A Portable Document Format, otherwise known as a PDF, is a file type that converts a printed document’s components into an electronic image that may be seen, navigated, printed, or forwarded to another person. PDFs look like the original document, no matter what device or software application you’re using.
Now that we know what PDFs are and why they’re useful, it begs the question: how can you edit one, and what are the methods of editing with the popular pdf editor tools? Keep reading to find out the answer to that and more!
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PDF Editing Tools
There are many tools available for editing PDFs, both paid and free. But, it depends on your needs and personal preferences to decided which tool you should use.
Workflows Across Desktop, Mobile, and Web
The best thing about PDFs is that you can open and view them on any device. You can also edit them on any device as well—all you need is the right tool! Here are some instructions for how to edit a PDF on your desktop computer, mobile device, or browser.
How to Edit a PDF on Your Desktop
- Open the PDF in the pdf editor tool.
- Click “ Tools ” in the upper-right corner of the window.
- Select “ Annotate ” from the drop-down menu.
Choose the annotation tool you want to use from the toolbar that appears on the right side of the window.
Methods to use for editing
- Highlight Text Tool: Select this tool and then click and drag over the text you want to highlight. The highlighted text will appear in yellow by default, but you can change the color by clicking “ Highlight ” in the pop-up menu. You can also strike out text by selecting “ Strikeout .”
- Add Stamp Tool: This tool lets you add images (called ‘stamps’) to your PDF. To do so, select this tool, click “ Add Stamp,” select an image from your computer, and then click “ Open .” The stamp will appear where you click. You can move it around by clicking and dragging it. To rotate it, position your cursor just outside of one of its corners until it becomes a curved arrow, then click and drag to rotate.
To resize it, position your cursor over one of its edges until it becomes two arrows pointing away from each other ( like when you want to make something bigger or smaller ), then click and drag until it’s the size you want.
As you can see, the tools for working with PDFs on your desktop are quite robust! The key to perfect editing is to find the right tool for the job.
Endnote:
If needed, use these methods to move, rotate, or resize multiple stamps at once. To select multiple stamps at once: Press and hold down Ctrl ( Windows ) / Command ( Mac ) whilst clicking each stamp with your mouse/trackpad, OR draw a rectangle around all desired stamps using your mouse/trackpad ( if using touch-enabled devices like tablets or smartphones, press down with one finger whilst moving another finger in order to draw this rectangle).
