PDF to Text
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PDF to Text: An In-Depth Guide on How You Could Extract Plain Text from a PDF File
Changes in file format to another have become a common need in this digital era of today among professionals and even for an ordinary person. Among the most frequent conversions is transforming PDF into a Text format. PDFs and text files are unique but for differing purposes. Converting PDF into text comes in handy in extracting or editing content without worrying about their formatting issues.
Covering everything you may need to know about converting PDF to text, this guide aims to elucidate why this is necessary, available methods for such conversion, and how to get the best quality on the converted documents.
What is a PDF?
PDF is an Adobe-created file type that allows papers to be exchanged between any platform, so they remain in layout and design. Text and pictures, hyperlinks, and even multimedia, that’s all possible. So while PDF files are great for publishing and printing, opening them up and editing them is quite another thing. And this is why you’d want to convert PDF to text or other formats.
Describe a text file.
A Text file, sometimes called plain text (.txt), is a very basic file format that contains only text-not images, fonts or layouts. This is universally compatible and will open in most word processing or text editing software. It’s lightweight and can easily be shared, making it popular for raw data, notes, or just lots of text that doesn’t need fancy formatting.
Why convert a PDF to text?
There are many reasons why it is necessary to convert PDF to text. Briefly listed below are some of them.
1. Editable Content: Often, PDFs are uneditable unless one possesses especially designed software for editing the format. By converting the PDF to a text file, it becomes easy to change and edit the text; it is also easy to extract content and use it in other applications.
2. Less size in file: the text files are quite smaller in size compared to the PDFs, thus storing and sharing it would be easier especially when dealing with large-sized bodies of data.
3. Compatibility: Plain text files are very compatible and can easily be opened by any device or any text editor, that makes it an excellent choice when working on different kinds of platforms, even Windows, macOS, Linux, and mobile devices.
4. Easy Accessibility: Texting from PDF makes documents accessible to people relying on screen readers or other assistive technologies because text files are easier to process.
5. Searchable and Indexable: Text files are search-friendly in a way that specific information can be located easily within a document. This becomes very useful for businesses and researchers dealing with volumes of textual data.
Methods for Converting PDF to Text
There are quite a few methods through which PDFs can be converted to Text; all these come along with pros and cons. Some of the best methods have been presented here.
1. Through Adobe Acrobat
It is pretty easy if you already possess Adobe Acrobat, that is, the full version, not merely the reader. Here is how it works:
Step 1: Open the PDF file in Adobe Acrobat.
Step 2: Under “File,” click on “Export To.”
Step 3: Choose “Text (Plain)” as the export format.
Step 4: Choose the directory you would like to save your exported text file in and click on “Save.”
Advantages
Converts accurately
Works very well for PDFs that have complex layouts
Disadvantages
Only can be used with a paid Adobe Acrobat subscription
Dependent on character and formatting support within the software
2. Use of Online PDF to Text Converters
Online tools allow you to convert a PDF to Text in a very simple and easy way, without having to download or install particular software. Here are a few online PDF to text converters.
Smallpdf (smallpdf.com)
PDF2Go (pdf2go.com)
Zamzar (zamzar.com)
Here is how you can do it.
Step 1: Go to the chosen converter website
Step 2: Upload the PDF file that you want to convert
Step 3: Select “Text” or “.txt” as output format.
Step 4: Click the Convert button.
Step 5: Save the converted text file to your computer.
Advantages:
Free and simple to use
No need for installing applications
Best suited for Quick low-level conversions
Disadvantages:
File size restrictions on some sites
Upload risks concerning data privacy- particularly on Internet servers
It is possible that PDFs with complicated layout or non-standard font support not so well
3. In Microsoft Word
You can also do the converse by the aid of Microsoft Word because it has the feature of opening a PDF and saving it as a text file. Here is the method.
Open Microsoft Word
File >> Open menu and select the PDF you want to convert
Word will automatically convert the PDF to an editable document.
Step 4: Open a file and then navigate to “File” > “Save As” and choose “Plain Text (.txt)” as the file type.
Pros
Is free if you already have Microsoft Word
Can convert text as well as some simple formatting elements
Requires no other software
Cons
Doesn’t convert that well when the file is a heavily formatted PDF and if images are present with the text
Takes a much longer time to convert large files
4. Google Docs
Google Docs is free and accessible to everyone without charge in case you want to change PDF to Text. Here is how you can do it:
1. Upload the PDF into your Google Drive account.
2. Now right click on the PDF file and then select “Open with” > “Google Docs.”
3. Google Docs would convert your PDF into an editable document.
4. Now go to “File” > “Download” > “Plain Text (.txt)” to save your text file.
Pros:
- Totally free
- Accessible through any internet-enabled device
- Works great for simple PDFs
Cons
- fails to handle complex formatting
- usually requires web connection
5. Command-Line Tools (For Power Users)
If you’re comfortable using the command line, you can use a tool called pdftotext, part of the Poppler utility suite; this converts PDF to Text directly from the command line. This is more convenient for batch conversions or automating the process.
To use it on a Linux system, it is also available for Windows and macOS:
Step 1: Install the tool by typing sudo apt install poppler-utils (Linux).
Step 2: In your terminal, open a terminal and enter the following command: pdftotext input.pdf output.txt.
Advantages
- Powerful as well as efficient, especially batch conversion
- Best suited for techy people
- Best suited for huge file handling
Disadvantages
- Technological knowledge is required.
- This is not recommended for novices
- Quality Tips for PDF to Text Conversion
1. Choose the best tool For the complexity of your PDF, you may find some tools to be better suited than others. For highly text-based documents, an online converter or free tools like Google Docs should be perfectly acceptable. And if it’s high graphic-intensive or very complexly formatted PDFs, you’d want to use Adobe Acrobat.
2. Accuracy Check When the text file is converted, then check for correctness to ensure that all the content has come out correctly. Some special characters or formatting may get missed in the conversion, and so, there may be a need for manual adjustments.
3. Use OCR for Scanned PDFs: For instance, if your PDF happens to be a scan, make sure it supports the tool you are using and could actually have OCR features to scan the images and convert them into editable text in these scanned images.
4. Save a Backup: Always save a copy of your original PDF before you convert it to text just in case something goes wrong while converting it to text.
To Sum up
Most users need to convert PDF to Text in order to have an editable content from a PDF file. The user can require an instant online solution or use software such as Adobe Acrobat. Free resources like Google Docs or Microsoft Word are also viable options for users. This technique is selected based on the degree of complexity of the PDF and what degree of accuracy from the conversion is desired.
This guide will demonstrate how easily and efficiently to convert PDFs into plain text files, consequently enhancing the workflow of anybody converting their files.