Participant

Answered

Converting Adobe XML forms back to normal PDF

Forum|Forum|17 years ago
October 20, 2008
14 replies
229247 views

I want to get rid of the XML Forms in my PDF and then save as regular PDF format so that I can merge files into single PDF.

When I edit file in Designer and get rid of form elements, then save as PDF. I still can't combine files. I get error that says my file is still Adobe XML.

Is there a way to save PDFs that still have forms in them as non-AdobeXML files?

If not, how do I get rid of Forms and convert back into regular PDF that I can combine with othe PDFs into one single PDF?

Correct answer _Aandi_Inston_

Once you have gone to Designer, you are stuck there. There is no way
to get that particular PDF back into Acrobat form. It no longer is a
PDF form, it's XML in a PDF wrapper even if you remove all the form
fields.

You might be able to print to PDF from Acrobat to make a new,
non-form, flat PDF.

Aandi Inston

T

Tasha35852790es71

Participant

We had to save the file in Adobe as a JPG, then converted the JPG into a PDF and were able to take those (Unsecured) PDF files and covert those sucessfullly in the new designer adobe.

Abambo

Community Expert

Sounds awfully impractical.

ABAMBO | Hard- and Software Engineer | Photographer

K

kwy7fgknbj

Participant

I exported the XML/PDF to JPEG.

Then exported the JPEGs to (flat) PDFs.

I tried saving as a PDF while going to "Print" but Acrobat just didn't provide that option in the Acrobat Print Settings.

It was only two pages, so that's handy. After creating 2 JPEGS I then opened the them in PREVIEW and exported them to PDF. Way faster to do that than search online for how to convert--and consider getting new software!

Did it all with Acrobat and Preview. Easy, free.

Sadly, the form I needed to convert is from the Canada Revenue Agencey (an official form for tax purposes that they require me to submit outside of my tax return) and I'm submitting multiple forms in one document to upload to their website. Wish I'd known why the "PDF" wouldn't combine, that it was XML --or that this one just couldn't be combined. It took some poking around in Acrobat. The error message told me to change the Preferences (which wasn't even an option, I could only change "Settings")

On the whole though, I'd rather spend an hour scratching my head and searching (and learning something new)--than submitting all my documents by mail. 🙂

try67

Community Expert

It's very likely they will reject your file in this format, since you've manipulated it like that.

J

jems1304

Participant

For Mac OS Users:

Option 1 (should work for most):

You can use the built-in/pre-installed Mac OS application called, "Preview" to flatten the PDF. Make sure the document(s) you want to flatten are stored locally on your computer.

Launch the Preview application on your Mac computer. (You should be able to find this using Finder).
Using the Preview application, open the PDF.
At the top of the screen of the Preview application menu, click "File" > "Export as PDF." (Do NOT select "Export").
Input a File name for the to-be created flattened PDF.
Click Save. This newly saved document should be a flattened PDF.

Option 2 (might not work from everyone and requires Adobe software):

Make sure the document(s) you want to flatten are stored locally in your computer.

Using a Finder window, locate the unflattened PDF in your hard drive.
Once located, right click on the PDF file. For Mac, this is done by holding the control key and left-clicking/clicking on the file.
Select "Open With" > and select "Save as Adobe PDF." (This may not appear for everyone).
Input a File name for the to-be created flattened PDF.
Click Save. This newly saved document should be a flattened PDF.

For Microsoft PC Users:

You can create a flattened PDF with virtually any other software that allows you to view PDF documents.

Open your existing PDF document in your PDF reader of choice (Adobe Pro, Adobe Acrobat Reader, web browser, etc.)
Click File > Print or just the Print button.
As your printer: Choose 'Microsoft Print to PDF' as your printer.
1. An alternative choice for flattening documents is selecting "Adobe PDF" printer rather than Microsoft Print to PDF; however, this may not work if your document was signed through Adobe Sign; in that case, please use Microsoft Print to PDF.
Click Print.
Input a File name for the to-be created flattened PDF.
Click Save. This newly saved document should be a flattened PDF.

T

Toni29787780qdvn

Participant

Microsoft PC User here. Thank you so much for the hack. I had tried literally everything else and was starting to go a little crazy because nothing was working, and I had a deadline to beat for the submission of the document that was giving me such grief. The 'Microsoft Print to PDF' option worked perfectly, can't thank you enough!

J

Jorgelhurtado

Participating Frequently

I was able to solve this by exporting to postcript from Acrobat Pro DC (Mac.) Then I created a pdf from the postcript file. Worked like a charm.

P

Pete24455950hdy1

Participant

Did that but the editable form input fields were no longer editable. What do I need to do?

Bernd Alheit

Community Expert

With Adobe Acrobat add the form fields.

Josebelem

Participant

Hi,

I solved the problem like this.

- Document with one page only:

I used InDesign to place it and export in Adobe PDF (Print).

- Document with three pages:

Open document in Adobe Acrobat Pro DC > Organize pages > Select all three pages > Export > Extract as separate files > Extract.
Were created Three PDF files.
Opened InDesign and created three pages. I placed each PDF file in each InDesign page. Export in Adobe PDF (Print).

Result: DONE!

Best regards

D

defaultwp354p6m31qd

Participant

This solution worked for me. I highlighted the pages I wanted to transfer in Thumbnail. Right Click - Select Extract Pages. Then I saved to my folder with a new file name. I could transfer the pages from this new file to another Adobe file. I did not use Designer, merely the pdf file.

E

E_B_S

Participant

I was able to open the XML form file in Adobe Acrobat Pro DC, extract the file, then insert it back into my pdf document. Open the file then click on Page Thumbnails in the left column. Below that click on the page icon and in the drop down menu choose Extract Pages. Save the file then you should be able to insert back into a pdf document. Worked for me anyway! Although this is an extra step and a pain it seems to be the easiest without having to utilize additional software.

J

Judithh12

Participant

Thank you so much for this answer. I really appreciate it

K

Kristen98A6

Participant

2020 on a Mac - opening the file in Preview then selecting "Export to PDF" flattened the file so I could combine it with another in Acrobat.

Y

yeahgerry

Participant

SeamlessDocs.com actually started doing a lot of projects where we can convert the PDFs with XML into online versions. They can then be printed, preserving the PDF format, or submitted online with eSignatures. Not sure if it will address everyone's issues; I know they just did a big project for a large State Department of Transportation.

JohnH8186068544

Participant

I was able to combine the pdfs on a mac using Preview. open thumbnails side bar of both files and drag and drop the pages you want to merge. Doing this did drop the content of a checkbox field which i had to recheck. It also took some of the number formatting away. So it's not perfect but it works. Printing and scanning as pdf seems to be the only perfect way to do it.

ellengee

Participant

This works! Thank you!

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