I would like to buy a hand held scanner that has the ability to pick
up the text and put it in soft format. ie if I scann a typed letter it
will put the text into word. I would like to be able to attach this to
a PDA. I would like some research on what is the best option, were I
can buy them (I am in Ireland).

Hi,
I think you might find this product suits most of your needs:
Wizcom's QuickLink-Pen Elite:
"Used just like a yellow highlighter, the QuickLink-Pen Elite allows
the user to collect notes electronically from any printed text ?
anytime, anywhere!

The QuickLink-Pen® Elite is the successor to the very popular
QuickLink-Pen, providing users with new and improved electronic
note-taking capabilities:

Reads notes aloud. 
Beams to Smartphones, as well as to PDAs and PCs. 
Includes English dictionary definitions. 
USB connection to PC. 

The QuickLink-Pen Elite is ideal for students, doctors, business
people, or researchers who need the ability to quickly and easily take
notes whenever and wherever they might be - in a library, on a plane,
or in a business meeting.

The QuickLink-Pen Elite comes complete with several useful
applications including..."
http://www.wizcomtech.com/Wizcom/products/product_info.asp?fid=101

You can purchase it new for around 170usd:
Check on Wizcom's site for European sales:
http://www.wizcomshop.com/
http://www.wizcomtech.com/Wizcom/sales/location.asp?fid=83&mid=1

One other product you might want to look at is the  "IrisPen Express Pen Scanner":
"The I.R.I.S. pen scanners are the ideal tools for anyone who need to
retype printed information. Instead of retyping, discover how it is
fast, accurate and fun to scan the information you need and to see it
instantly encoded in your application. According to the version, the
IRISPen retypes text, figures, bare codes and handwritten numbers
directly into any Windows or Mac application, exactly where your
cursor is!"
http://www.irisusa.com/products/irispen/

You can purchase the IrisPen Express Pen Scanner from Amazon.UK for £67.68 :
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0000TSSRI/ref=pd_sr_ec_ir_ce/202-7710408-6975851

Note:
The reviews are not stellar on Amazon.uk for the IrisPen.

I'm assuming that you're looking for OCR or Optical Character
Recognition software to accompany a hand held scanner in order to
import "hard copy" printed material into your computer.

Unfortunately the popularity of hand-held scanners has waned since the
90s which means their availability at retail outlets is limited.  If
you're determined that a hand-held scanner is the only type that will
meet your needs, I suggest you look on eBay.  I recently bought a
hand-held scanner there for $5 USD.  It included OCR software.

If you go the eBay route, the software that comes with the scanner may
be older software, however it might be possible to use newer OCR
software with the older hardware.  There might even be freeware
available that will work.  Try Googling for "OCR freeware".

Is there some reason why a newer flatbed scanner wouldn't work for
you?  Unless you're scanning cylindrical or otherwise odd-shaped
objects, a flatbed scanner would most likely work.  If you can
photocopy the material you want to scan, a flatbed will probably work.

I re-read your question and see that you want to connect the scanner
to a PDA.  That adds a layer of complexity to the requirements.  Most
older hand scanners that I have encountered have proprietary cards
that will not work with a PDA.  Also, the software that comes with
most scanners will probably not work with your PDA.

Maybe the Canon LIDE series of flatbed scanners would work?  They're
small, USB powered scanners.  It might be possible to add a USB port
to your PDA and find scanner software for your PDA.  That, however, is
a pretty tall order.