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Now, well past sunset, I am trying to figure out how to recover content from a multimedia pdf that requires flash.
Any ideas?
The frustrating part here is that the flash was apparently incorporated to animate page transitions, I just need to access the information on those pages.
You must find a 5/10 years old computer running 5/10 years old applications.
We've warned people for years against using this kind of Flash-based animations for PDF files. It was clear it's a recipe for disaster, just for the sake of a childish visual effect...
I don't think there's much you can do about it now, unless you can find an old machine with Flash (or a Flash alternative) and take screenshots of each page and create a new PDF file from it.
Coworkers old computer was able to open it. I couldn't figure out how to take ascreenshot on that old system, couldn't dump it all at once either ....but, I printed it to pdf one page at a time. Data Saved!
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Are you trying to do this with Adobe Acrobat Pro DC or are you viewing this PDF with another software?
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There isn't an avenue forward with Acrobat as far as I can tell. I have tried opening with other programs but, all I can see is the first page.
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Sorry, just to clarify, yes I have tried with Acrobat as well as other Adobe programs in an attempt to see the rest of the pages.
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Are you able to share the file or an example of this PDF without any sensitive information?
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Unfortunately, this is a client supplied pdf and I am unable to share it. I can say that flash was incorporate to animate the pages to appear as if flipping through a book. There are touch points at the corners of the pages to activate the animation.
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Try the menu
File > Save PDF Portfolio As Web Site
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Thank you for that suggestion, I have tried that and variations on exporting or saving as.
Admittedly, I don't know much about pdf portfolios but, it doesn't even appear to be even a pdf portfolio, so the options I get are to export as html or save as html. In every case, I simply get the first page - the rest of the content appears to require flash to view.
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What version of Adobe Acrobat does you use?
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I'm on the latest version of this one. 2021.00120149
On some of the other apps I'm limited to specific versions to maintain compatibility with printers, client portals etc..
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You must find a 5/10 years old computer running 5/10 years old applications.
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We've warned people for years against using this kind of Flash-based animations for PDF files. It was clear it's a recipe for disaster, just for the sake of a childish visual effect...
I don't think there's much you can do about it now, unless you can find an old machine with Flash (or a Flash alternative) and take screenshots of each page and create a new PDF file from it.
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I do have a coworker with an older OS who is going to give it a try. Fingers crossed!
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Would it make any different if you open the Windows Compatibility Troubleshooter and set the Acrobat compatibility to run in Windows 7 mode? ...Just very curious.
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No, because the Flash Player has been removed from all versions, including Windows 7.
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True... thank you for clarifying.
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Coworkers old computer was able to open it. I couldn't figure out how to take ascreenshot on that old system, couldn't dump it all at once either ....but, I printed it to pdf one page at a time. Data Saved!
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Hey great job!
Thank you for sharing that solution and updating the this thread.
For future reference, pressing CTRL+PrtSc (the print screen key) will copy a screenshot to the Windows clipboard.
Then you can open Microsoft Paint (or similar), paste the screenshot there and save as .png image.
This is old school since the days of MS Windows 95 (maybe even Windows 3.1)