PDFs exported in image format

[janndk 221]

Seems that Evernote (10.56.8. windows) now exports all pdfs as "image"? Also all text is converted to an image - meaning you are not able afterwards to copy/edit text or graphics in pdf files from Evernote.

I'm totally in shock. Can anyone else confirm this, or is it just a bad dream?

[PinkElephant 6,207]

Good find - it really is a pdf with only picture layer. This means, it is not exported as a picture file (like PNG or JPG), but the file formatted as pdf holds no text layer, that could be selected. This for the "Export as pdf" from the File menu

When I use the "Print note" from the note menu, I can save it as a pdf as well. In this case, a regular pdf is created, holding text in a text layer, and pictures in a picture layer.

This means from my view that the "Print to" process was not touched, whereas the "Export to pdf" was somehow damaged with 10.56.

Edit: Tested  on Mac, Ventura, EN 10.56 direct

[janndk 221]

8 minutes ago, PinkElephant said:

Good find - it really is a pdf with only picture layer. This means, it is not exported as a picture file (like PNG or JPG), but the file formatted as pdf holds no text layer, that could be selected. This for the "Export as pdf" from the File menu

When I use the "Print note" from the note menu, I can save it as a pdf as well. In this case, a regular pdf is created, holding text in a text layer, and pictures in a picture layer.

This means from my view that the "Print to" process was not touched, whereas the "Export to pdf" was somehow damaged with 10.56.

In my case (windows) "print as pdf" has always given these image-pdfs. But "export pdf" has given 'real' pdfs - but not anymore 😕

Evernotes so called advanced pdf functions are the reason I paid professional subscription.

[Boot17 865]

17 minutes ago, janndk said:

Seems that Evernote (10.56.8. windows) now exports all pdfs as "image"? Also all text is converted to an image - meaning you are not able afterwards to copy/edit text or graphics in pdf files from Evernote.

I'm totally in shock. Can anyone else confirm this, or is it just a bad dream?

Yeah - confirm #2. This is for sure way less serviceable. Hopefully it was some kind of oversight and not the way things are going to be now. But hard to imagine how a change like that could have or even would have slipped in.

2 minutes ago, PinkElephant said:

When I use the "Print note" from the note menu, I can save it as a pdf as well. In this case, a regular pdf is created, holding text in a text layer, and pictures in a picture layer.

Printing to a note and then saving as a PDF now puts a big ugly thick box around everything. Did it always used to do that? I don't print and save as PDF much.

[PinkElephant 6,207]

How such things happen ?

Well, it probably is some sort of dependency. You get a pdf converter from a source, probably open source. You integrate it, and it works.

You don’t care about it …

At the source is some improvement, say a new toggle between picture-only and rich-pdf. They release it, and it moves into your code via the dependency. But it needs a parameter, and if it’s not there, it defaults to basic, which is picture.

Pity is, some weeks earlier you have reduced your staff by 50%. Maybe the person who created the export routine and knew it all is among them. Maybe even his mail address clever.guy@mycompany.com is inactive now and not supervised any longer.

And bingo - picture only !

Maybe just a fairytale - but sometimes they become true, don’t they ?

[janndk 221]

1 hour ago, Boot17 said:

Printing to a note and then saving as a PDF now puts a big ugly thick box around everything. Did it always used to do that? I don't print and save as PDF much.

In my case Evernotes prints one ugly line on the top.

No line when using pdf export, but the whole content is shifted to the left, partly outside the page.

[bmcl26 263]

Fortunately, I have Adobe Acrobat, so I can edit them if I need to.

[Dave-in-Decatur 2,632]

I just tested, and I also find that all text is exported as an image, yielding a pretty but non-searchable PDF. This happens using either Export to PDF or Print (using Microsoft print to PDF). I did this with two notes, a pure-text note that I created in Evernote and a text-heavy note clipped from the Web. The only difference between exporting and printing is that the MS print to PDF version has graphics in color not black and white (!), but does not allow selection of areas of the image or highlighting.

This is ridiculous. If I create text in EN and want to share it with others as a PDF, it definitely should appear just as I typed it and be searchable. And color images should be in color! I don't think that's unreasonable at all. @Federico Simionato, what happened!?

[PinkElephant 6,207]

By using the "Print to pdf" process on my Mac, I don't get any boxes or other additional elements. This may be a function of the printer driver - I remember some printers could be set to make an image smaller, and draw a frame around it.

With a picture file pdf, I have no problem. I have a free app installed called OwlOCR. It installs itself into the right click menu on the Mac (if I allow it). It is able to OCR any picture, be it in a pdf or a regular picture. In case of a pdf it creates the text layer, and saves it back into the original file. Works great !

But anyhow, that the export only delivers pixel mash is not great, and should be dropped on a support desk asap. So I raised yet another ticket ...

[janndk 221]

EN 10.57.5. Windows

Seems that Evernote can again export "text" pdf (not converting text to image anymore). So, maybe there is still hope for Evernote 😀

However, page content is still shifted to the right, outside the page 👎🤥

[agsteele 2,336]

It seems to be an issue with setting the page margins.  If I choose CUSTOM and set the right margin to 15mm everything just fits.  Anything more than 15mm and content is forced off the bottom of the page so defeating the object.

So definitely not right but, perhaps, better than nothing in an urgent requirement...

[Dave-in-Decatur 2,632]

34 minutes ago, janndk said:

EN 10.57.5. Windows

Seems that Evernote can again export "text" pdf (not converting text to image anymore). So, maybe there is still hope for Evernote 😀

However, page content is still shifted to the right, outside the page 👎🤥

This is good to hear. I haven't got the update yet (nor the time to go to evernote.com and download it), but I look forward to trying it out.

[Dave Green 94]

On the Mac at Evernote 10.57.5, I see Image PDF for Export and text PDF for Print.

Interestingly, the Image PDF with links works while the text PDF links are stripped.

Hopefully, this will be fixed to at least support links in the text PDF as well as with images.