My conversions are so bad they are useless. What can I do?

[stewarth29565067]

My conversions are very poor with symbols for letters; improper spacing; etc. There is so much editing that it is not worthwhile to convert. Can I do anything. I purchased the conversion software on line. Thanks for your help.

[Karl Heinz Kremer · Accepted solution]

I assume you are referring to the ExportPDF service.

Converting from PDF to Word, Excel or any other format is one of the most complex things you can try to do with a PDF file. It works very well in some cases, in other cases the output has very little to do with the original file. The key for success is that the PDF file needs to be "tagged" - which means that it contains information about the information that is displayed in the file. The best way to make sure that a PDF file is tagged correctly is by using the PDFMaker in Acrobat to create the PDF file from Word or Excel (that's the Acrobat ribbon or toolbar).

Unfortunately there is not much you can do to improve the output without spending a lot of time (e.g. by manually tagging the file). Also, because you are using Adobe's ExportPDF service and don't have access to Acrobat, that is not even an option.

The only thing you can do is complain to the original author of the file and tell them that they used a bad PDF generator to create the PDF file.

[stewarth29565067]

Thank you. I am glad I just got the trial. I only wasted time rather than money.

[girijaAgarwal]

Hi Stewart Halstead,

We apologize for the delay in response and the inconvenience caused to you.

Could you please let us know the following information:

1. Dot version of Adobe application and OS(Win/Mac) you are using.

2. Share the workflow you are following to export.

3. Share the file you are trying to export

You can share the above information @ : agarwala@adobe.com

Thanks and Regards,

Girija

[DeelaDL]

I have the same problem. I just purchased the Adobe Export PDF, and it did convert my file...but with multiple errors. It doesn't recognize the em dash. Many of the double quotes appear as a comma for the opening quote, and an apostrophe (single quote?) for the closing quote. There are lots of errors in spacing, mostly adding spaces between words. This is a manuscript, so much too long to make all the changes manually. Is there a "fix" for this problem?