What You Can Do With a Mac PDF

Did you recently upgrade from your old Windows PC to a MacBook? Though there are aspects in your Mac that may seem unfamiliar, there are many elements that remain the same as well.

There are old features that you can still utilize with your Mac. And one of them is the Portable Document Format or PDF file. Old as it may seem, there is still a lot more room for growth as far as the PDF goes.

Interestingly, not everyone knows how to maximize it. And as a Mac user, how well do you know the Mac PDF? Do you know how to use every feature?

If not, then we invite you to continue reading below for a lowdown on what you can do with your Mac PDF.

1. Create a PDF

When we talk about Mac PDF capabilities, this is the first thing you need to learn. There are different ways to create a PDF on Mac; each one depending on certain factors.

For starters, you must learn how to create a blank PDF. The quickest and most efficient way to create one is by using a PDF editor, particularly the PDF Expert.

With a PDF Expert in place, you can create a blank PDF with simply two clicks of your mouse. Open your PDF Expert and hit Command + N. Alternatively, you can click File > New File to create a blank PDF.

From there, you can start adding images, inserting pages, and drawing using your pen tool, to name a few.

If you don’t have a PDF editor on your Mac, you can still create a PDF by using the Print menu. All you need is an app that accommodates the printing of documents.

To begin, open the file that you wish to convert into PDF. At the top menu, hit “File” then select “Print.” Alternatively, you can hit Control + P on your keyboard.

Next, go to the bottom-left portion of the Print menu then click on “PDF.” Select “Save as PDF” then name your PDF file.

Using the drop-down menu, indicate the location you wish to store your PDF file. Hit “Save” to complete the process.

2. Edit a PDF

Knowing how to create a PDF file on your Mac PDF is good. But you also need to learn how to edit one.

To edit PDF files on Mac, you need to use the markup toolbar on Preview. Go to the top portion of your Mac window and click on the “Show Markup Toolbar” button. You may also hit View > Show Markup Toolbar.

If you wish to highlight a text, go to the toolbar and hit the Highlight button. As soon as the highlight mode is on, you can select a text and the highlight should appear. To switch to an underline or change the color of your highlight, hit the down button next to the Highlight icon then pick your desired action.

Meanwhile, adding a text is quite simple. This is because most PDFs allow you to click a text field then type the text that you want inside the field.

But if your PDF file doesn’t come with that option, your best bet is to use a text box. In the markup toolbar, click the Text button to open the text box. From there, you can hit the Text Style button “A” to open different options.

You can choose to change the size, font, and color of your text. And if you wish to move the text box in a different portion of the PDF, simply drag it.

You may also click on the link to learn more on how to edit a PDF on Mac.

3. Sign a PDF

With the ongoing pandemic, physically signing documents became more challenging than ever. Thankfully, the e-signature is available even for PDF files.

And with experts seeing the e-signature market’s promising growth, you need to learn how to use it to your advantage.

There are three ways to sign a PDF file on Mac. Firstly, you can create a signature using your Mac’s trackpad. Open the Preview app then hit “Show Markup Toolbar.”

Click on “Trackpad” then wait for the prompt before hitting the text. Thereafter, use your finger to sign your name on the trackpad.

After writing your signature, hit any button to complete the process. But if you wish to redo it, hit “Clear” then give it another try.

Secondly, you can create a signature through your Mac’s built-in camera. To do this, write your signature on a clean white paper. Open your Mac’s Camera then hold the white paper with your signature facing the camera.

Make sure the signature is at the same level as the blue line in the window. As soon as you see your signature appear on the window, hit “Done.”

To use your signature, click the “Sign” button then select your signature to apply it to your PDF file.

4. Fill Out Forms

Apart from signing PDF documents, you can also fill out forms using your Mac PDF. However, there are PDF forms that don’t allow edits. This means you cannot enter or select any text within the form.

But if you receive an editable PDF file, then you can directly fill it out with no hassle. Thereafter, you can either print the file or send it back via email.

5. Compress PDF Files

Compressing PDF files is one of the most important tricks you need to learn. It will save you tons of space especially if you’re dealing with large files most of the time.

To compress files, open Preview then open PDF. Select File > Export. Don’t pick “Export as PDF.”

At the pop-up menu, hit the Quartz Filter. Select “Reduce File Size” to complete the process.

Go Beyond Managing your Mac PDF Files

Now that you know some of the most essential features of the PDF, you can expand its uses and complete more PDF-related tasks faster. But managing your Mac PDF files is not the only thing to master on your Mac computer.

We invite you to read our other articles on MacBooks and other Apple products. We discuss tips that will help you get the most out of your devices.