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Batch convert Word files to PDFs
Authored by: TheTominator on Mar 18, '07 10:01:24AM

After you have installed the Virtual Printer using CUPS-PDF, there is a simpler and more powerful way to batch convert any set of documents to PDF files.

Use Printer Setup Utility to create a Desktop Printer icon for the Virtual Printer. After it is created, I put it in my Dock for easy access.

In the Finder, drag your file icons to the Virtual Printer icon. For Microsoft Word documents, Microsoft Word will be opened and instructed to print each document to that printer.

Unlike the Microsoft Word Macro method, you can do this for any other document created by any other program. As necessary, the Finder will open the appropriate application and tell it to print to the Virtual Printer.

There are two mild limitations to this general method.

(1) The files you drag to the printer icon need to be ones that the Mac knows what to do with (i.e. you can double-click to open it in some program on your Mac).

(2) The document's default "Open With" application needs to support the AppleScript command for Print. All well-behaved MacOS X programs do this. NeoOffice for example doesn't, and thus batch converting native NeoOffice documents does not work for this printer icon method.

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-- The Tominator



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Batch convert Word files to PDFs
Authored by: TheTominator on Mar 18, '07 10:04:41AM

I forgot to mention that you do not need to make the Virtual Printer your default printer when you use the Desktop Printer icon method.

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-- The Tominator



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Batch convert Word files to PDFs
Authored by: ctopfel on Mar 18, '07 03:12:46PM

Thanks very much for the tip.
This is much cleaner than the macro method.



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Batch convert Word files to PDFs
Authored by: ctopfel on Mar 18, '07 03:19:44PM

A question: is it possible to disable the printer dialog with this mehtod?The macro method has the advantage that it doesn't require clicking okay at each dialog.



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Batch convert Word files to PDFs
Authored by: TheTominator on Mar 18, '07 06:09:43PM

I don't think there is any general way to disable a dialog that may come up. Some programs bring up a dialog and some don't. Microsoft Word is one of those programs that brings up a Print dialog. Apple's TextEdit.app doesn't.

If your Microsoft Word documents are simple enough that TextEdit can open and interpret them OK, then you can change the "Open With" settings for those .doc files so that they are handled by TextEdit instead. Then print them using the Desktop Printer of the Virtual Printer.

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-- The Tominator



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Batch convert Word files to PDFs
Authored by: tullius on Oct 17, '08 07:10:56PM

Great hint!

Anyone know how to do something similar in OS9? I ask because I have a *lot* of files created in FrameMaker (IMHO the best word processor/document creator ever released), and I need to turn these files into a format that I can use in OSX.

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---Tom Tullius



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