[nrapallo]

Originally Posted by maurices5000

I'm very frustrated here. I don't know what the file formats are or what they are for. I've read all the documentation that came with the software. I've also read the first page or so of this thread.

The output file formats (.imp, .prc, .lrf) are older proprietary ebook formats that can be read on certain dedicted ebook readers. If you had an ebook reader that supported one of those formats, that's the 'Out Format' you would select for your ebook conversion.

Here is the problem, I have a fully searchable PDF. Everything time i convert my PDF to mobi, i get static text which I cannot select or search. This is not what i expected. Is this the only way that this software converts?

At the top of the first post in this thread, I describe long-windedly that:

PDFRead is a tool for converting non-DRMed PDF and DJVU documents for reading on eBook devices. It does this by creating an image out of each page, enhancing the image and then collating the images in a device-specific format.

So, in essence, PDFRead creates an image of the .pdf page, not searchable/OCR'ed text and assembles those images/pictures into an ebook format of your choosing. That's what it does and solely what it's for.

Is there other software that will allow me to maintain a fully searchable file? I want to be able to highlight text and add notes just as i would a regular Kindle or Sony file.

Yes, you have several options to do this; the most popular being conversion using (1) calibre or (2) Mobipocket Creator. I prefer to convert "text-based" .pdf's using the freely available Mobipocket Creator, especially if the intended ebook target format is .prc (aka .mobi)! In the end, though, the ebook device that you have, it's supported ebook formats and it's ability to add notes will ultimately determine the success/use of ANY conversion.

However, when you need to convert "image" based .pdf's (like Google Books scans) then your only hope is an OCR program or PDFRead. (I'm biased)

Many of my PDFs do contain Greek and Hebrew characters. This one only contains a few Greek words.

Thanks!

I hope this helps explain when (and when not) to use PDFRead.