Use javascript to handle files created by batch saveAs()?

[raphaelj72418829]

Hi,

I have succesfully written a script which uses a dynamic stamp to set an "Exhibit 1, 2, 3..." stamp on single PDFs based on the filename (the source files are labeled 001-..., 002-..., etc.). The script uses saveAs() to save the newly stamped files with names P001-....pdf, P002-...pdf in the same folder than the source.

I can now run an action which runs the script on multiple files.

What I need to do next in the workflow is combine all the newly created, stamped files in a single (optimised) PDF file, which I do manually from Windows Explorer (select - right click - combine, option "reduce file size"). The fact of having a bookmark corresponding to each file is a plus.

I would like to further automate this as part of my action (or of a folder level script).

Leaving aside the optimisation question (which I understand I could solve by using doc.preflight), I don't understand how I am supposed to use, from the same script or action, the files I have generated in order to combine them. I went through the Acrobat Javascript reference and don't find anything clearly useful (storing the newly created filenames/paths as global variables and use insertPages afterwards? have all the newly created files open in Acrobat and use the activeDocs property in conjunction with insertPages?).

The obvious problem I encounter is that the script executed through the action runs on every single file sequentially whereas I need part of the automation to be ran on each file before getting to the next step of combining the results.

So the process is:

I have files 001-file1.pdf, 002-secondexample.pdf, 003-thirdfile.pdf.

The existing script yields P001-file1.pdf, P002-secondexample.pdf, P003-thirdfile.pdf.

And I need P001-file1.pdf, P002-secondexample.pdf, P003-thirdfile.pdf to be combined in a single, possibly optimised, possibly bookmarked PDF.

Any suggestion or hint towards the right direction would be very appreciated. Thank you very much in advance.

[raphaelj72418829]

Any hint or idea, or the definite conclusion that it is impossible, would be greatly appreciated... thank you in advance!

[try67]

So you want to combine all the files in the folder? If so, it can be done using a combination of an Action (which collects the file paths) and a script which combines them.

In fact, I've developed a (paid-for) tool that does just that. You can find it here: Custom-made Adobe Scripts: Acrobat -- Batch Combine All PDF Files in a Folder

[raphaelj72418829]

Thank you, this seems to be a useful piece of the puzzle, but if I understand correctly the script does not touch the content of the files prior to combining them. I am looking for a solution to execute a script on each file (which changes its contents) prior to combining them, and to have this process included in a single action/script/command. Does it seem feasible?

[try67]

You can change the Action to make the edits you need, but it still has to be a two-step process.