Unable to convert PDF to any format

Nestor · 02-15-2009, 11:16 PM

Hi,

I just got my Sony PRS505 and is trying to convert a technical PDF eBook into ePub (and other format as long as it works) with Calibre, but no matter what I do, the result appears as garbage. The resulting output is also 18 pages in ePub instead of the original 530 pages in PDF.

Is there something which I'm doing wrongly? It'll be great if someone can point me in the right direction or advise if there're other software which can convert this properly?

pepak · 02-16-2009, 01:50 AM

Welcome to the beautiful world of PDF ebooks: PDF can be next to impossible to convert to a different format. If you want good quality, your best bet is to OCR the PDF from screen, then save the result in some other format.

netseeker · 02-16-2009, 02:34 AM

I never try to convert technical pdfs - it just does not work well. Sometimes i use soPDF to crop the margins for better readability though...

HarryT · 02-16-2009, 03:23 AM

PDF is not an eBook format. A PDF file does not contain paragraphs, lines, or even words - it's just a collection of "drawing instructions" - "draw a letter A at coordinates x,y on the page". It's generally a waste of time trying to convert a complex PDF to another format.

I would suggest that you use PDF for what it was intended to be - a representation of a printed page of a specific size - and print it.

Nestor · 02-16-2009, 03:45 AM

Thanks for the response. After 2 hours of search and testing, I gave up trying to convert PDF and instead looked into cropping the document.

I managed to achieve marginal success through the use of PaperCrop and Rasterfabian. Rasterfabian came very close to what I wanted, with good formatting and such. PaperCrop's formatting is somewhat messier but that's acceptable to me.

Nonetheless, my eyes are starting to get used to reading the original PDF document on the PRS505 on landscape mode. I now have all 3 formats in my reader but I suspect that I'll use stick to the smaller font original document in landscape.

02-15-2009, 11:16 PM	#1
Nestor Junior Member Posts: 2 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2009 Device: Sony PRS 505	Unable to convert PDF to any format Hi, I just got my Sony PRS505 and is trying to convert a technical PDF eBook into ePub (and other format as long as it works) with Calibre, but no matter what I do, the result appears as garbage. The resulting output is also 18 pages in ePub instead of the original 530 pages in PDF. Is there something which I'm doing wrongly? It'll be great if someone can point me in the right direction or advise if there're other software which can convert this properly?

02-16-2009, 02:34 AM	#3
netseeker sleepless reader Posts: 4,763 Karma: 615547 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Germany, near Stuttgart Device: Sony PRS-505, PB 360° & 302, nook wi-fi, Kindle 3	I never try to convert technical pdfs - it just does not work well. Sometimes i use soPDF to crop the margins for better readability though... Last edited by netseeker; 02-16-2009 at 02:58 AM.

02-16-2009, 03:45 AM	#5
Nestor Junior Member Posts: 2 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2009 Device: Sony PRS 505	Thanks for the response. After 2 hours of search and testing, I gave up trying to convert PDF and instead looked into cropping the document. I managed to achieve marginal success through the use of PaperCrop and Rasterfabian. Rasterfabian came very close to what I wanted, with good formatting and such. PaperCrop's formatting is somewhat messier but that's acceptable to me. Nonetheless, my eyes are starting to get used to reading the original PDF document on the PRS505 on landscape mode. I now have all 3 formats in my reader but I suspect that I'll use stick to the smaller font original document in landscape. Last edited by Nestor; 02-16-2009 at 06:25 AM.

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02-16-2009, 01:50 AM	#2
pepak Guru Posts: 610 Karma: 4150 Join Date: Mar 2008 Device: Sony Reader PRS-T3, Kobo Libra H2O	Welcome to the beautiful world of PDF ebooks: PDF can be next to impossible to convert to a different format. If you want good quality, your best bet is to OCR the PDF from screen, then save the result in some other format.

02-16-2009, 03:23 AM	#4
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383043 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	PDF is not an eBook format. A PDF file does not contain paragraphs, lines, or even words - it's just a collection of "drawing instructions" - "draw a letter A at coordinates x,y on the page". It's generally a waste of time trying to convert a complex PDF to another format. I would suggest that you use PDF for what it was intended to be - a representation of a printed page of a specific size - and print it.

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