Text is correctly embedded as fonts/characters in PC 1, but exported as vectors/paths on PC 2

[Xendiadyon]

Dear community,

I am aware that possibly this might not be an issue with PDF-XChange Print Driver, rather with Windows Print Logic.
Still, I believe that some experts here might already have experienced this problem and can forward me to a solution.

I am using the music notation software "Capella 10".
Here, I have several possibilities to insert text: Lyrics, Chords, Simple Text, Text Field, SVGs (with using fonts).

When I insert text using a Text Field, I expect that this text can be selected and edited after I printed a PDF.
This means, that the text is printed as font characters with (complete or partially) embedded fonts:

grafik.png

So far, so good.

BUT: When I export the same file using another PC 2, this text field is not fonts anymore, but was converted into paths:
(Other text elements such as lyrics or chords are still editable, only text in text fields cannot be edited).

grafik(1).png

What I tried so far to troubleshoot:

• The Capella software is freshly installed and at the same version => My gut feeling tells me that this is no capella issue.
  The PDF-XChange is freshly re-installed and at the same version, using the exactly same PDF-XChange profile => probably no PDF-XChange issue as well
  Both systems are Windows 11, latest updates
  PC 1: Exporting via Microsoft PDF Printer, Microsoft XPS Writer, Adobe PDF, PDF-XChange leads all to selectable/editable text.
  PC 2: Exporting via Microsoft PDF Printer, Microsoft XPS Writer, PDF-XChange does NOT lead to selectable text => The problem might be some difference on how Microsoft deals with the Print Jobs. But what could it be?
  PC 2: I tried to fine-tune the PDF-XChange settings to enforce XPS or GDI, forcefully embed the fonts, turn off compression, etc. To no avail so far.
  When printing Word documents, I could (so far) select & edit each text after printing to PDF (independent on PC or PDF Printer). Still I do not think that this is a capella problem, as the version, installation & file is exactly the same on both PCs.

What else could it be?

• The systems of course are different. The PC 1 is older, has a dedicated graphics card, has only one monitor attached.
  The PC 1 has the Adobe PDF suite (old version) installed, exports PDFs via the old Adobe PDF like a charm since >10 years.
  Could the Adobe PDF Printer Driver somehow influence how other PDF printers (and also the Microsoft PDF Printer) print their things?

Do you have any idea what I could try so that I get selectable & editable text with embedded fonts also running on PC2?

[Daniel - PDF-XChange]

Hello, Xendiadyon

The first possibility I can think of, is that perhaps the font in question simply is not installed on PC2? If the font is unavailable, some applications will intentionally omit sending any font data and instead send the text "as curves", so that the appearance of the content can be retained.
My first check would be to ensure that the same font pack is installed on both devices, before printing.

If the same font is in place on both, than I would look back to your original notes. These aspects of your report specifically:

Both systems are Windows 11, latest updates
PC 1: Exporting via Microsoft PDF Printer, Microsoft XPS Writer, Adobe PDF, PDF-XChange leads all to selectable/editable text.
PC 2: Exporting via Microsoft PDF Printer, Microsoft XPS Writer, PDF-XChange does NOT lead to selectable text

This really does read like the issue originates from the Capella software itself. All three of these printers, ours included, will generate the resultant PDF based on the format of the data that is sent to us. If all three of these (Us, Adobe and Microsoft) All see the same result, with the same windows updates installed, there may be a setting in the Capella software which is having an impact here. If you cannot locate it, you may want to reach out to the developers of that app to ask for their assistance in locating it.

Most virtual printers (Including ours) are incapable of converting normal font-based text into curves (or vice-versa), during the printing process, so the only time curves (aka, non-selectable text) will be present is when the printing application is specifically sending us this data. The same should be true for Adobe and Microsoft's printers as well.
I should note that Adobe does have a special advantage in this area. While their printer does not do so to my knowledge, if you open a non-text editable document in their software, including the one generated by their printer, Acrobat can automatically perform OCR on the file. This results in them generating/emulating editable text in the file where there is none. This might have lead to a misunderstanding of their printers capabilities.
A similar function is available in our software, so long as you have an Editor Plus or PDF-XChange PRO license, however, it is not automatic. You can find the "OCR pages" tool on the Convert tab if you ever wish to do this. Do note that our OCR will replace the font in use in most situations, with a system standard font.

Kind regards,