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Reveal hidden text in a PDF

Forum Index > General Acrobat Topics > Reveal hidden text in a PDF
2009-09-02 08:32:50
tthomasian
Registered: Aug 2 2007
Posts: 12
Answered

I have a PDF that someone else created. It contains some mathematical equations that are visible---as far as I can tell---only through the Examine Document--->Show Hidden Text option.

Is there a way to make this hidden text visible in the main document?

My Product Information:
Acrobat Pro 8.0, Windows
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2009-09-02 13:57:19
#1
smitchell15 (not verified)
First option I would try is use the select object tool to see if it picks up any fields. If it does, then double click the fields and in the appearance tab, change it from hidden to visible. I would first try this as i create lots of forms with hidden data all over the PDF!

If that doesn't work, what clues does it give you, color, position on top of another color etc. I quite often get white text dissapear when clients are supplying PDFX/1a compliant files as often they set white to overprint for some reason resulting in it dissappearing! :-( This can be fixed up in the fix up panel in the preflight panel.

Hope some of it helps.
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2009-09-03 13:27:01
#2
tthomasian
Registered: Aug 2 2007
Posts: 12
Thanks for your hints.

The first hint, regarding resetting the field appearance, did not seem to apply. The document is not a form, so I don't think it was a situation of a hidden field.

The second tip, regarding using the Preflight options, led me in the right direction, though I couldn't immediately see how anything in the PDF Fixups panel applied. What actually worked was this:

1. Open document and go to *Advanced* menu.
2. Select *Preflight* option.
3. Select *Create PDF layers* option.
4. Select *Put all text objects on a layer* option.
5. Click on *Analyze and fix* and save file when given the option. (Saved file with a different name.)

Thank you very much!
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