Hi Flor, Thanks for the suggestion. I knew I could use OpenBook to convert image PDFs to something readable. Most of the PDFs I purchase actually have textual content, though, it just comes out wrong. A M I able to use OpenBook to convert regular PDF documents?
I'm curious enough I guess I'll go find out right now. Again, thanks for the idea. -----Original Message----- From: jaws-users-list-boun...@jaws-users.com [mailto:jaws-users-list-boun...@jaws-users.com] On Behalf Of Flor Lynch Sent: Saturday, September 17, 2011 7:46 AM To: jaws-users-list@jaws-users.com Subject: Re: [JAWS-Users] PDF Files nancy, it seems to me that the limitations you mention are due in large part to the free Adobe Reader's limitations. there is an Adobe Professional Edition, which (I believe) costs about $300, that would apparently convert those pdf's properly. Another option, if you have it, is to use OCR software to convert the pdf's and image pdf's into documents that will read more coherently. the other day, I came across a heavily tabled pdf, which read fine on the internet but which - when downloaded, JAWS12 and the free Adobe Reader had difficulty with. it reads properly when converted by Kurzweil 1000, OCR,and would read well thus if converted by Open Book, etc. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Nancy Feldman" <nancy_feld...@comcast.net> To: <jaws-users-list@jaws-users.com> Sent: Saturday, September 17, 2011 12:46 PM Subject: [JAWS-Users] PDF Files > Good Morning, > > I am at my wit's end with PDF files, so I thought I'd inquire for help > here. > If there's a better forum for this, or we should be discussing it off > list, > I'd be happy to do that. > > I've used JAWS to read basic PDF files, ones with practically no > formatting. > For instance, a novel in PDF format tends to read pretty well. > > But I purchase a lot of PDF documents from www.drivethrurpg.com, and > most of > them aren't read very well by JAWS. I've seen many of the following > errors. > > No spaces between words > > On two-column pages, the columns being smashed together and read as > one > nonsensical block of text > > With tables, the left hand column being presented first, and then the > right > hand column, not side by side, but all the left hand column entries > first, > and then the right. > Whole sections of books that JAWS cannot see at all, even though I am > assured there is text there > > One pair of files where the author used lots of notes in the text and > JAWS > had no idea where to put them, so it just reads them mixed up with the > rest > of the text. > > Because of all of these difficulties, I've concluded that I may need > new > strategies for dealing with PDF files. Perhaps I'm doing something > wrong? > > What are the optimal settings to use when opening a PDF file? Is > there > anything I can do to improve the conversion of PDF documents to text? > I > seem to recall that there's a place that we can Email PDF documents > to, and > it'll convert them. Is it any good? The problem with that approach is > most > of these documents are larger than 10 MB, which I believe exceeds the > largest Email attachment I can send. > > I welcome all suggestions and insights. Failing that, I will contact > the > publishers and ask if I can get copies of the documents I've purchased > in an > alternate electronic format. It's just very frustrating to know that > the > information is there and available, but still inaccessible to me. > Before I > contact the publishers, though, I want to make certain that I'm not > doing > anything wrong. > > Many thanks. > > Nancy > > I've tried saving files to text, and the > > > For answers to frequently asked questions about this list visit: > http://www.jaws-users.com/help/ > For answers to frequently asked questions about this list visit: http://www.jaws-users.com/help/ For answers to frequently asked questions about this list visit: http://www.jaws-users.com/help/
