Anyone know of a free PDF to WORD converter?

Thanks to some great suggestions in this forum I found a free, lightweight PDF writer (it basically takes any file and converts it to PDF).

Now, I want to know if there are any opensource or freeware PDF to Word converters? Alternatively, if there is no freeware, how about an easy to use, lightweight, inexpensive option?

 

Type "pdf2word" in Google and you'll find some free converters.
I havn't used anyone much. My experience are that if it just plain text they works ok, but most of them seems to have problems with pictures and other grafics.

Regards /Don

 

I couldn't find any freebies. Lot's of free downloads to try but no freeware.

So in light of that, I would be willing to buy one. Can anyone suggest a good PDF to Word converter that:

1. Is easy to use and
2. Is light on system resources

 

Hello
I could never find a freebie either bit strange really
I have been using Able2Doc
http://www.investintech.com/pdftoword.html
I tested a few and found this to be the most accurate and easiest to use.

They've also got "Able2Extract for scanned docs and conversions of may types
Exxy ++, but seems to work well.
http://www.investintech.com/prod_a2e_pro.htm

 

Try this:
http://www.omniformat.com/

(Haven't tried myself)

/Don

 

Am I missing the point of the question? I was asked the same thing once by a friend and I told him the following, which seemed to make him happy.

I simply copy from the PDF program and paste to whatever program I want to convert to, MsWord, openoffice abiword and save. I can even change the text.
If I want to, after changing the text, I can convert it back to PDF.
Maybe I am way off base here, If missed the point of your question I do apoligize.
Or maybe this helps.

 

DAMN: that seems to work.

I think I tried that once before and it didn't go.
Which is why I got the able2doc app.
I think you need the full Acrobat installation to 'edit' the .pdf to be able to do that.
There are some formatting changes.

Not sure if there are other free pdf utilities that allow editing in .pdf; there prolly are, I just never looked before ( got Acrobat as a gift after installing the able2doc)

Acrobat very expensive now.

idiot me

 

you are right Longboard

It never use to work and I don't know when it started. I was able to copy and paste and then change the text in the program I had pasted it to,(ie: word, openoffice or abiword) in one of the versions 6 of PDF not sure which one it was, but I was still using Win98se and if memory serves me right, I don't think the versions above 6 were win98se compatible.

 

I'll just tried.
Well I could get a copy, but only as an image.
Nothing that I can edit.
Do you have more info of "How to"

Rgds/Don

 

IWith version 6 I would click on the "text" tool at the top and copy to clipboard.
With version 8.0.0 I right click on the page and pick "select" then hold down the left mouse to highlight what to copy and paste this in the word processor of my choice.
Let me know how you make out. If you have a newer version and you can't get it to work, I will stay with this version.

 

@dbknox
Yeah I have V6.0 of Acrobat.
( cant see any real reason to update: expensive whoo. )

I suspect it has to have the actual "Acrobat" app installed to be able to edit, just using A reader will not allow edit ??

While there are lots of good free pdf readers and creators, I think anything that has "edit" functions is payware: I'd be happy to be corrected.

 

Add: there is lots of PDF utilities FoxIt, cutepdf, PdfFactory etc etc etc
They all offer basically the same functions

There are the "paper port" type software tools for handling various doc formats, scanners, printers layouts, merging etc.

Here is a link with some basic background re Adode and 'pdf licensing' and a few more variants of various tools:

http://angusj.com/pdftkb/

Realistically all "edit" type functions are payware. AFAICS.

 

I am also using Acrobat reader. I just mounted an old image from WIN98se and I see I was using version 6.0.4

Acrobat reader updates are free.

This is correct that is why I copy and paste.

I would recommend updating to at least version 6.0.4
Or 8 if using XP
Am I the only one that is successful doing this?

 

I have found that sometimes they are images and cannot be copied. Others that have copy protection on them. Just recently I have found that using FoxIt that the characters are different when you past them into another app

 

For Don or anyone else having trouble getting to the "manipulate pdf output" stage.

Steve

 

@GlobalForce
Thanks for the info: I knew there must have been something out there

This is a nice read: re any problems and attitudes: http://www.foolabs.com/xpdf/cracking.html

I'm fine with what I've got but Ill give it a run ( and refer others)

 

I can't say I've read that before Longboard but did find those few tidbit's interesting.
Thank's for the reload, it's been some time since my last visit. Great site that jsware.

Try this script. It should handle text to word (thus completing the conversion).

• http://cwashington.netreach.net/depo/view.asp?Index=759&ScriptType=vbscript

Here's a wrapper you could try if Ghostscript happen's to be installed.

• http://cwashington.netreach.net/depo/view.asp?Index=605&ScriptType=vbscript

You'll find lot's of other useful stuff there too. Excellent site.


Steve

 

I seem to have bit of "egg on my face"
I couldn't figure out why I seemed to be the only one on this forum that was able to "copy and paste" from a PDF file to a text program. After all; there are a lot of smarter people on this forum then I. I started trying different PDF files and was Continually Successful until I tried to copy and paste from a PDF guide for Nero burning rom. There was no way to copy text after selecting text the "copy" was greyed out. Then I realized that almost every PDF file I had, was created by using "print to PDF" using "cutepdf writer or pdf redirect" I did try saving a few PDF files online and they also worked for me, but it would seem that a true "bonafied" PDF file is not so manipulative.
My apologies to all, I hope I haven't put too many of you through a lot of "hoops" trying to copy and paste from a PDF to a text file.

 

Don't worry about it db, I don't think anybody else involved in this thread knew either. Maybe we take program's like Adobe for granted without fully understanding the intricacies? There's also a good possibility none of us have ever taken the full package for a test spin to have known any better.

Steve

 

Thanks for that GlobalForce it is appreciated.

 

Hey no probs
Reminded me to get a better feel for what I want to do with various forms of pdf creation.

The copy paste stuff obviously has a lot to do also with security settings when creating pdf files.

AFAIR the pdf format originally was deemed "uneditable" if set up correctly: heh goes to veracity of electronic docs in court cases.

Any form of electronic/digital media is subject to cracking.

One of the reasons I have to, and many others, keep hardcopy of relevant docs for 20 years.

I think some records: property and such have to be kept for 200 years.
There are some property leases of "100 years with option" types.

 

Presumably if you have a copy protected PDF then you could take a screen dump and then put it through an OCR. Bit of a process and probably not in the spirit that the document was published.