Can I edit a PDF document?
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PDF stands for portable document format and the name is very descriptive of the file and its intended use. The Adobe corporation created Adobe Acrobat software to enable computer users to create files that can be moved from computer to computer and printed out with a consistent appearance even though the original fonts and graphics are not present on all computers involved.
Adobe Acrobat software has both ‘reader’ and ‘writer’ parts to it but they are not both present in every version of the software. In effect, it is a writer version of Acrobat that enables programmes such as Word, Illustrator and Photoshop to create PDF file versions from their own ‘native’ files.
Can I edit a PDF file?
The fact that a PDF file can be transported from computer to computer and yet cannot be easily changed (edited) is both a strength and a weakness. There are instances when the originator will not want the document to be altered in any way. Similarly there will be instances when the receiver will want to edit the document to update it or eliminate errors.
To edit a pdf file, the simpler solution is to go back to the original pre PDF ‘native’ file and make the changes there before recreating a fresh pdf file. But this will require the file, any necessary fonts, permission to change the file and the original software.
A workaround is to use conversion software to convert the PDF file to a Word file and then edit it before recreating a PDF. This route is more hazardous since, without the exact fonts originally used, undesirable changes may occur to the document.
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