When Adobe’s co-founder John Warnock created the Portable Document Format (PDF), he sought to make it easier for people to share papers without having to print them. Surprisingly, it turned out to be quite inaccessible.
The files were not only enormous, but they also didn’t support external hyperlinks and could only be seen with a specific PDF viewer. Over time, several versions of the PDF file format received functional advancements that made it easier to work with.
However, because PDF documents were not designed to be altered, they are still more difficult to change or edit than most other text documents.
The majority of PDFs originate with a source file in another native format, such as Word, and are then converted to PDF for dissemination. It’ll be a little more difficult to alter the file if you’re not the original creator, either because the source file isn’t available to you or because you don’t have the proper programs to edit it.
The good news is that you can edit a PDF document in a variety of ways. We’ll teach you how to do it using four fantastic tools.
Using Adobe Acrobat
Adobe Acrobat is a program that allows you to create PDF documents.
The most obvious tool for modifying PDFs is Adobe Acrobat. You may get it online, just like most of Adobe’s products, by purchasing the Standard or Pro editions of the editor.
If you don’t want to pay for it, you may take advantage of Acrobat DC’s amazing capabilities by signing up for a free 7-day trial.
You must first open your PDF in Adobe Acrobat before you can begin modifying it.
- Select File>Open from the File menu.
- In the right pane, select the Edit PDF tool.
- Select the text or image you want to change. Acrobat will show you all of the text formatting capabilities you’ll need.
Note: You won’t be able to change any text in your PDF document if the font you want to use isn’t installed or incorporated into your system. Only the font size and color can be changed for embedded fonts. Once you’ve finished editing your file, save it. In both Windows and Mac clients, Adobe Acrobat may be used to edit PDF documents. Additionally, if you have an Acrobat Pro DC membership, you may use the Acrobat Reader mobile app to edit PDFs on Android and iOS from anywhere, on any device.
Making use of Microsoft Word
It’s the easiest and quickest approach to edit a document based on an existing PDF if you already have a recent version of Microsoft Word (2013 or later).
Because the two formats are so dissimilar, some information, such as tables with cell spacing, font effects, and form-fill-in features, maybe lost in translation.
- To begin, open Microsoft Word and select File.
- Select the PDF file you wish to edit from the document window by clicking Open.
- Word will convert your PDF to an editable document and its contents to a format that Word can display, according to the message. However, the original PDF will remain unchanged.
- Click the OK button. Make the modifications you desire to the document, then save it as a PDF using File>Save.
Making use of Google Docs
This is a quick and simple method for modifying PDF files. The instructions for editing PDFs in Google Docs are as follows.
Use your Google account to access Google Drive. On the upper left-hand side, click New.
- Select Upload a File.
- Find the PDF file you wish to edit in the document window and click Open. When the upload is finished, go to the left pane and select Recent to find the PDF you just uploaded.
- Select Open With>Google Docs from the context menu when you right-click on the PDF file name.
- A new Docs file will be produced that you can edit.
- Make the necessary modifications and save it as a PDF by double-clicking on it. You can also send it to others by email or a shareable link.
Making Use of a PDF Editor
It’s not easy to find a PDF editor that allows you to edit, add, or modify text and images, sign your name, fill out forms, and more. However, you may use your web browser to modify your PDF file and then save it to your PC or cloud storage or share it with others, using online PDF editors.
- Not all PDF editors have the same capabilities; some have limitations on what you can and cannot do, but you can use many tools to process the same PDF document.
- They’re also not as feature-rich as desktop PDF editors like Acrobat, so they won’t convert completely, leaving you with strange formatting and mistranslated text.
- Sejda PDF Editor is one of the many online PDF editors available. It can run totally within your web browser, or you can download the desktop version.
- Simply go to the Sejda PDF website and select PDF Editor from the Edit & Sign column.
- Upload the PDF file you wish to work on there. To upload a file from your computer, click the green Upload PDF file button.
- You can also upload from Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, or a Web Address by selecting a place from the drop-down option (URL).
- Note that you can’t add PDFs from a URL or from online storage services to the desktop edition.
- Your document is now in an editable format. Sejda PDF editor, like Acrobat, has a menu of editing options that you may use to format your text with different fonts, colors, and sizes.
- Make your desired adjustments, then click the green Apply Changes button in the bottom center of your screen.
- You don’t have to be concerned about your files being saved on the internet. Sejda immediately deletes all uploaded files after two hours. By clicking the Delete Files icon, you can also delete it.
- These approaches are a solid place to start when it comes to PDF editing, and they should enough for most individuals.
What do you think?