What Does It Mean To Flatten A PDF

What Does It Mean To Flatten A PDF: What You Should Know

Step 1: Get Adobe Reader or Acrobat to Flatten the PDF The easiest way to flatten a PDF is with Adobe Reader, which is available for free from Adobe.com, the Adobe Creative Cloud, and the Adobe Creative Cloud App Store. Step 2: Make a Copy of Your PDF In order to use this feature, you'll need a copy of your PDF file, which is saved on your computer's local hard drive. Step 3: Print from Your Flattened Version After making a copy of your file, you should print your printed document without a bleed-through problem using the following steps: First, locate the area where the text area is located. For example, my copy of the above sample document includes my text, which is under “Title.” Then, print the page from your “Flattened” PDF with the text box selected as shown in Figure 5 by going to Page > Page Layout > Page Setup. Figure 5: Clicking an area on the page will automatically convert the section into a flattened PDF Step 4: Make Your Markup Fit This step isn't necessary for all flatten PDFs, but if you need to make major alterations it's a good idea to make your markup fit on one side of the page, and this may include cutting off the border. Figure 6: Cutting the border when creating a flat PDF Step 5: Prepare Your Layout For Flatter Image While most PDF's create only a single layer of text, a lot of professional publishing requires the file to include multiple layers such as images, graphics, and charts. In a PDF, you have multiple option: you can use the print preview of the page to choose a layout, and you can use page layout and layout tools to set out the page in a flat, grid pattern. While I use the print preview feature for layout creation, it's a good idea to include your layouts with your Flattened PDF file so that users familiar with your layout can adjust the design easily. Figure 7: The pages in the example PDF file have the text area marked in green. Step 6: Create a Layout When creating a layout in Acrobat, first choose the text field that you want to use as the layout on the page that you want to flatten. As shown in Figure 8, I'm using the text box as a layout for the area I want to flatten.