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This wikiHow teaches you how to turn a text, photo, Microsoft Office, or XPS file into a PDF (Portable Document Format) file. You can do this on both Windows and Mac computers by using built-in features.
Things You Should Know
- If you have a Windows PC, open the file and use the Print menu to print the file to PDF.
- For macOS, open the file in Preview and use the file menu to export the file as a PDF.
- If you use a Mac computer, you can also open the file and use the Print menu to save the file as a PDF.
Steps
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Open the file you want to convert. Go to the location of the file you want to convert into a PDF, then double-click the file to open it.
- If you want to add multiple photos to one PDF, instead do the following: select each photo you want to use by holding down Ctrl while clicking them, right-click one of the selected photos, and click Print in the resulting drop-down menu. You can then skip the next step.
- If you want to create a PDF of an HTML file, open the HTML file in Notepad by right-clicking the HTML file and then clicking Edit in the drop-down menu.
Remember that you can only convert these types of files:
• Text files (.txt)
• Microsoft Office documents (.docx, .xlsx, .pptx, and so on)
• Photos (.jpg, .png, .bmp, and so on)
• XPS files (.xps) -
Open the "Print" menu. The fastest way to do this is usually by pressing Ctrl and P at the same time, but you might need to click File and then click Print in the resulting menu.
- Don't be alarmed if you don't have a printer attached to your computer—you're not actually going to print anything.
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Click the current printer's name. It should be near the top of the menu below the "Printer" or "Printers" heading. A drop-down menu will appear.
- If you're using a text document or an XPS document, skip this step.
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Click Microsoft Print to PDF . It's in the drop-down menu. Doing so selects your computer's "Print to PDF" feature as the method with which you'll "print" your document. [1] X Trustworthy Source Microsoft Support Technical support and product information from Microsoft. Go to source
- If you're using a text document or an XPS document, you'll just click Microsoft Print to PDF in the "Select Printer" section near the top of the window.
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Click Print . It's usually at the bottom of the menu, though you'll click Print at the top of the menu if you're using a Microsoft Office program (e.g., Microsoft Word). A File Explorer window will appear.
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Enter a name for your document. In the "File name" field, type in whatever you want to name the PDF version of your document. [2] X Trustworthy Source Microsoft Support Technical support and product information from Microsoft. Go to source
- Since you're creating a PDF version of the document, you can name the PDF the same thing as the original document and store it in the same location if you wish.
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Select a save location. On the left side of the window, click the folder in which you want to store your PDF.
- For example, if you want to save your PDF on the desktop, you'd find and click Desktop in the left-hand sidebar.
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Click Save . It's at the bottom of the window. Doing so will save your changes and create a PDF version of your file in your selected save location. [3] X Trustworthy Source Microsoft Support Technical support and product information from Microsoft. Go to source
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Know which files you can turn into PDFs with Preview. While it isn't an exhaustive list, common file formats that can be converted into PDFs include the following:
- TIFF files
- Photos (.jpg, .png, .bmp, and so on)
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Select the file. Go to the location of the file you want to convert, then click once the file to select it.
- If you want to select multiple photos, click each photo you want to use while holding down ⌘ Command .
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Click File . It's in the upper-left corner of the screen. A drop-down menu will appear. [4] X Research source
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Select Open With . This is in the File menu. A pop-out menu will appear.
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Click Preview . You'll find it in the pop-out menu. Doing so prompts your file to open in Preview.
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Click File again. The drop-down menu will reappear.
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Click Export as PDF… . This is in the drop-down menu. A pop-up window will display. [5] X Research source
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8Enter a name. In the "Name" text box, type in the name you want to use for your PDF file.
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Select a save location. Click the "Where" box, then click the folder in which you want to save your PDF in the resulting drop-down menu.
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Click Save . It's at the bottom of the window. Doing so will convert your document into a PDF and then store it in your selected save location.
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Know which files you can convert into PDFs with the File menu. The File menu can be used to convert the following documents into PDFs:
- Text files (.txt)
- Microsoft Office documents (.docx, .xlsx, .pptx, and so on)
- Apple documents (e.g., Numbers, Pages, and so on)
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Open your document. Double-click the document you want to convert to open it in its program.
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Click File . This is in the upper-left corner of the screen. A drop-down menu will appear. [6] X Research source
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Click Print . It's in the File drop-down menu. Doing so opens the Print window. [7] X Research source
- Don't be alarmed if you don't have a printer attached to your computer—you're not actually going to print anything.
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Click the "PDF" menu. This is in the lower-left side of the window. Clicking it prompts a drop-down menu. [8] X Research source
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Enter a name. In the "Name" text box, type in the name you want to use for your PDF file.
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Select a save location. Click the "Where" box, then click the folder in which you want to save your PDF in the resulting drop-down menu.
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Click Save . It's a blue button at the bottom of the window. Doing so will convert your document into a PDF and then store it in your selected save location.
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Tips
- If you're in a hurry, you can use an online converter such as SmallPDF to convert multiple files into PDFs.Thanks
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Warnings
- Not all file types will translate over to the PDF style, so you may encounter some formatting errors.Thanks
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References
- ↑ https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/save-or-convert-to-pdf-or-xps-in-office-desktop-apps-d85416c5-7d77-4fd6-a216-6f4bf7c7c110
- ↑ https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/save-or-convert-to-pdf-or-xps-in-office-desktop-apps-d85416c5-7d77-4fd6-a216-6f4bf7c7c110
- ↑ https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/save-or-convert-to-pdf-or-xps-in-office-desktop-apps-d85416c5-7d77-4fd6-a216-6f4bf7c7c110
- ↑ https://support.apple.com/guide/preview/export-pdfs-and-images-prvw0e8da223/mac
- ↑ https://support.apple.com/guide/preview/export-pdfs-and-images-prvw0e8da223/mac
- ↑ https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/save-a-document-as-a-pdf-on-mac-mchlp1531/mac
- ↑ https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/save-a-document-as-a-pdf-on-mac-mchlp1531/mac
- ↑ https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/save-a-document-as-a-pdf-on-mac-mchlp1531/mac
- ↑ https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/save-a-document-as-a-pdf-on-mac-mchlp1531/mac
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