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cabinet_guy
Participant
July 9, 2018
Answered

i have a huge cursor when i open pdf how do i shrink this to normal sized cursor?

  • July 9, 2018
  • 14 replies
  • 52415 views

I am getting a huge "paragraph" sized cursor when i open a new pdf...how do i reduce this to a standard cursor size?

Correct answer Veronica_Tortuga

Hi I have got same issue. Win 10 and Acrobat DC 19.012.20034.

It happens only when I am using Adobe PDF printer. Does not happen with Microsoft Print to PDF. It looks like the doc is divinded into large areas or so. Hard to determine what is the cause.

Anyone any idea how to fix it?


Thank you!!!  I was having the same problem with the giant cursor.  Following your comment, I saved as a Microsoft Print to PDF and the giant cursor is no longer there.  I can now highlight the specific text I need to highlight.  Thank you again!

 

14 replies

Participant
March 19, 2025

Am curious, did this ever get fixed in newer Acrobat versions? It annoys me to no end trying to get everyone to use "Save as PDF" in Chrome or "Save to PDF" in Firefox (Firefox prints an image when using the Adobe PDF printer). They just expect Adobe would be the best choice for a PDF printer and use it by instinct. Thinking about upgrading, but not seeing the benefit of sticking with Adobe if that's still an issue.

Mike-C_1024
Participating Frequently
March 19, 2025

I have only been using 'Microsoft Print to PDF" for all these years, so your inquiry peaked my curiousity. I just did some test prints with "Save as PDF". Two pages I printed this way from the web seemed normal when opened in Adobe Acrobat DC. However, I printed one page of a PDF (FNMA Selling Guide) that was open in Adobe Acrobat DC to 'Save as PDF' and while the giant cursor was gone, it still seems to see text as blocks. You can not select a sentence, for example, out of a paragraph, only the whole paragraph or a one-line heading at a time. Better, but flawed for production use. I'm sticking with Microsft print distiller.  I still use Acrobat DC for production environment--viewing, editing, marking up, combining documents, etc. It seems more of an issue with the Adobe print distiller than Adobe Acrobat; as you said, maybe creating images of page contents instead of editiable text. For your IT/office needs, you could set the default printer to 'Microsoft Print to PDF' on all PC's, maybe through Group Policy Editior, or manually on each PC, so you don't have to remind your staff all day long. If they need to print to paper printer, they can select it as print destination.  Otherwise 'MS print to PDF' would be default print destination.  I never tried to uninstall the 'Save as PDF' because I believe it is installed with Adobe Acrobat. And maybe needed for programs like Alamode Total that creates PDF's of our reports, but then again, that may have its own PDF printer/distiller built in. I hope this helps. 

Participant
May 3, 2024

Right click --  print -- destination -- Microsoft print to PDF. 

Participant
April 27, 2023

Something worked for me: regarding printing emails as PDFs, when I choose the destination "Adobe PDF" I get the giant cursor. However, when I choose the destination "Save as PDF" I get the regular-sized cursor and am able to select text normally. 

Participant
February 4, 2023

I found this to be an issue using Win10, Chrome (latest), and when the document I'm trying to save to pdf is offered as a .do file.  The document opens in a dark gray & black window in Chrome.  If I click on the printer icon at the right side of the black toolbar and select "Adobe PDF" as the destination printer, it saves with the giant cursor.  If I select "Save as PDF" instead (further down the list of destination printers), it prints perfectly (and with smaller file size).

Hope that helps.

Mike-C_1024
Participating Frequently
May 14, 2022
I am also an appraiser and work paperlessly. 
 
In Windows, print using Destination > "Microsoft Print to PDF" instead of "Save as PDF" in the print dialogue box. 
 
I don't know about Apple/MAC but I assume the native OS print distiller will work. 
 
As long as you produce the PDF by NOT using the Adobe option, disguised as "Save as PDF" then the PDF document you print will function as desired with proper formatting and cursor. I do it all day long and into the night ...
 
Adding the Adobe Acrobat Chrome browser extension is another effective workaround for web printing. 
 
IDK which MLS you use, but in Stellar/Matrix there are usually two print options:
1) an embedded "Print to PDF" option that is always available regardless pf print job size because it is being distilled on the MLS server side. 
2) the standard "Print" option that brings up the OS print dialogue box. However, if your print job is too large this option can become grayed out.
 
 
 
 
Participant
May 11, 2022

I have a workaround.  It's not a correction.  I would still like to find a way to fix the large cursor.  I am an Appraiser and print everything to Adobe I need from my Multiple Listing Service.  When I have all the documents I need to complete my report, I combine them into one single file.  Instead of saving that file, I print it using Adobe with the file name I wish.  It's not perfect, but it works.

kurt1524
Participating Frequently
February 20, 2022

Saving printing from the internet using Adobe Acrobat causes the large unruly cursor situation making the Acrobat form page impossible to edit or select text or images.

First stop telling users of older versions of Acrobat that is the problem because that has noting to do with this cursor situation. All versions of Acrobat including current DC Pro are experiencing this ridiculous cursor situation.

Second stop telling users to print or save using Microsoft Windows Edge pdf service to print/save to stop the massive cursor situation is also ridiculous as you should be able to print using the Adobe Acrobat app fully including the save/print service without this crazy unfixed cursor situation. Using the Microsoft Windows Edge pdf save/print does not give the option of choice of what size form page you want to save or print too. Choosing “custom” form page for example 8.5x22 allowing far great information space on one form page when saving files is not an option using Microsoft Windows Edge pdf service. Acrobat gives you many form page options to save or print including custom. You have greater printing and saving control using the actual Adobe Acrobat app with saving and printing but the large cursor situation makes this an unruly form for editing tasks and forces you to save/print using Microsoft Windows Edge pdf service. This means both Microsoft and Adobe are pointing fingers and noting is being corrected. We customers get to eat crow.

Participating Frequently
February 21, 2022

Thank you @kurt1524 for articulating and summarizing this obstacle that is probably a simple fix I have Adobe Acrobat DC version 22 and still have this problem. I was able to work around this by open PDF in Edge, save to Microsoft pdf, then print to Acrobat pdf. Exporting to MS Word required the same steps.  Adobe Acrobat DC works for me in most scenarios but I question why I spent so much on this software when I have to rely on "print-to-Microsoft-pdf" to fix Acrobat bugs.  I am sure there is a simple fix for this and I am bewildered that no one has figure this out.  I will call Adobe support and if they show me how to fix this, I will post the answer here. @cabinet_guy already posted a screenshot of this issue dated back in 2018 running AADC v19.

Participating Frequently
February 21, 2022

Adobe Acrobat Pro DC version 21

 

Big cursor workaround (not fix):

1.) In Edge, open the PDF document

     - Print to "Microsoft Print To PDF"

2) Open that file with Abode Acrobat DC

     - Choose the "edit PDF" tool

     - Let Adobe do its text recognition

Now you should have truly editable text with a prober sized cursor.

 

Export to Word in a usable format:

Add this next step to the ones above

3) Choose the "Export PDF" tool

     - Export to Word

     - Open in Word (if it did not automatically do this for you)

You should be golden!

 

If I have missed a step or this did not work for you, please let me know.

Participating Frequently
February 19, 2022

I have the same problem and I am running Acrobat DC version 21. With all due respect and due to my fustration, is there any answers out there that actualy works?

 

Participant
March 4, 2021

Me too. Adobe Acrobat DC Pro 2021

Participant
April 23, 2021

Ditto. Adobe Acrobat DC Pro 2021 running on Windows 10.

Participant
November 25, 2020

me too.

This is the document zoomed out to about 5% and then used the insert text at cursor tool to show in blue the size of cursor.. this happens with every document i open. 

 

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