This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
Converting Web Pages to PDF
Acrobat can convert a Web page or an entire Web site into a single PDF file. The result is a self-contained PDF version of the original Web page, with all images and graphics intact and with functioning links.
I use this feature to convert online manuals and other documentation into a PDF file that I can keep, read, and search offline.
To convert a single Web page to PDF:
- On the Quick Tools toolbar, choose Create > PDF from Web Page.
Acrobat presents you with the Create PDF from Web Page dialog
.
- In the URL field, type the complete Web address of the Web page you want to convert to PDF.
- If you want to capture part of the entire Web site (that is, not just a single Web page), click the Capture Multiple Levels button, which reveals some additional controls
:
- In the Get Only field, type the depth to which you want to convert the site. (See the sidebar “Web Site Conversion Settings.”)
- Select both “Stay on same path” and “Stay on same server.”
- Click Create.
Acrobat displays the Download Status dialog
, showing you how the conversion is progressing.
When the conversion is finished, Acrobat displays the converted Web page or site in a document window. Note that there will be some differences in the text and graphics when they are converted. These changes are usually comparable to how a page’s appearance changes from one Web browser to another.
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Web Site Conversion Settings
The controls in the Create PDF from Web Page dialog 
have the critical purpose of limiting the scope of your Web capture. At the extreme, they keep you from inadvertently trying
to convert the entire World Wide Web into a single (large!) PDF file.
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Get only n level(s). Here you specify the extent to which Acrobat should grab Web pages that are the target of links on your selected Web page. A value of 1 says to get only the Web page whose address you have specified. A value of 2 says to get that Web page and any pages linked to by that page. A value of 3 additionally captures pages linked to by those pages, and so forth. Keep this number small. Very small. The larger the number of levels you specify, the exponentially longer the conversion will take.
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Get entire site. As it says, this option converts the entire site to PDF. I strongly recommend against selecting this option, because it can take an amazingly long time.
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Stay on same path. Like all files, the HTML files that make up a Web site reside in a directory on a hard disk—in this case, the Web server’s disk. This option prevents Acrobat from following links that reside outside the target Web page’s location or its subdirectories. I recommend choosing this option.
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Stay on same server. Acrobat won’t follow links off your target page’s server. I strongly recommend this option. Otherwise, for example, if the page you request has links to its sponsors, you may find yourself trying to convert all of Microsoft’s Web site to a PDF file.