Why can’t I copy the PDF text? If you want to reproduce phrases, numbers, and other text shown in PDF documents on your computer screen, you need to use a PDF reader. This post will explain the rationale and solution if you cannot copy copyrighted PDF material. I am writing this post primarily with that in mind.
Copy and paste the text range specified on the screen.
In addition to PDF viewers for viewing PDFs, modern browsers can open PDFs distributed on the web. The text range may then be defined and copied from the browser’s display.
- On the displayed PDF page, use the mouse to select the range to be copied.
- To copy the selected text range, right-click to display the menu, select the “Copy” command, or press Ctrl + C while specifying the reproduction capacity.
- The next step is to display the editing screen of the text-editing software and copy and paste it.
The copied source PDF contains a new line at the end of each line when pasted. Whether to insert a new line at the end of a string depends on the browser or PDF viewer.
Insert a newline character on each line.
- Google Chrome (83.0.4103.116)
- Microsoft Edge (83.0.478.58) (based on Chromium open source)
- Adobe Acrobat Reader (Adobe Reader) (2020.009.20067)
There are no line breaks (connecting lines) per line.
- Firefox (78.0.1)
Why can’t I copy the PDF text?
You may quickly copy the text displayed on the screen in PDF format. In other circumstances, however, it may not be feasible to recreate.
For example, when you choose a text range and enter the Edit menu, you may need help copying a text selection in Adobe Reader.
In this case, PDF properties should be checked first. Then, select the Security tab from the File menu to view the document properties dialogue in Adobe Reader.
Solution:
To use the text in such PDFs, you must receive a password from the PDF creator and remove the protection. If this is not feasible, you will have to print the PDF or convert it to an image. Then, you will have to use OCR software to determine the characters and convert them into text.
Other Reasons You Can’t Copy PDF Text
In truth, there are various reasons why PDF text cannot be selected and copied. Not all questions can be addressed. The PDF format itself is highly sophisticated and comprises numerous elements.
It is also possible to convert PDFs to text using OCR software. This is when scanning pictures of printed documents or characters in the PDF are not considered text.
Solution: Convert PDF to Word.
Convert PDF to Word is an online service tool on the AbcdPDF platform. It is straightforward to use, and the content after PDF conversion to Word is incredibly accurate. In terms of security, this organisation has provided a precise security strategy. Text data during user operations is only processed within their browsers, and the platform discards data submitted to the computing server shortly after that. Approximately half of its PDF products will be forever free, so there is no need to be cautious. According to the company’s website, this corporation is committed to supporting office standards in the modern age.
Closer to home, customers obtain Word files that can be freely altered and copied after using the PDF to Word tool. This addresses the dilemma that a PDF cannot be duplicated on a computer screen and does not need any paid software, scanners, printers, or plugins.
Summarise
Why can’t I copy the PDF text? This article explains why you can’t copy text from your computer screen. It also discusses tackling the issue using numerous approaches, like converting PDFs to Word. I hope you are pleased.