Working with PDFs in Acrobat Pro 9
A University of Michigan Library Instructional Technology Workshop
Need help? Visit the Faculty Exploratory or Knowledge Navigation Center on the 2nd floor of the Graduate Library.
exploratory@umich.edu
| http://guides.lib.umich.edu |
rev: 11/3/11
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Table of Contents
Overview ........................................................................................................................ 2
Acrobat Reader versus Acrobat .................................................................................................................. 2
Extracting Text or Images from a PDF ..................................................................................................... 2
Saving as a Different Format .................................................................................................................. 2
Using the Selecting Tool .......................................................................................................................... 2
Panes ............................................................................................................................................................... 2
Converting From Word, PowerPoint, Excel ................................................................. 3
Windows Office 2007 and 2010 .................................................................................................................. 3
Mac Office 2008 and 2011 ........................................................................................................................... 3
Converting From InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop ...................................................... 4
Converting From Web Pages ....................................................................................... 4
Windows ......................................................................................................................................................... 4
Mac .................................................................................................................................................................. 4
Using Acrobat Pro (either platform) .......................................................................................................... 5
About Videos from the Web ....................................................................................................................... 5
Combining Multiple Files into One PDF ....................................................................... 6
Adding Pages ................................................................................................................ 7
Deleting Pages .............................................................................................................. 7
Replacing Pages ........................................................................................................... 7
Adding Bookmarks ....................................................................................................... 7
Adding Links .................................................................................................................. 8
Editing Text in the PDF ................................................................................................... 8
Leaving Comments & Markups in the PDF .................................................................. 9
Working with PDFs in Acrobat Pro 9
A University of Michigan Library Instructional Technology Workshop
Need help? Visit the Faculty Exploratory or Knowledge Navigation Center on the 2nd floor of the Graduate Library.
exploratory@umich.edu
| http://guides.lib.umich.edu |
rev: 11/3/11
2 of 9
OVERVIEW
A PDF (Portable Document Format) is a file that is cross-platform, so they can be read on either
a Mac or PC, and can be easily printed. PDFs are often smaller in size and look just like the original,
retaining headers and footers, multiple columns, graphics, and even links. PDFs can be viewed with
Acrobat Pro or Acrobat Reader, a program that you can download for free at http://www.adobe.com.
This handout will focus on the additional functionality of Acrobat Pro.
ACROBAT READER VERSUS ACROBAT
If you only have the Reader installed, you can still view and print PDF files, but that’s about it. You
need the full version (Acrobat Pro) to edit (add, remove, or replace) pages and text. In addition, you
need Acrobat Pro to create, fill in and submit PDF forms (not covered in this handout), or to add
bookmarks and links.
EXTRACTING TEXT OR IMAGES FROM A PDF
If you need to extract text from a PDF, this can only be done with PDFs that Acrobat recognizes as
text, rather than as an image. Sometimes when you scan a PDF directly from a scanner, it is not
recognized as text, but as one large image.
SAVING AS A DIFFERENT FORMAT
1. Go to the File menu and choose either Save As… or Export.
2. If you choose Save As…, change the Save as type: pulldown to whichever type you
need. If you choose Export, choose one of the options shown at right.
USING THE SELECTING TOOL
You can also use the Select Tool ( ) in the main toolbar.
1. Select the tool, then highlight the desired text or image.
2. Copy the text (Edit menu then Copy, or Control/Apple + c on the keyboard).
3. Paste the content to the desired program.
Note that the text will copy, but it probably won’t keep all the formatting it had. Headers,
for example, will just be a sentence in the document, not separate above the text.
PANES
As shown at right, the Pages Pane can be expanded by clicking on the icon ( ). In it,
you can click on the thumbnail for any page, drag and drop pages to reorder them (note
this won’t change any page numbers on the document!), or delete pages.
The Bookmarks Pane ( ) can be expanded to add or remove bookmarks, and to use the
bookmarks to navigate throughout the document.
Working with PDFs in Acrobat Pro 9
A University of Michigan Library Instructional Technology Workshop
Need help? Visit the Faculty Exploratory or Knowledge Navigation Center on the 2nd floor of the Graduate Library.
exploratory@umich.edu
| http://guides.lib.umich.edu |
rev: 11/3/11
3 of 9
CONVERTING FROM WORD, POWERPOINT, EXCEL
WINDOWS OFFICE 2007 AND 2010
The conversion steps are the same in all of the Office products, but there are some slightly different
options depending on the program. If don’t need any special settings (see below pictures), you can
actually go to Acrobat and choose the Office file from there (see Combining Multiple Files into One
PDF on page 6) – this only works in Windows, not on Mac.
1. Click the Office Button and choose Save As.
2. Select PDF or XPS option. If needed, click on the Options button and change settings (see
more information below). Click Publish.
There is a slightly different dialog box if you choose Save As and choose PDF from the Format
pulldown vs. the Save as PDF or XPS, but the essence is the same. If you click on the Options
button, you will get different choices, depending on the program being used:
MAC OFFICE 2008 AND 2011
You can create a PDF from almost any program on the Mac (including the Office products).
1. Go to the File menu and choose Save As….
2. In the Format: pulldown, choose PDF.
Alternatively,
1. Go to the File menu and choose Print. In the lower left corner, click the PDF
button and choose Save as PDF….
In PowerPoint, you must use the Print method to access the different views (handouts, notes
pages, etc.). In Excel, if you choose the whole workbook, each worksheet will be a different file.
Word
Choose a specific page if
desired and create
bookmarks from headings
z
Excel
Choose Active Sheet or
whole Workbook
z
PowerPoint
Choose Handouts, Notes Pages, etc.
from the Publish what: pulldown.
z
Working with PDFs in Acrobat Pro 9
A University of Michigan Library Instructional Technology Workshop
Need help? Visit the Faculty Exploratory or Knowledge Navigation Center on the 2nd floor of the Graduate Library.
exploratory@umich.edu
| http://guides.lib.umich.edu |
rev: 11/3/11
4 of 9
CONVERTING FROM INDESIGN, ILLUSTRATOR, PHOTOSHOP
Since these products are all from Adobe just like Acrobat, they have made it very easy. On both the
Mac and Windows,
1. Go to the File menu and choose Save As….
2. In the Format pulldown, choose PDF
(Photoshop PDF if you’re in that program).
3. A Save Adobe PDF dialog box will appear –
make any changes necessary and then click
the Save PDF button.
The file will save in the original dimensions – so, for
example, a poster created at 36 inches by 48 inches in
Illustrator will create a PDF of the same dimensions.
It can be included “as is”, however, in a PDF
document that is primarily 8.5 by 11, because the
viewer can just change the zoom.
CONVERTING FROM WEB PAGES
If you just need a page or two, you can create a PDF from the browser itself, but it might not look
as you want it to. Depending on your platform and browser, you may have to do things slightly
differently.
The “truest” method – the one that results in a PDF that looks most like the web page is to do it
from within Acrobat Pro. For libguides in particular, use the Acrobat Pro method listed below.
WINDOWS
In Firefox,
1. Go to the File menu and select Print…
2. Under the Printer Name: area, select Adobe PDF.
In Internet Explorer,
1. Towards the right side of the toolbar, click the down arrow next
to the Convert icon.
2. Choose Convert Web Page to PDF….
3. Give the file a name and then click the Save button.
MAC
As discussed above, you can print to PDF from most programs, including Firefox and Safari:
1. Go to the File menu and choose Print.
2. In the lower right corner, click the PDF button and choose Save as PDF….
Working with PDFs in Acrobat Pro 9
A University of Michigan Library Instructional Technology Workshop
Need help? Visit the Faculty Exploratory or Knowledge Navigation Center on the 2nd floor of the Graduate Library.
exploratory@umich.edu
| http://guides.lib.umich.edu |
rev: 11/3/11
5 of 9
USING ACROBAT PRO (EITHER PLATFORM)
1. In Acrobat Pro, go to the File menu and select Create PDF, then From Web Page
(depending on if you are Mac or Windows, these might be pullout menus or tabs).
2. Paste in the URL of the main page you would like to save as a PDF.
3. To capture more than one page (for example, a libguide), click the Capture Mutiple Levels
icon and you will see more options.
a. Choose a number in the Get only “_” box. For libguides, start with 2 and see if that is
enough.
b. Check the Stay on same path checkbox to download pages that are subordinate to the
URL you’ve put in (check this for libguides).
c. Check the Stay on same server
checkbox to only capture pages
from the base URL you put in (for
example, if your page has a link to
http://census.gov, you don’t want
to capture pages from that site!)
4. Click Create.
5. Be patient! It takes a while to download all
the pages, but the links on the base site
(for example, tabs in a libguide) will work.
The links will link to other pages that have been downloaded into the PDF.
6. When it finishes, you may have to delete stray pages in the PDF, so be sure to check what
has been downloaded.
ABOUT VIDEOS FROM THE WEB
Videos on your webpage do not download or embed into the document. While there is an option in
the settings (as you’re creating the PDFs) to embed media content when possible, this doesn’t
consistently work. For edossiers at the Library, videos may be submitted as a separate file when you
turn in your dossier.
Working with PDFs in Acrobat Pro 9
A University of Michigan Library Instructional Technology Workshop
Need help? Visit the Faculty Exploratory or Knowledge Navigation Center on the 2nd floor of the Graduate Library.
exploratory@umich.edu
| http://guides.lib.umich.edu |
rev: 11/3/11
6 of 9
COMBINING MULTIPLE FILES INTO ONE PDF
When you’re ready to combine many different PDFs into a single file, the steps are the same on the
Mac and Windows.
1. Go to the File menu and select Combine.
2. Choose Merge Files into a Single PDF.
3. Click on the Add Files button, and then browse
to your desired files.
4. Choose the files you want – for Windows users,
you can choose Word documents, PowerPoint
presentations or Excel files in addition to PDFs
and image files.
5. Click the Add Files button.
6. In the Combine Files dialog box,
click on a file name and use the Move
Up or Move Down buttons to reorder
the files or drag them into position.
You could also do this later after
you create the combined PDF, but it
is easier to do at this stage.
7. Once you have ordered your files,
click on the Combine Files button.
8. Save the combined PDF somewhere
on your computer.
Now that you have a single PDF, you can click on the Pages Pane by clicking on the icon ( ). In it,
you can click on the thumbnail for any page, drag and drop pages to reorder them (note this won’t
change any page numbers on the document!), or replace/delete pages.
If you click on the Bookmarks Pane ( ), you will see that a new bookmark
has been added for each file – click once, then click once again (not a double-
click) to rename the bookmark to something more meaningful. For Library
edossiers, bookmarks are required, and act as your table of contents.
Working with PDFs in Acrobat Pro 9
A University of Michigan Library Instructional Technology Workshop
Need help? Visit the Faculty Exploratory or Knowledge Navigation Center on the 2nd floor of the Graduate Library.
exploratory@umich.edu
| http://guides.lib.umich.edu |
rev: 11/3/11
7 of 9
ADDING PAGES
1. Go to the Document menu, choose Insert Pages, and then choose From File….
2. Select the PDF file you want to insert and click the Select button.
3. In the Insert Pages dialog box, choose where you would like to
insert the new page(s) in relation to the existing pages. From the
Location pulldown menu you can choose either Before or After, and
then you can choose either First, Last, or a specific page in your
document.
4. To create thumbnails for the newly inserted pages, you may need to
go to the Pages pane and choose Embed All Page Thumbnails
from the Options menu.
DELETING PAGES
1. Go to the Document menu then choose Delete Pages….
2. Choose the page(s) you would like to delete. If you have already selected a page in your
document you can choose to delete it, or you can choose a range of pages to delete.
3. Click OK to confirm the deletion and exit the dialog box.
4. You can also go to the Pages pane, select the page(s) you want to delete and press the Delete
key on the keyboard or right-click on the page thumbnail and choose Delete.
REPLACING PAGES
1. Go to the Document menu and choose Replace Pages…
2. Choose the file that has the new page(s) and click the Select button.
3. Choose which page(s) to replace with the new page(s) and click OK.
ADDING BOOKMARKS
If you’ve used Headings in your Word document, they can automatically be converted to bookmarks
when you save to PDF (Windows) only. You can also manually add bookmarks at any time.
1. Choose the Text Selection Tool ( ), and then highlight the text you wish to bookmark.
2. Click on the Bookmarks Pane icon ( ) to expand it; click on the New
Bookmark icon (shown at right). A new bookmark with that text will
now display.
3. Click on the text in the bookmark once, then once again if you wish to
change the text that is displayed.
You can drag bookmarks to reorder them; click on them to jump to that section of the PDF.
Working with PDFs in Acrobat Pro 9
A University of Michigan Library Instructional Technology Workshop
Need help? Visit the Faculty Exploratory or Knowledge Navigation Center on the 2nd floor of the Graduate Library.
exploratory@umich.edu
| http://guides.lib.umich.edu |
rev: 11/3/11
8 of 9
ADDING LINKS
If you have hyperlinks in your Word, PowerPoint or Excel document, they should convert
automatically to links in the PDF. If they don’t for some reason, go to the Advanced menu, then
Document Processing, and then Create Links from URLs…. To add a
new hyperlink,
1. Go to the Tools menu, then Advanced Editing, and then select the
Link Tool.
2. Drag a rectangle around the item/text you want to be the link.
3. In the Create Link dialog box, set the appearance as you wish and
choose the link action (likely Open a web page).
4. Click the Next button; depending on which link type you chose, the
next dialog box will vary. Choose the appropriate setting and click OK, Select, etc. (The name
of the button will also vary).
Back in the PDF, you should now see a box around your text, and if you put your
cursor over it, you should be able to click on it.
EDITING TEXT IN THE PDF
If you need to make a small edit, you can do some things in the PDF, but if you have the original
version, it’s best to make the change there and save again as a PDF. The most common tool is the
TouchUp Text Tool ( ), though there are others in then Tools menu then Advanced Editing.
1. Go to the Tools menu, then Advanced Editing, and choose TouchUp Text
Tool.
2. Click the text you wish to edit (a box will appear around the text), then type
in new text or delete old.
You can’t drag the corner of the box to make it bigger, but you can push Enter/Return
to make it longer, or press the Spacebar to expand it (the Tab key doesn’t work).
You can also change the font, font size, and color, but
only if the font used for that text is installed on your
computer. Otherwise the font may be replaced with a
similar one on the system. With the TouchUp Text Tool
selected,
1. Highlight the text you wish to edit.
2. Right-click on it and choose Properties from
the shortcut menu.
3. In the TouchUp Properties dialog box, make
sure you’re in the Text tab and make your
changes.
4. Click Close.
Working with PDFs in Acrobat Pro 9
A University of Michigan Library Instructional Technology Workshop
Need help? Visit the Faculty Exploratory or Knowledge Navigation Center on the 2nd floor of the Graduate Library.
exploratory@umich.edu
| http://guides.lib.umich.edu |
rev: 11/3/11
9 of 9
LEAVING COMMENTS & MARKUPS IN THE PDF
To leave comments as notes or drawings, go to the Tools menu and then Comment & Markup.
The menu will display a variety of tools that will help communicate ideas or provide feedback.
Sticky Note Tool: Allows you to type a text message.
Text Edit Tool: Allows you to add editing marks to
indicate changes you want in the source document.
Highlight Text Tool: Allows you to highlight text a certain color
Oval Tool (and other shape tools): Allows you to draw colored shapes around something
on the source document and add a text message.
