After being optimized, an old PDF's PostScript font changed-but only in other PDF viewers

[MarylandUSA]

A relative gave me a PDF 1.3 (1.5?) file to make better (by adding bookmarks and so on). The file had been created from PageMaker 6.5, using Ghostwriter. I opened it in PDF-XChange 10.6+ (on Windows 11) and optimized it, saving the optimized file to PDF 1.7. Everything looked fine in PDF-XChange:

optimized_PDF1.7_file_in_PDF_XChagne_Editor_10.6+.png

.

And that's also how it looked in my Foxit PDF Editor 11.2:

original_PDF1.3_or_1.5_file_in_Foxit_11.1.png

But when my relative opened the PDF 1.7 file in Acrobat Reader, serif italic was now a sans-serif boldface. I opened the file in Foxit PDF Editor 11.2; indeed, the serifed italic lettering looked like sans-serif boldface:

optimized_PDF1.7_file_in_Foxit_11.1_italics_became_boldface.png

Here is the list of files in the PDF 1.3 file:

fonts_in_original_PDF1.3_or_1.5_file_in_PDF_Xchange_10.6+.png

And here is the list of files in my first optimized PDF 1.7 file, before I embedded the entire font:

fonts_in_optimized_PDF1.7_file_in_PDF_Xchange_10.6+_now_subsetted.png

To fix the problem, I opened PDF-XChange's Print Preferences' font tab and told PDF-XChange+ to embed everything:

Print_Preferences_now_Embed_all_fonts_No_Subsetting.png

Everything now looked correct in Foxit! BUT each page was now printed as an image, even though I had NOT told PDF-XChange to do so.

I ended up abandoning the optimized file. Instead, I used my relative's original file.

What advice do you have? I'm new to PDF-XChange, so I don't yet know all of its settings.

[Daniel - PDF-XChange]

Hello, MarylandUSA

Given that the original file already has all of those fonts embedded, any settings selected in the save as optimized function would not have an influence there, and that is reflected by the lack of any change in the actual embedding data.

To really investigate this, we would need to see a copy of the original file, and ideally both outputs from your device (one without and one with embedding). Beyond that, you mention of it becoming an image without being told to is somewhat perplexing, could you also send over a copy of that file?

If these documents are sensitive and cannot be shared publicly, please email Support@PDF-XChange.com with a link to this forum post and "ATTN:Dan" in the subject line.

Kind regards,

[MarylandUSA]

Thanks for your reply.

I can't share the files because they are for a book that my cousin intends to charge money for. He is paranoid of having his years of work stolen, so I don't free to share.

Here's why I wrote that the resulting file is an image file:
1. The "Select text" cursor was not available.
2. I was prompted to OCR the file.
3. No fonts are listed.

fonts_in_optimized_PDF1.7_file_in_PDF_Xchange_10.6+_Embed_All.png

4. The file was 167 megabytes instead of 3 megabytes.

Stregevsky_Paul_file_sizes.png

I agree, after I saved the 1990s file as PDF 1.7, using the default font settings, the fonts were still subsetted. That's why I then turned subsetting OFF. That produced the 167MB file ... even though the "Print as image" checkbox remained clear.

Oh: In the Print options, I now see three more variables that might be fault.
1. I cannot move a font from the from column to the left column; the Unembed button is not available.

Cannot_unembed_subsetted_fonts__Merge_fonts_subsets_selected.png

2. Merge font subsets" is selected. (See the foregoing screenshot.) Should I clear that checkbox?
3. In the Unembed Fonts dropdown list, the second option--"Unembed recommended fonts"--was selected by default. Maybe I need to select a different choice?

Font_embedded_dropdown_list.png

[Daniel - PDF-XChange]

Hello, MarylandUSA

Just to be clear here... while we are looking at the save as optimized function, which arguably cannot covert the document to an image output, you sort of glazed over it, but this comment right here is important:

I agree, after I saved the 1990s file as PDF 1.7, using the default font settings, the fonts were still subsetted. That's why I then turned subsetting OFF. That produced the 167MB file ... even though the "Print as image" checkbox remained clear.

"print as image" would not be present in the save as optimized function, but in the Editor's Print dialogue. If you are printing this document, especially if doing so from PDF to a PDF printer, the pieces fall into place here.
This process is not advisable, as by printing, you are converting a file with a "purely digital" intent to something that is stripped of many digital features (often including fonts), in an effort to make it "physical format friendly". The printing process itself is lossy, especially with relation to fonts, and other such data. I expect the document is not an image itself, but instead that the text may have been converted to "Paths" by the printing process, which inherently removes the fonts. without seeing the document I cannot confirm this myself, but you can check the document "content" panel, to see if the file consists mostly of image items, or "Path" items:

image.png

This is an expected aspect of the printing process from PDF, and so if you need to retain fonts, you will want to avoid re-printing the document entirely.

Kind regards,

[MarylandUSA]

Yes, I wasn't as clear as I should have been about where and when I tried different settings. First, I set the default Save As to PDF 1.7, which would affect all future commands to "Save As". Then, in a different dialogue, I told the software to save as an optimized file. When the fonts got messed up, I explored the Print settings.

I appreciate your explanation of the nuances of the Print choices. But I'm still not sure I understand why "reftrying" a PDF by reprinting to PDF would cause a fully searchable document to become an unsearchable file that's two orders of magnitude larger. That's not what happens when I refry (print a PDF to PDF) in Acrobat or Foxit.

But none of that explains why a major font change (from serif italic to nonserif bold) that can be seen in Acrobat and Foxit cannot be seen in PDF-XChange. I need to understand why that happened. Otherwise, I can't know when to trust what I'm seeing in PDF-XChange.

[Daniel - PDF-XChange]

Hello, MarylandUSA

In order to investigate questions of what and why things happen this way, we would need to see a copy of the affected file.
Perhaps you can extract one page from the document, like the one you have screenshot above?. If that single page extract still has the same issues, than we could take a closer look at it, and see what is going on with the Font data in your file, without the whole document needing to be shared.

Somewhat related, If your intent here is to bump the file up to 1.7 and add modern features, as well as embed the used fonts, it may be better to try the "save as > type > PDF/A" option, and configure it to prepare the file to PDF 1.7. Once the conversion to PDF/A is complete, you should have partially Embedded fonts, which may be more accurate, and allow newer features to be used in the file, without ever going through the print process. Could you let me know if that helps?

Kind regards,

[MarylandUSA]

Those are helpful tips; thanks. I'm sure my relative wouldn't mind if I extracted 1 page from each file. But at this point, I've decided to move on. I suspect that this problem will not occur again; that it was caused, at least in part, by relying on a PDF that was created by GhostWriter from PageMaker 6.5, a desktop-publishing program that was released in 1996.

[Daniel - PDF-XChange]

Hello, MarylandUSA

Your suspicion is very likely correct. looking at a nearly 30 year old PDF, which was not created/saved in an archival format intended for extended storage, more than a few things could have gone wrong on that end. So hopefully it does not come up again, but if it does, you know where to find us, and what we will need!

Kind regards,