Create PDF

The Create PDF Action task creates simple PDF files using the default quality. It is very similar to the Digital Action task (see Digital Action) but is more limited. It does not contain the advanced PDF options that are offered by the OL Connect Image solution (see About OL Connect Image).

In PlanetPress Suite, this task can be used to merge a data file with a specific Design document and output the result as PDF.
In Connect, merging a data file with a Connect template and outputting PDF is done using OL Connect Print tasks (see OL Connect tasks).

Alternatively this task may be part of a "PDF workflow": a workflow in which both input and output are PDF and in which Metadata tasks are used to group, sort and sequence (split) the PDF data. (See PDF and Metadata workflow for more information on this.) The Create PDF task will apply the active Metadata to the PDF data file.

PDFs created with the Create PDF action task will effectively replace the current data file in any given process using such a task.

Input

Any data file supported by OL Connect Workflow, or a PostScript file.

Processing

A PostScript file can be converted straight into PDF.
A regular data file needs to be merged with a PlanetPress Design document first, except for a PDF file, which may or may not be merged with a PlanetPress Design document.
When a PDF file is used as-is, the Create PDF task will apply the active Metadata to the PDF data file (for more information on this see PDF and Metadata workflow and Working with Metadata).

Output

The output of this task is always, exclusively, a PDF file, optionally optimized and optionally with fresh Metadata.

For the PDF values for files generated with this plugin, see PDF Values.

Task properties

General tab

  • Documents: Select None to use the job file as-is. Alternatively, select a specific PlanetPress Design document if you want all the jobs to be generated with that document.
  • Run mode group (only with a PlanetPress Design document):
    • Printer centric: Select to send the document along with the trigger and data to the PDF RIP.
    • Optimized PostScript Stream: Select to merge the selected document with the data received by this task before sending it to the PDF RIP. Note that some features, such as the Time and Date require that this option be selected.
  • Options group
    • Add job information to the document: Select to add the available Job Info variables in the “header” of the generated output file.
    • Optimize resulting PDF: Select to specify whether the resulting PDF should be optimized. Optimization can lead to a significant reduction in the size of the PDF, but it may also add a certain amount of time to the process. This option should only be unchecked if the timing of the process is critical and it needs to be done quickly, but keep in mind that the resulting PDF may be much larger than it should be and may even be too large for OL Connect Workflow to handle.
    • Reset Metadata according to new PDF: The Metadata is updated to include only the selected nodes from the current Metadata, and sequential indexes are re-created.
  • Security group
    • Set document permissions: Select to enter the Permissions password.
      • Permissions password: Enter a password in this box only if you want to prevent users who does not have this password from changing the security options of the generated PDF files.
    • Allow printing: Select to let users print the generated PDF files.
    • Allow changing the document: Select to let users edit the generated PDF files.
    • Allow content copying: Select to let users copy content from the generated PDF files.
    • Allow form filling: Select to let users enter information in the form fields included in the generated PDF files.
    • PDF open password: Enter a password in this box only if you want to prevent users who does not have this password from opening the generated PDF files.

    • Security Level: The password protection for PDF can be encrypted using one of the available encryption methods (RC4, AES-256 and AES-128). It gives the task the ability to take an existing PDF in input and apply the selected password to the PDF without any change to the quality level of the original PDF.

      Note that PDF output from OL Connect may still have PDF 1.5 in their headers, even when using AES 256 encryption.

  • Font group
    • Embed all: Select to embed the entire font of all fonts used in the variable content document within the generated PDFs. Using this option may result in large PDFs, especially if many fonts are used. Note that those fonts installed by default with the Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Reader are never embedded. If a font is not embedded in your PDF, opening it on another computer or printing it may cause it to be substituted by another default font.
    • Subset: Select to embed only a subset of the Type 1 and TrueType fonts used in the document. A font subset is in fact composed of only those characters that are actually used in the document. This option can only be used if the Embed all fonts option is selected. Note that if more than 35% of the characters included in a font are used in the document, the entire font is embedded. This option often produces smaller PDF files and ensures proper PDF display.
  • Initial view group
    • Zoom factor: Select the magnification at which you want Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader (or other PDF viewer) to open the generated PDF. Choose the Fit in window option to display the entire page using the available screen space, or choose a percentage of the actual document size.
    • Show: Select the information you want Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader (or other PDF viewer) to display with the generated PDF. Select Page only to leave the tabs area to the left of the PDF pages empty. Select Bookmarks and page to display the contents of the Bookmarks tab (you use data selection objects to create bookmarks) alongside the PDF pages. Select Page tab and Page to display the content of the Pages tab (thumbnails of each PDF pages) alongside the PDF pages. Select Full screen to hide all screen contents except the PDF page, and expand the PDF page to the maximum size it can occupy onscreen.

On Error Tab

For a description of the options on the On Error tab see Using the On Error tab.

Miscellaneous Tab

The Miscellaneous tab is common to all tasks.

It contains a text area (Task comments) that lets you write comments about the task. These comments are saved when the dialog is closed with the OK button and are displayed in The Task Comments Pane.

Check the option Use as step description to display the text next to the icon of the plugin in the Process area.

The tab also provides an option to highlight the task in The Process area with the default color, set in the Preferences (see Colors), or the color selected or defined under Highlight color on this tab.
To revert the selected highlight color to the default color, open this tab, turn the Highlight option off and close the dialog with the OK button; then turn highlighting back on.
Highlighting can also be turned on and off via the task's contextual menu and with the Highlight button on the View ribbon.

PDF Values

Here's a list of the hard-coded PDF values for files generated with this plugin. Basically, these settings correspond to Digital Action and OL Connect Image settings for Standard Quality (see About OL Connect Image).

  • PDF version: 1.4
  • Job option: Standard quality
  • General:
    • Compress text and line art
    • Auto-rotate pages
    • Optimize for fast web view
  • Author: PlanetPress (for OL Connect Professional), PReS (for OL Connect Enterprise)
  • Keywords: PlanetPress (for OL Connect Professional), PReS (for OL Connect Enterprise); Create PDF plugin
  • Monochrome images:
    • Compression: CCITT
    • Pixels per inch: 1200
  • Grayscale images:
    • Compression: Auto
    • down sampling: Bicubic
    • Pixels per inch: 300
  • Color images:
    • Compression: Auto
    • down sampling: Bicubic
    • Pixels per inch: 150
  • Security:
    • Allow printing
    • Allow changing the document
    • Allow content copying
    • Allow form filling
  • Font:
    • Embed all fonts
    • Subset embedded fonts
  • Open options:
    • Zoom factor: Fit in window
    • Default view: Page only