overlaying graphics on typeset text

[tremendous]

i've been offered a job overlaying proofreading corrections on typeset text for a proofreading guide book. i'll essentially be taking scans of corrected prints and making a tidy vector version. i'll have the text provided as a PDF (and could probably get the source document, which in most likely word in this case). i'll be using xara x1 (yet to uprgrade to xtreme) to make and edit all the proofreading symbols and would like to use it to arrange things since i find it so comfortable to use.

the thing is, i'm worried about how i'll get the text into xara to begin with (it obviously has to be laid out exactly as it's printed so that the corrections are in the right places) and then how i'll get everything back out. i was thinking that if i can get the text into xara somehow i could overlay the corrections, then delete the text again and export that page's corrections to be added to the existing PDF. i'm not sure if this is the best way to go about it but seems the most intuitive to me.

so how can i get a PDF into xara and what would be the best format to export to so that i could add it to a PDF? and what program would i use to do that?

thanks very much

[tonylondon]

the thing is, i'm worried about how i'll get the text into xara to begin with (it obviously has to be laid out exactly as it's printed so that the corrections are in the right places) and then how i'll get everything back out. i was thinking that if i can get the text into xara somehow i could overlay the corrections, then delete the text again and export that page's corrections to be added to the existing PDF. i'm not sure if this is the best way to go about it but seems the most intuitive to me.

so how can i get a PDF into xara and what would be the best format to export to so that i could add it to a PDF? and what program would i use to do that?

thanks very much

If you want to import formatted text into Xara Xtreme, my belief is you'll somehow have to convert it first to a file format such as Illustrator. This assumes that the text in the PDF really is text and not an image of text
Tony

[gwpriester]

It would make your life a lot easier if you could work with bitmap images instead of vector. Working with vector images is fraught with peril in my estimation.

You have problems with fonts, formatting, etc.

If you are working from PDF files, depending upon the resolution of the pages you might be able to do a screen capture and then reduce the size of the screen capture to around 30%, this would downsize the image to print resulution.

Gary

[tremendous]

the pdfs contain actual text, not images. i really want to stick to vectors. i'll see if i can save to illustrator, but i wish there was a more straightforward way of doing this.

an alternative would be to work with an image of the page in xara for arranging the corrections but still ending up with everything as vectors. i think this is what you were suggesting, gary? still not clear on how i'd overlay xara's output on the final text, though. if this is what acrobat can do, maybe it's time i bought that...

[gwpriester]

I'm not quite sure what you mean by "how i'd overlay xara's output on the final text".

Can you post an example or give us a more detiled instruction. I cannot think it would be that hard to do. But I am having a problem visualizing what you want to do. (Call me dense--it's only 6:30 AM here).

Gary

[tremendous]

once i've arranged the corrections i'll need to get them into the pdf.

[gwpriester]

So we are just talking about text, correct?

If so, I would copy the text from the PDF file and paste the text into Xara. Increase the line spacing as you would with typescipt for editing so you can place your symbols between the lines.

You could hightlight the text using the text tool and change the color of the text being edited. (See attached).

If this is what you are trying to achieve then you would need to create a library of proofreading symbols and then just insert them as they would be inserted in edited text.

Is this what you are trying to achieve? (Sorry for using your words as an editing example but it provided a good example for proofreading edits).

Gary

[tonylondon]

So we are just talking about text, correct?

If so, I would copy the text from the PDF file and paste the text into Xara. Increase the line spacing as you would with typescipt for editing so you can place your symbols between the lines.

The problem with this is that the formatting is lost. Tremendous has made the requirement that "it has to be laid out exactly as it's printed so that the corrections are in the right places".

Tony

[tonylondon]

the pdfs contain actual text, not images. i really want to stick to vectors. i'll see if i can save to illustrator, but i wish there was a more straightforward way of doing this.

if this is what acrobat can do, maybe it's time i bought that...

If you have illustrator then you can read the PDF directly into it. ...
If you don't then I believe Acrobat has some excellent annotating tools
Tony

[gwpriester]

Tony

I agree with what you are saying. But Acrobat's annotation tools are useless if you cannot get the text with the annotations out of Acrobat and into Xara. And if you are going to use Illustrator to open the PDF file, then why not just continue with the job in Illustrator? Bringing the text into Xara from Illustrator is going to remove the formatting anyway and it is not a pretty picture. Illustrator treats text differently than the rest of the world and so this is always a major problem. And even if you are able to get the text from Illustrator into Xara, Illustrator breaks a paragraph into individual lines. It's UGLY.

What I am suggesting is recreating the text in Xara and recreating as best as possible, the formatting. Then inserting the appropriate proofreading marks. It's a bit of work, but once you get everything in place you just soldier on.

Gary