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Mr. Juicebox
Participant
December 4, 2018
Answered

Why wont my fonts outline?

  • December 4, 2018
  • 4 replies
  • 25543 views

macOS 10.13.6

Adobe Acrobat Pro DC 2019.008.20080

I'm trying to outline/flatten all fonts in an 80 page document. (So that no text can be selected/copied) But I can't get it to work.

What I've tried:

1. Open PDF

2. Open Print Production > Flattener Preview

3. Check box for Convert All Text to Outlines

4. Check box for All Pages in Document

5. Hit Apply

I've tried saving and reopening and the fonts are still in the document.

Note*: When I check the box for Convert All Text to Outlines, the preview turns white/blank.

Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks!

    This topic has been closed for replies.
    Correct answer Dov Isaacs

    To expand on the previous response on behalf of Adobe, the Flattener Preview was never designed to convert text to outlines in the general case, but rather, as a side effect of flattening transparency in which text is involved. No transparency to flatten or no text interacting with such transparency, no converting of text to outlines.

    However, there is a built-in Preflight function that will do conversion of text to outlines directly and very easily in one step.

    Go to Print Production => Preflight. Select the group Acrobat Pro DC 2015 Profiles and under the section PDF fixups, you will find Convert fonts to outlines. Select that profile and press Analyze and fix. You will be prompted for a new file name (and location) and this profile will immediately convert all text to outlines for you.

                - Dov

    PS:    Note that in general, conversion of text to outlining is absolutely not recommended as a general workflow practice. Text quality can be severely degraded. Text is not longer either searchable or editable within the PDF file. File size and RIP / display time can both dramatically increase. It is regrettable that some Luddite prepress professionals still believe that such text outlining buys anything at all.

    4 replies

    A
    AlGrant2007
    Participant
    June 25, 2024

    If you outline the fonts using preflight but then export as an eps you get vector outlines of the fonts in when opened in Illustrator. Unlike saving as a pdf where illustrator opens text as live text with missing fonts.

    JR Boulay
    Community Expert
    JR BoulayCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    March 7, 2020

    "I'm trying to outline/flatten all fonts in an 80 page document. (So that no text can be selected/copied)"

    lol

    You should try the powerful Acrobat's OCR with your outlined files…

    😉

     

    And remember that disabled people will not be able to read such file.

    Acrobate du PDF, InDesigner et Photoshopographe
    Dov Isaacs
    Dov IsaacsCorrect answer
    Legend
    December 4, 2018

    To expand on the previous response on behalf of Adobe, the Flattener Preview was never designed to convert text to outlines in the general case, but rather, as a side effect of flattening transparency in which text is involved. No transparency to flatten or no text interacting with such transparency, no converting of text to outlines.

    However, there is a built-in Preflight function that will do conversion of text to outlines directly and very easily in one step.

    Go to Print Production => Preflight. Select the group Acrobat Pro DC 2015 Profiles and under the section PDF fixups, you will find Convert fonts to outlines. Select that profile and press Analyze and fix. You will be prompted for a new file name (and location) and this profile will immediately convert all text to outlines for you.

                - Dov

    PS:    Note that in general, conversion of text to outlining is absolutely not recommended as a general workflow practice. Text quality can be severely degraded. Text is not longer either searchable or editable within the PDF file. File size and RIP / display time can both dramatically increase. It is regrettable that some Luddite prepress professionals still believe that such text outlining buys anything at all.

    - Dov Isaacs, former Adobe Principal Scientist (April 30, 1990 - May 30, 2021)
      codye94982740
      codye94982740
      Inspiring
      March 6, 2020

      There are still workflows where the simple action of outlining text is needing. For example, we sometimes receive files from clients in word or pub. We then create a pdf and send through out postcard processing system and from time to time encounter an error with fonts. I don't think outlining of text for a postcard will cause any system meltdown from a slight file size increase.

      Dov Isaacs
      Dov Isaacs
      Legend
      March 7, 2020

      If you create a PDF file with fonts embedded from an application and that PDF file can open and display properly in Acrobat and can properly print from Acrobat to even a cheap office printer, there is no reason why you would or should have any font issues in your RIP/DFE. If the text can be outlined in Acrobat, then there is no good reason why it would fail at the printer. In fact we have never seen such a case.

       

      - Dov Isaacs, former Adobe Principal Scientist (April 30, 1990 - May 30, 2021)
      T
      Test Screen Name
      Legend
      December 4, 2018

      This is the transparency flattener only. Nothing you are using is designed to outline fonts UNLESS they happen to need to be flattened because of transparency.

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