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Boris0D4A
Participating Frequently
February 24, 2021
Question

unable to insert unicode character in Acrobat

  • February 24, 2021
  • 2 replies
  • 5456 views

Hello,

 

I'm looking to insert the symbol ⇪ (caps lock) in my PDF.

(I use OSX) so I switch to unicode keyboard, press the option key and type 21EA, it works great in text edit or any documents or search bar. I can't copy it into the PDF. When I try to insert the symbol the space bar move but no symbol is inserted. Tried to change the color but I'm kind of lost. Thanks in advance if you can find a solution.

    2 replies

    Bevi Chagnon - PubCom.com
    Bevi Chagnon - PubCom.com
    Legend
    February 24, 2021

    Is that exact Caps Lock character used anywhere else in the PDF?

    If not, then that character isn't available to insert it.

    Only a subset of a font's characters are embedded into the PDF, not the entire font. This is unlike a word processing program, for example, where you can insert any character that's on the font.

    In PDFs, only the actual characters used in the original source document can be embedded into the PDF. And once the PDF is made, you'll need that exact font on your workstation to be able to edit the PDF and possibly add the Caps Lock character.

    It's all about the fonts!

     

    Suggestion:

    Return to the source document in the original authoring program (for example, the .DOCX file in MS Word) and make the editorial changes there. Then, re-export a new PDF (selecting the option to embed all fonts, subsetted).

     

    Generally, PDFs are difficult to edit because the file format was never intended to let us do that.  So there are several hoops you must jump through to edit them.

     

     

     

    |    Bevi Chagnon   |  Designer, Trainer, & Technologist for Accessible Documents ||    PubCom |    Classes & Books for Accessible InDesign, PDFs & MS Office |
      B
      Boris0D4AAuthor
      Participating Frequently
      February 24, 2021

      Thanks. Unfortunatly no there is no Caps lock character already in the document. I also do not have the source document, only the PDF that i need to modify.

      If I identify the original font of the document is there a possibility to make it work ?

       

      B
      Boris0D4AAuthor
      Participating Frequently
      February 24, 2021

      I found the solution !

      When i was in textedit I noticed the font changed STIXGeneral.

      I went back to the PDF and changed the font to STIXGeneral and it worked when i typed Option + 21EA with the unicode keyboard.

      Thanks again 

      T
      Test Screen Name
      Legend
      February 24, 2021

      Where/how are you trying to paste it? In many cases you would first need to select a font containing ⇪ and this may not be possible. Some apps automatically switch font, but not all.

        B
        Boris0D4AAuthor
        Participating Frequently
        February 24, 2021

        I tried to past directly from textedit, i tried to insert it using the special characters in acrobat and tried using the unicode keyboard with the option + 21EA shortcut.

        I used Arial and helvitica fonts because they are widely used and I assumed it will contain the ⇪ symbol

        T
        Test Screen Name
        Legend
        February 24, 2021

        Yes, but how/where are you trying to paste? There are many different places text can be pasted, each with entirely different rules. For example:

        * Edit text

        * Fill in a form field

        * Type in a comment

        * Type a bookmark title

        * And many more. 

        So, where and how please? 

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