Characterizer

Characterizer is a tiny and simple-to-use program that converts image files into ASCII text. It can be easily installed and configured by first-time users.
The interface of the software application is based on a standard window where you can import pictures for processing by using only the file browser because the 'drag and drop' method is not supported. Unfortunately, you cannot work with multiple items at the same time.
When it comes to the settings for generating text, you can change the width and height, invert colors, enable random noise and middle tones, as well as choose the rendering method between photo, shape/photo, contour blur and user-defined set.
The latter option allows you to type in the characters to use, from light to dark colors. Once the text has been generated, you can preview the resulted picture, modify the font size, as well as save the text to file (TXT) or copy it to the Clipboard.
The straightforward program runs on a very low amount of CPU and system memory, has a good response time, and quickly finishes a conversion job. We have not come across any problems throughout our evaluation; Characterizer did not freeze, crash or pop up error dialogs. On the downside, the app has not been updated for a very long time.