Doug Halliday at Adobe PLM

Do you have dozens of files to convert to PDF?   Maybe hundreds?  I recently spoke to a customer who had thousands of existing TIFF files that needed to be converted to PDF, before his company moved to 100% 3D PDFs for use by their sales force to show parts and assemblies to their customers.  Did you know you can do that with Acrobat 3D? 

 

Let me show you how to convert multiple files using the tools built into Acrobat.  To learn how, click the link below to read on.

Batch Conversion:

I am going to concentrate this coaching session on converting numerous 3D CAD files to PDF, but virtually everything is the same for 2D assets such as the TIFF files I mentioned in the introduction.  Before you begin, you will need to get familiar with the settings and allocate some time to do the work. Of course, this will tie up your workstation a bit, so find a time that you can let it crank away.  The time you will need obviously depends upon the number and size of the files you have been converting.  Start with just a few to get a feel for how much time you’ll need to set aside. That will give you some direction for the strategy you decide to employ.  Most customers set up batch conversions before they leave for the day and just let their computer crunch away at night, but lunch hours and the boss’s staff meeting might be other options. 

 

Here is how it is done:

In Acrobat, you want to go to Advanced -> Document Processing -> Batch Processing. 

Once you have selected “Batch Processing”, you will be presented with some options to create a sequence.  If you name the sequence, you will be presented with a number of commands you can run, depending upon the desired results.

You can edit the sequence or create others, so it will be easy to find one that works.  I called this one “Doug Test”.

 

Next, you will be prompted to select a sequence of commands. In many cases, you may not need to select any commands, but it is possible you will need to experiment a bit.  The commands are very self-explanatory. 

You will also need a strategy for telling the program what file to process and where to save the output.  When you select “run sequence” you will be prompted to search for an input folder.  AS I said, I converted some CAD files, so there was one other thing I had to do. You don’t want to launch a job, only to return later and find out the application was waiting for a response. I had to turn off the prompting that is normally associated with CAD conversions.  Because Acrobat 3D remembers settings for file types, just make sure you have set the input parameters the way you want them before turning prompting off.  You can turn off prompting in “preferences”.  Go to Edit -> Preferences.  Choose “Convert to PDF” and select “Edit Settings”.  Just toggle prompting off – there is a check box to do that.  Oh yea, and don’t forget to turn prompting back on after you are done.

So that is it. That is really all you will need to know to get underway.  Good luck with your batch conversions.  It is really pretty easy. 

See you next time.

Posted by Doug Halliday at 02:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

One thing about doing business development for Adobe in Manufacturing is that I get to a lot of events and speak to tons of people.  It’s always interesting to speak to people.  We see more and more people who have tried our Acrobat 3D product and are really excited to talk about their experiences. Those are fun conversations, but they aren’t the only ones, for sure. Questions come from all sorts of places… like “what’s Adobe doing at a manufacturing show like this”.  Recently I was approached by Ken Rayment at a manufacturing show.  I think it was at National Manufacturing Week, in Chicago, but honestly, I’ve forgotten.  Anyway, Ken asked if I would be up to doing a podcast to explain what we were doing there.  I talked about global reach in the manufacturing space, and how we are helping customers to globalize.  Read on to see Ken’s summary and hear my thoughts.

So, can you imagine standing by a booth at a show and have someone walk up to you and ask for an interview.  If you have ever been interviewed, you know that the quality of the result depends heavily on the interviewer to ask good questions and really listen to what you have to say.  Ken said he would not edit the interview, so I thought “sure, let’s do it”.  I just listened to the result for the first time.  Someone at Adobe just sent me a link to say the interview was live. 

 

It’s always a challenge for me to listen to my recorded voice.  No career in radio for me for sure.  I did get into globalization, and with the exception of explaining the Acrobat 3D can import virtually any CAD format, and maybe not discussing security, I think I hit most of the key points.  Of course, this was completely spontaneous and rather short, so I’ve got an excuse for leaving a couple of things out.  Ken did a great job of summarizing on his site, so rather than duplicate what he has written, why not go to Podcast News to see (and hear) for yourself.

 

To see a summary of the discussion and listen to the interview, go to Podcaster News

Leave me a comment and let me know what you think.  How did I do? 

 

Doug

Posted by Doug Halliday at 12:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)