Extract text from Kurzweil documents or eBooks (KES)
To convert KES documents to another format, you need Kurzweil 3000 or other E-Book software.
To convert other file formats to the "Assistive Reading File" file type, you need software like Kurzweil 3000 or a similar tool.
A .KES file is an assistive technology document created by Kurzweil 3000, an educational software platform designed for individuals with learning disabilities, dyslexia, or visual impairments. The format acts as a digital textbook, storing OCR-processed text alongside full-page scanned images, bookmarks, and text-to-speech settings.
Kurzweil 3000 is the native application required to open and manipulate these files. While some legacy databases associate .KES with an obscure Amazon Kindle eBook container format, the vast majority of these files belong to the Kurzweil ecosystem.
The biggest disadvantage of the .KES format is its heavily proprietary nature. It functions as a closed Microsoft Compound File container, nesting text, images, and audio notes in hidden streams. Because it is completely locked to the Kurzweil ecosystem, you cannot open it in a standard web browser or text editor. Furthermore, requiring a costly subscription just to view the document makes collaborating with non-users practically impossible.
To make the content readable for everyone, you should convert .KES to PDF (to preserve the layout and images) or DOCX and TXT (to extract the raw text). Be aware that exporting to standard formats will permanently remove specialized accessibility features like voice annotations or dynamic word-highlighting.
Because this is a complex, proprietary container, standard online converters often fail to process it. Our system inspects the internal Microsoft OLE structure to extract the underlying text or embedded images, giving you a chance to recover the data even if you no longer have access to the original software.
Convert.Guru analyzes your KES file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted PDF, YJF, MBPV2, CACHE-7 and ZAR files.
If you want to convert KES file to ZAR, TXT, RTF, DOC, DOCX, ODT, PAGES, TEX, LATEX, MD, MARKDOWN or LOG, you can use Kurzweil 3000 or similar software from the "Assistive Technology Document Storage" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert PDF, DOC, ASC, TODO, NFO, MEMO, README, DOCX, JPG, TXT, NOTE or RTF files to KES, try Kurzweil 3000 or another comparable tool in the "Assistive Technology Document Storage" category.
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our KES converter.