Filed under: TUAW Tips
TUAW Tip: Create smaller PDF files
PDFs created by OS X's built-in "Save as PDF..." option on the print menu have a tendency to bloat. OS X's PDFs are often a lot bigger than the ones you get from, say, Adobe Acrobat. (Not the "reader", the actual creation program.) Fortunately, the same PDF menu that allows you to print to PDF also allows you to create a smaller, compressed version of your material. Instead of selecting "Save as PDF...", try selecting "Compress PDF" instead. You'll produce a compact version of your PDF file.
To test, I printed TUAW's home page in both normal and compressed versions. The savings? Almost 10% smaller file size.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
deevee said 1:53PM on 6-01-2007
the way I do it...
file>print>color sync
quartz filer:reduce file
pdf>save as pdf...done result:size almost ten times smaller!!
results may vary with pics but text are just as good.
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Pepe said 1:59PM on 6-01-2007
Wow, who would'o thought. I always figured it ment something more like "this will create a .zip file" kind of deal and thus never tried it out ;-b
I use the (extremly expensive) but handy program "PDF Shrink." See:
http://www.apagoinc.com/prod_home.php?prod_id=30
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Benjamin said 2:25PM on 6-01-2007
I use the very brilliant donationware PDFLab (http://www.iconus.ch/fabien/pdflab/) to import pictures and text files into a PDF. The file size is always VERY significantly smaller than with the Save to PDF action.
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Stephen Lang said 2:28PM on 6-01-2007
So it creates an near-identical PDF file, but is smaller? Why not make THAT the regular PDF file instead?
This is like Spinal Tap. After I ask Steve Jobs this, his reply will be, "But this makes smaller PDF files."
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Karl Childers said 2:44PM on 6-01-2007
@4:
Stop making sense. You'll blow the curve for the rest of us.
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Murray Stevens said 2:52PM on 6-01-2007
I tried the above tips to print this webpage and here are my results:
Uncompressed - Just Print-Pdf-Save As pdf - 432 kb
Compressed - Print-PDF-Compress PDF - 512kb !!
Colorsync - 360 kb
Odd to get a larger file using compress pdf but that's the way it worked.
Thanks for the Colorsync tip!
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Rafe H. said 3:06PM on 6-01-2007
PDF is a container format for vector objects (fonts, lines, shapes, etc.) that have no resolution and are not described using pixels, and for bitmapped objects like digital pictures that have resolution and generally are described using pixels.
Try zooming way in on that PDF you created from this webpage. See which elements have resolution and which do not? The letters are always clean at any zoom level, while the pictures get fuzzy when zoomed in too much.
Compress PDF just down-samples the non-vector objects (pictures), that's all it does. Don't have any pictures in your PDF file? Then don't expect Compress PDF to do anything.
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jason mark said 3:17PM on 6-01-2007
Compression is a complex thing. That's why the compressed option isn't the default (as #6 pointed out). By it's nature it also means throwing out data, which 99% of the time means a lower resolution end result. Here's a good rule of thumb:
1) Use print to PDF 95% of the time.
2) If that file is to big, think about the content, and how the content can be smaller. For example, do you have a big TIFF that could be replaced with a vector shape? Compress images before importing to be a good balance of filesize and quality.
3) If you REALLY have to shrink it, you can try "compress PDF", but most of the time you're best bet is to go with a 3rd party app that gives you control of *how* it will be compressing things. Be sure to carve out some QA time to test your results.
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umijin said 11:05PM on 6-01-2007
Unfortunately, it doesn't always result in savings. Sometimes, the compressed file is larger, in my experience. This has often happened when saving to PDF within MSWord.
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yakov chodosh said 7:16AM on 6-02-2007
when you click "compress pdf," where does the file go?
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Janis said 12:18PM on 7-16-2007
Hello Does this machine come with an automatic filing system to save word documents as PDF files? Thanks for the help.
Machine model: iMAC
Machine Model: PowerMac6,1
CPU Type: PowerPC G4 (3.3)
Mac OS X 10.4.10
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trez said 12:50PM on 7-18-2007
Tested here:
AI > Distiller -> 2 mb
AI > CUPS PDF -> 139 mb
CUPS > OSX Compress -> 9 mb
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