Working with PDFs

Everybody uses them.  They're the single most frequently found file format on the internet. PDF (Portable Document Format) files are very convenient to store and share documents because you know everybody can open and view the contents anywhere no matter what computer or software they're using.  Most of us have a ton of teaching materials in PDF format - documents and presentations we've found on the internet, materials shared from other teachers, and items scanned from paper copies.

Google a topic for a class lesson and you are bound to find most of the useful materials are PDF files.

But most of the time what you find is a mix of good stuff and unnecessary or unwanted stuff.  What if you could quickly and easily just pick out the stuff you want, discard the rest, and combine multiple pieces (files) into one neat package?  You can, and it's easy with a few free tools.

Convert a PDF to an editable file
Cloud Convert is a free Chrome app which will convert a PDF file into doc, docx, odt, or rtf format which will allow you to edit the text.  The great thing about this app is that you can easily set it up to work with your Google Drive (as both input source and output).  Cloud Convert will also convert various image and media files to other formats.  Find it in the Chrome webstore.  Once installed, it will also be available as an option in the "open with ..." selection list for PDFs, PNG, and many other file types.



Copy/Paste text 
You can copy and paste text from a PDF to a Google Doc.  Open the PDF (stored in Drive) using the Preview option (select the file, right click, Preview - or select the file, click the eyeball icon).  In the preview window, select the text using the mouse.  Copy (ctrl/c) then paste (ctrl/v) into a Google Doc.



Merge multiple PDFs into one file
PDF Mergy is a free app which will merge PDF files into a single file.  You can upload PDFs from your computer and/or directly link to your Google Drive.  Drag and Drop to arrange them in the correct sequence.  Then PDF Mergy generates a single file which you can download to your computer or deposit into your Drive.  Can be installed as a Chrome App (check the Chrome webstore) and is more convenient that way.

Select What you want, toss out the rest

PDFescape allows you to open a PDF document, add text, images, links, freehand drawing or annotations; delete selected content or whole pages; rotate or reorient the pages; and then re-author it.  You can append files so if you have bits and pieces of content from three separate PDF files you want to combine to create a single class handout...piece of cake.  Takes about 2-3 minutes to install in Chrome, 5 minutes to figure out how it works.

The premium version ($$$) allows you to open and save files directly from Drive (or other cloud storage) via a URL, no sidebar ads, and more temporary storage.  But the free version works fine and you can't beat the price.


Split, Combine, Select pages

Sejda is a free Chrome app which enables you to selectively manipulate any PDF file(s).  You can split a file into 2 or more parts based on page #, selectively extract pages from a file, combine multiple files, add headers or footers.  This is great when you have materials you've found on the internet, but you don't want to include everything and you'd like to make it one file to load on you website.

Another nice feature is the ability to extract the text.  You may have a scanned document of a test or study guide and you'd like to make some edits.  Extract the text, drop it into Google Docs or Word, edit away!

Sejda has a few other features, including the ability to encrypt a file (if you want to protect the content).

PDF Shaper
This is a computer-based program that will also manipulate your PDF files.  The nice thing about PDF Shaper is that you can also easily extract images and convert them to editable formats, such as PNG or JPEG.  This comes in especially handy when you have a PDF with diagrams, maps, charts or the like and you want to make a few edits to the graphical elements.  Convert the images to PNG and then edit in PAINT or other image editing software.  PDF Shaper is free from Glorylogic.  [You'll need to install it on your own computer].

Reading PDFs on your PC or tablet
There's an overlooked feature called the Setup Assistant on Adobe Reader X and XI (version XI is installed on your table) that enables you to set the visual properties of the display - text color, background color, contrast.  When you're reading through a bunch of files, it comes in handy.  Under the "edit" menu, there's an accessibility option. Click "Setup Assistant." Then check the box that says "Use high contrast colors for document text." From there you have a choice of green text on a black background, yellow on black, white on black or the usual black on white.