PDF Corrections Misaligned When Imported into InDesign

[designer1955]

Hi, When i import a pdf with corrections in an Indesign file, sometimes the corrections are not in the right place. For example see pictures right and wrong. The imported pdf correction shows text to be deleted on page 171, when in fact it should be text deleted on page 172. Right is as the pdf in acrobat shows it, wrong is as indesign shows it when pdf is imported. Also when a correction shows a space between to letters is to be added, the actual correction is shown one letter to the right. For example gohome needs to be go home, then the pdf shows a correction after the H instead of before the H.

Anyone alse experienced this?

<Title renamed by MOD>

[Eugene Tyson]

Hard to know what's wrong for you.

But the only time I've seen this happen is if there was a change to to InDesign file after the file was exported to PDF. 

So, if you send the PDF for corrections, then make any change to the InDesign file the changes may not come back in the same location.

[designer1955]

Normally when you import corrections and the file has changed after export, indesign does not allow import.  And in this case nothing was changed.

[Vivek12]

Hi, Sorry for the trouble. Please share a screen recording depicting this issue along with sample files so that we can investigate this issue in-house.

^VS

[designer1955]

Hi Vivek

The trouble is on page 171. Here the indesign file as well as the pdf.

[Vivek12]

Hi, Thank you for sharing the requested information. Please allow us some time to investigate this issue.

^VS

[designer1955]

If you need anyother  info let me know.

[Laubender]

Hi @designer1955 ,

thank you for your provided documents.

What I wonder is if you already did corrections in the document after you loaded the commented PDF.

Your TOC in the InDesign document is showing different page numbers compared to the commented PDF.

Could it be that the corrections you did already changed the flow of text throughout the pages?

Best would be to do the corrections from the last page back to the first page in your document.

Regards,
Uwe Laubender
( Adobe Community Expert )

[designer1955]

I did all corrections according to this pdf and then i found the mistake oin page 171.. But after this stage, more pdf's with corrections were carried out.  So the indesign doc has has severtal more stage of corrections, but it at least shows whats wrong.

[Abhishek Rao]

Hello @designer1955,

Thank you for sharing the details and performing the test. We are currently reviewing the files you provided and investigating the issue. We will update you shortly with our findings.

Thanks,  
Abhishek Rao

[Abhishek Rao]

Hello @designer1955,

Thank you for sharing the files with us. We've thoroughly checked both the PDF and InDesign file you provided. From our investigation, we can confirm that the strike-through on page 172 of the PDF has been correctly reflected in the corresponding InDesign page. The content was updated as per the comments on page 172 of the PDF.

Everything appears to be in order, but if you're still encountering any issues or need further assistance, feel free to reach out. We're here to help!

Thanks, 
Abhishek Rao

[designer1955]

I dont see how you can come to this conclusion. See screenshots in earlier post. Even when i import it now in Indesign file it is still wrong. So tell me what you did to make it correct please.

[Abhishek Rao]

Hello @designer1955,

Thank you for your feedback. I understand your frustration, and I apologize for the confusion. To help us investigate further, could you please provide a screen recording showing the differences between the PDF page and the InDesign document? This will allow us to see the real-time updates and better understand the issue you’re facing.

Once we have that, we can assist you more effectively.

Thank you for your cooperation!

Best,
Abhishek Rao

[designer1955]

I made a screen recording showing where it goes wrong. I am curious if you can find the problem...

[Abhishek Rao]

Hello @designer1955,

Thank you for your patience and for providing the screen recording. I understand how frustrating this situation must be for you.

Upon reviewing the comments, it seems that everything aligns correctly up to page 140, but we notice the comments on pages 171 and 172 are not aligning as expected. Our investigation indicates that the content on these pages in the PDF and InDesign file does not match, which could be why the mapping is not happening correctly.

It’s possible that the InDesign file was modified, affecting the alignment of comments. To help us diagnose the issue more effectively, I recommend testing with a different InDesign file and PDF to see if the problem persists. If you encounter this issue again, please provide the original InDesign file without modifications for our review.

We appreciate your cooperation and are here to assist you further!

Best,
Abhishek Rao

[Mike Witherell]

So, the basic question is: Did the InDesign file get changed after sending out the PDF for comments?

If so, the comments can still come back into the PDF Comments panel, but some comments will be out of alignment.

In order to ensure they all line up, the INDD file must not change after sending out the PDF for comment.

[designer1955]

No the Indesign file did not change after sending pdf. It has obviously been changed in later stages, because this was only the first batch of corrections. So the Indesign file i sent was later changed, but NOT while importing the pdf file with corrections. And also i mentioned that when corrector put a space correction it is always one letter to the right. Like  gohome needs to be go home, then the pdf indicates a space after the H, instead of before the H. But this is the first time i enountered the issue as on page 171 in the doc.

[Mike Witherell]

Just wondering:

Do your PDF commenting people know to use ONLY the 3 auto-edit comment tools in Acrobat?

Add Note to Replace Text tool, Strikethrough Text tool, and the Insert Text at Cursor tool

[designer1955]

That is a problem. Not all  my clients have the knowledge. Some do, some dont...

[Laubender]

Hi@designer1955 ,

to test if something's wrong with the comments one would need a version of the document right after you exported the PDF. Could you see if there is a version of the document from that time perhaps in a backup with TimeMachine?

The properties of the PDF are showing that the PDF was created at 24.09.2024 15:35.

Thanks,
Uwe Laubender
( Adobe Community Expert )

[designer1955]

this is the closest i can find

[Laubender]

Thank's for that. Hm. So far I can see there are already some accepted comments and changes made in the InDesign document. But it's better than nothing to compare the commented PDF with the InDesign document.

And yes, I can see the issue, the mismatch, on pages 171 and 172.

For the why I have no answer…

For comparison two screenshots below.

My German InDesign 2024 version 19.5.0.83 with PDF Comments panel showing NO comments on Page 172, but combined comments for page 171 and 172 with page 171:

Acrobat Pro showing comments on page 171 AND on page 172:

InDesign should show comments for page 171 AND page 172. Apparently it does not…

It would be interesting to know in what application the comments in the PDF were made.

If Acrobat Pro, that could perhaps hint to a bug perhaps even in Acrobat…

Furthermorew I did the following test:

From Acrobat I exported all comments from your provided PDF to an *.fdf file.

Exported a new PDF from InDesign 2024.

In Acrobat Pro I imported the *.fdf file to the new exported PDF.

Saved the PDF with the imported comments in Acrobat Pro.

Loaded the commented PDF to InDesign's PDF Comments panel.

Result: same problem!

The same with a test in InDesign 2023…

Regards,
Uwe Laubender
( Adobe Community Expert )

[AlexUzan]

This is unfortunately a bug that appeared with Indesign 2015,

I created many threads on this topic and opened bug tickets, but Adobe doesn’t seem to care about fixing the issue.
https://community.adobe.com/t5/indesign-discussions/indesign-2023-tested-today-and-4-years-later-thi...

There is nothing wrong with your workflow, and it worked without any issues in InDesign 2014.

The misalignment happens because some texts have an outline. Remove the outline, and the issue disappears.

I no longer believe Adobe will fix it, so here are two solutions:

1. Use to Indesign 2014
2. Follow this annoying workflow: 

A) Export two PDF.

The first one will be the original one, that will be exactly like your Indesign document.(PDF_OG)

The second will be a modified version, on which you will have applied a script to remove all text outlines. (PDF_Naked)

B) Send the first one to your proofreader or reviser, and keep the second one somewhere on your computer.

C) Once you have received your PDF back with comments (PDF_OG), open the second one (PDF_naked), go to the “comments” section, choose “import comments,” and select PDF_OG.

The comments will be imported.

D) In InDesign, in the comments panel, import the PDF_Naked, and the comments will all be perfectly aligned.

It’s such a tedious process to have to follow this lengthy procedure, but it’s what I’ve been forced to do for nearly 5 years, with around a hundred PDFs each month.

[designer1955]

Hi Alex

Where can i find this script? And thanks for your reply. At least i know i am not the only one.

[AlexUzan]

Here : https://community.adobe.com/t5/indesign-discussions/would-i-be-able-one-day-to-use-a-recent-version-...

Don't forget to make a copy of your INDD file before, to be sure to not save it without outline.