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PDF extract text

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  PDF extract text Philipp Kraus <philipp.kraus@flashpixx.de> - 2014-04-07 06:53 +0200
    Re: PDF extract text Thomas 'PointedEars' Lahn <PointedEars@web.de> - 2014-04-07 13:44 +0200
      Re: PDF extract text Christoph Michael Becker <cmbecker69@arcor.de> - 2014-04-07 21:52 +0200
        Re: PDF extract text Thomas 'PointedEars' Lahn <PointedEars@web.de> - 2014-04-07 22:12 +0200
    Re: PDF extract text Michael Vilain <vilain@NOspamcop.net> - 2014-04-07 08:53 -0700
      Re: PDF extract text Thomas 'PointedEars' Lahn <PointedEars@web.de> - 2014-04-07 19:38 +0200

#13341 — PDF extract text

Hello,

how can I extract text, images and other structures can be ignored, 
with PHP from a PDF file?
We have a lot of LaTeX PDFs and Powerpoint PDFs and would like to 
extract only the text content
to create a text analysis of the content eg for LaTeX scripts we would 
like the chapter structure as well.

Is there any solution to do this with build-in PHP functions?

Thanks

Phil

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#13344

Philipp Kraus wrote:

> how can I extract text, images and other structures can be ignored,
> with PHP from a PDF file?

For example with “PDF Parser”.  You cannot have searched before posting; it 
took me less than a minute to find that out with the Google keywords “pdf 
php read”.

<http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html>

> We have a lot of LaTeX PDFs and Powerpoint PDFs and would like to
> extract only the text content
> to create a text analysis of the content eg for LaTeX scripts we would
> like the chapter structure as well.

PDF files generated with pdflatex usually contain that as TOC metadata.
 
> Is there any solution to do this with build-in PHP functions?
                                            ^t
No.

-- 
PointedEars

Twitter: @PointedEars2
Please do not Cc: me. / Bitte keine Kopien per E-Mail.

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#13350

Thomas 'PointedEars' Lahn wrote:

> Philipp Kraus wrote:
> 
>> Is there any solution to do this with build-in PHP functions?
>                                             ^t
> No.

Well, there may not be a solution to do this with built-in PHP functions
(whatever a built-in PHP function might be; actually (almost) all PHP
functions are part of an extension), but at least *theoretically* it
would be possible by processing the PDF file "bytewise".  (The PDF
specification is available online for free.)

-- 
Christoph M. Becker

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#13351

Christoph Michael Becker wrote:

> Thomas 'PointedEars' Lahn wrote:
>> Philipp Kraus wrote:
>>> Is there any solution to do this with build-in PHP functions?
>>                                             ^t
>> No.
> 
> Well, there may not be a solution to do this with built-in PHP functions
> (whatever a built-in PHP function might be; actually (almost) all PHP
> functions are part of an extension), but at least *theoretically* it
> would be possible by processing the PDF file "bytewise".  (The PDF
> specification is available online for free.)

*rolls eyes*

*bags collected trolls’ eyes*

-- 
PointedEars

Twitter: @PointedEars2
Please do not Cc: me. / Bitte keine Kopien per E-Mail.

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#13348

In article <lhtavi$dh$1@online.de>,
 Philipp Kraus <philipp.kraus@flashpixx.de> wrote:

> Hello,
> 
> how can I extract text, images and other structures can be ignored, 
> with PHP from a PDF file?
> We have a lot of LaTeX PDFs and Powerpoint PDFs and would like to 
> extract only the text content
> to create a text analysis of the content eg for LaTeX scripts we would 
> like the chapter structure as well.
> 
> Is there any solution to do this with build-in PHP functions?
> 
> Thanks
> 
> Phil

I tried a bunch of stuff to read some bank statements that were in PDF 
format so I could import them via CSV.  Didn't work out so well. Adobe's 
OCR feature only works if the PDFs are unlocked to allow it.  I found an 
application that would do that but the OCRed text was unusable.

So, my question is "what's generating the PDF files?"  Can you get 
whomever to do it in text or some other format?  If they're encrypted 
images, then you've got a lot of work to do in order to get some output. 
Maybe.

Good luck with this...

-- 
DeeDee, don't press that button!  DeeDee!  NO!  Dee...
[I filter all Goggle Groups posts, so any reply may be automatically ignored]

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#13349

Michael Vilain wrote:

>  Philipp Kraus <philipp.kraus@flashpixx.de> wrote: 
>> how can I extract text, images and other structures can be ignored,
                           ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>> with PHP from a PDF file?
>> We have a lot of LaTeX PDFs and Powerpoint PDFs and would like to
                    ^^^^^          ^^^^^^^^^^
>> extract only the text content
>> to create a text analysis of the content eg for LaTeX scripts we would
>> like the chapter structure as well.
>> 
>> Is there any solution to do this with build-in PHP functions?
> 
> I tried a bunch of stuff to read some bank statements that were in PDF
> format so I could import them via CSV.  Didn't work out so well. Adobe's
> OCR feature only works if the PDFs are unlocked to allow it.  I found an
> application that would do that but the OCRed text was unusable.
> 
> So, my question is "what's generating the PDF files?"

The ability to read can be of advantage sometimes …

> Can you get whomever to do it in text or some other format? 

OMG.  One can leave it to you to give the worst possible technical advice.

> If they're encrypted images, then you've got a lot of work to do in order
> to get some output. Maybe.

Nobody but you is talking about images and OCR.  You really don't have a 
clue what PDF is, do you?

-- 
PointedEars

Twitter: @PointedEars2
Please do not Cc: me. / Bitte keine Kopien per E-Mail.t r

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