no way (aside from this) to copy text from stock email app, gtalk, etc...

 

[fatpat3]

y pay $4 when u can copy and paste stuff easily by holding shift key, moving the cursor and clickin to highlight and copy things, its more work but it saves u money

 

[gadgetrants]

y pay $4 when u can copy and paste stuff easily by holding shift key, moving the cursor and clickin to highlight and copy things, its more work but it saves u money

Agreed. But remember (if I understand correctly) that you can also use it take a screenshot of text in an image (like a picture of a street sign or a license plate), which you couldn't use the cursor method on.

-Matt

 

[fatpat3]

ya true, but i still dont think thats enough for me to buy it. thats just me though, maybe others will use that feature