1. A method of operating an image reader comprising the steps of: providing a location of a stand relative to an area to be imaged; searching a digital image for nominally straight edges, the searching comprising searching an image in high resolution and low resolution; characterizing the nominally straight edges in terms of one of the following: length, direction, or length and direction vectors; determining a predominant orientation of the nominally straight edges; establishing a first group of edges as a function of their proximity to the center of the image; establishing a second group of edges as a function of their proximity to other remaining edge positions; transmuting a rectangle bounding the first group of edges and the second group of edges into a rectified image, wherein the rectified image is an image that is cropped by discarding portions of the digital image outside of the rectangle, and wherein image reader is placed on the stand for viewing a document which is placed on a platen; and determining angular distortion based on the location of the stand relative to the area and applying a correction.