PDF Processing with Gnostice PDFtoolkit (Part 1)

In the first part of this article, originally published on Codegear.com last month, we will see what Gnostice PDFtoolkit
VCL can do for you. We will be using code examples to illustrate the ease with which PDFtoolkit will help you accomplish
your PDF-related tasks.

By V. Subhash

Why PDF?

PDF is best known for its ability to retain high fidelity on all platforms. It is also a final form document
format in that people do not expect PDF documents to undergo further change. That is why PDF is a popular
choice for making invoices and user manuals, and also for transmitting documents over the Internet. PDF is
also liked for its features such as font embedding, bookmarks, thumbnails, attachments, watermarks,
annotations, encryption, and digital signatures. Last but not the least, PDF is an open format.

For these reasons, PDF has become a part of our technology-oriented lives. From e-books to web forms to
sophisticated workflow transports, PDF has seen applications in innumerable ways.

Although the format supports a lot of features, most applications that produce PDF documents make use of
only a few features. Usually, it is just text and images. At other times, we may have just text and form fields.
PDF users often require more value, such as encryption, compression, bookmarks, stamps, or watermarks. In
a workflow-like environment, the demands to cut, chop, and mince PDF documents are even more.

To meet this need, there is a flourishing market for PDF processors. In this arena, Gnostice PDFtoolkit has
long established its name as a leader.

Gnostice PDFtoolkit VCL

PDFtoolkit works with existing PDF documents. PDFtoolkit helps in:

I. Manipulation
II. Content Extraction (text and images)
III. Transformation (merging and splitting)
IV. Enhancement (adding bookmarks, hyperlinks, comments, stamps and watermarks; encryption;
compression)
V. Forms Processing (adding/editing/deleting/flattening form fields)
VI. Viewing and Printing (visual components)
VII. Text Search (visual component)

Reading a PDF document is straightforward, as shown in the code snippet below. Create a
TgtPDFDocument object, load a document, and we are ready to roll.

...

// Create a PDF document object

gtPDFDocument1 := TgtPDFDocument.Create(Nil);
try
// Load a document
gtPDFDocument1.LoadFromFile('sample_doc.pdf');

// Check if the document is loaded

if gtPDFDocument1.IsLoaded then
// Display page number
Writeln('Number of pages: '
+ IntToStr(gtPDFDocument1.PageCount));

...
I. Manipulation of PDF Documents

After a PDF document has been loaded, document contents and their properties can be read and modified
using the properties and methods of TgtPDFDocument object.

In the next code snippet, we first specify the measurement unit that will be used when rendering elements on
a PDF page. Next, a HTML-formatted string is written on the last page. The number of the last page is
obtained from the property TgtPDFDocument.PageCount().

...

// Set document measurement units to pixels

gtPDFDocument1.MeasurementUnit := muPixels;

// Write formatted text at the center of the last page

gtPDFDocument1.TextOut(
'Hello, World!', // HTML-formatted string
IntToStr(gtPDFDocument1.PageCount), // Page range
gtPDFDocument1. // X-coordinate
GetPageSize(gtPDFDocument1.PageCount, muPixels).Width/2,
gtPDFDocument1. // Y-coordinate
GetPagesize(gtPDFDocument1.PageCount, muPixels).Height/2);

// Save the modified document

gtPDFDocument1.SaveToFile('modified_doc.pdf');

...

The formatted string is written at the center of the last page. To obtain the location of the center of the page,
we first call TgtPDFDocument.GetPageSize().

function GetPageSize(
PageNo: Integer;
MMUnit: TgtMeasurementUnit): TgtPageSize;

TgtMeasurementUnit
= (muPixels, muPoints, muInches, muMM, muTwips);

TgtPageSize = record
Width,
Height: Double;
end;

This method returns a TgtPageSize record, whose fields TgtPageSize.Width and TgtPageSize.Height
provide the dimensions of the specified page. From this information, it is easy to calculate the location of the
center of the page.

As you can see, PDFtoolkit provides an elegant interface that hides the complexities imposed by the format
specification.

II. Content Extraction from PDF Documents

The TgtPDFDocument.GetPageElements() is another example of a very capable PDFtoolkit method.

function GetPageElements(
APageNo: Integer;
ElementTypes: TgtElementTypes;
MMUnit: TgtMeasurementUnit): TgtPDFPageElementList;

TgtPDFElementType = (etText, etImage, etPath, etFormField);

This method returns a list of PDF page elements from a specified page. If the page element returned by the
method is a text element, then its properties expose details such as location, font, and color. If it were an
image, then you can get hold of its coordinates, scaling factor, and the actual image in the form of a
TGraphic object. That’s the level of control you get with PDFtoolkit.

PDFtoolkit offers more than one way of doing the same thing, each one more useful in a special situation.
The TgtPDFDocument.SearchAll() method can perform a variety of text searches for a given search string.

Function SearchAll(
Const SearchText: String;
AOptions: TgtSearchTypes;
SearchList: TStringList):Integer;

TgtPDFSearchTypes = (stCaseSensitive, stWholeWord, stNone);

You can also extract all text in one go.

// Returns a list of text extracted from a specified page

function ExtractText(APageNo: Integer): TStringList;
// Returns formatted text extracted from a specified page
function ExtractTextFormatted(APageNo: Integer): TStringList;
III. Document Transformation
PDFtoolkit makes merging and splitting files a breeze. Here is a code snippet that shows how to merge
several documents into one.

...

var
gtPDFDocument1: TgtPDFDocument;
StringList1: TStringList;
begin

// Create a document object

gtPDFDocument1 := TgtPDFDocument.Create(Nil);
// Load a list with names of the
// documents that need to be merged
StringList1 := TStringList.Create();
StringList1.Add('sample_doc1.pdf');
StringList1.Add('sample_doc2.pdf');
StringList1.Add('sample_doc3.pdf');

try
// Merge the documents
gtPDFDocument1.MergeDocs(StringList1);
// Save the merged document to file
gtPDFDocument1.SaveToFile('merged_doc.pdf');

...

IV. Document Enhancement

PDFtoolkit can enhance a PDF document in a number of useful ways, such as

 Marking up text
 Hyperlinking images and text
 Adding bookmarks, stamps, and watermarks
 Embedding files as attachments

In this code snippet, we see how to add bookmarks for all pages in a document.

...

var
I: Integer;
gtPDFDocument1: TgtPDFDocument;
// Bookmark
gtPDFOutline1: TgtPDFOutline;
// Destination linked by a bookmark
gtPDFDestination1: TgtPDFDestination;
// Display style of a bookmark in bookmark panel
gtBookmarkAttribute1: TgtBookmarkAttribute;
begin
gtPDFDocument1 := TgtPDFDocument.Create(Nil);
try
gtPDFDocument1.LoadFromFile('sample_doc.pdf');
if gtPDFDocument1.IsLoaded then
begin
// For each page in the document
for I := 1 to gtPDFDocument1.PageCount do
begin
// Create a bookmark that links to the top-left
// corner of the page in the current iteration
gtPDFDestination1 :=
TgtPDFDestination.Create(
I, // Number of the page
dtXYZ, // Destination type (use x-y coordinates and zoom)
 0, // X-coordinate of the destination
0, // Y-coordinate of the destination
100); // Zoom

// Create bookmarks with maroon-colored, bold-italic text

gtBookmarkAttribute1 :=
TgtBookmarkAttribute.Create([fsBold, fsItalic], clMaroon);

if I = 1 then
begin
// If it's the first page, then create a new bookmark
gtPDFOutline1 := gtPDFDocument1.CreateNewBookmark(
'Page #' + IntToStr(I), // Bookmark title text
gtPDFDestination1,
gtBookmarkAttribute1);
end
else
begin
// For other pages, add a bookmark next to the
// previously created bookmark
gtPDFOutline1 := gtPDFOutline1.AddNext(
'Page #' + IntToStr(I), // Bookmark title text
gtPDFDestination1,
gtBookmarkAttribute1);
end;
end;
end;
// Save the modified document
gtPDFDocument1.SaveToFile('modified_doc.pdf');
...

Here is how to encrypt a PDF document.

...
uses
...
gtPDFCrypt,
gtPDFDoc;

var
gtPDFDocument1: TgtPDFDocument;
begin
// Create a document object
gtPDFDocument1 := TgtPDFDocument.Create(Nil);

try
// Load input document
gtPDFDocument1.LoadFromFile('unencrypted_doc.pdf');

if gtPDFDocument1.IsLoaded then
begin
// Modify documents encryption settings with
// the TgtPDFEncryption object returned by
// TgtPDFDocument.Encryption property
with gtPDFDocument1.Encryption do
begin
Enabled := True;
Level := el128bit; // 128-bit encryption level
OwnerPassword := 'Owner';
UserPassword := 'User';
UserPermissions
:= [AllowAccessibility,
AllowPrint,
AllowHighResPrint];
end;
end;
 // Save the encrypted document to file
gtPDFDocument1.SaveToFile('encrypted_doc.pdf');
...

This code snippet shows how to mark page numbers on all pages in a PDF document.

...

var
I: Integer;
gtPDFDocument1: TgtPDFDocument;
begin
gtPDFDocument1 := TgtPDFDocument.Create(Nil);
try
gtPDFDocument1.LoadFromFile('sample_doc.pdf');

if gtPDFDocument1.IsLoaded then
begin
gtPDFDocument1.MeasurementUnit := muPixels;
// Write formatted string on all pages
// at specified location
gtPDFDocument1.TextOut(
'Page <%PageNo%> of <%TotPage%>', // page number
gtPDFDocument1. // x-coordinate
GetPageSize(I, muPixels).Width - 150,
100); // y-coordinate
end;
// Save the modified document
gtPDFDocument1.SaveToFile('numbered_pages_doc.pdf');
...

The text string is written by an overloaded TgtPDFDocument.TextOut() method. The string contains two
built-in placeholders for the current page number and the total page number. PDFtoolkit substitutes built-in
placeholders with their values at run time.

You can use placeholders with any TgtPDFDocument method that writes text to a document. You can create
your own placeholders and have them substituted at run time by writing a handler for the TgtPDFDocument
OnCalcVariables() event.

property OnCalcVariables: TgtOnCalcVariablesEvent

read FOnCalcVariables
write SetOnCalcVariables;

V. Processing PDF Forms Documents (AcroForms)

PDFtoolkit can add, edit, fill, and flatten PDF form fields. Editing a PDF form field involves changing its
properties such as its looks, position, or interactivity. Filling a PDF form field involves specifying a
particular value for the form field and saving the modified form field to the document. Flattening a form
field removes all interactivity from the form field but ensures that the form field still looks its original self.

In this code snippet, we see how to add form fields to a document.

...

var
gtPDFDocument1: TgtPDFDocument;
// List box form field
gtPDFFormListBox1: TgtPDFFormListBox;
// Push button form field
gtPDFFormPushButton1: TgtPDFFormPushButton;
// Rectangles
gtRect1: TgtRect;
gtRect2: TgtRect;
begin
gtPDFDocument1 := TgtPDFDocument.Create(Nil);
try
gtPDFDocument1.LoadFromFile('sample_doc.pdf');
if gtPDFDocument1.IsLoaded then
begin
// Set document measurement unit
gtPDFDocument1.MeasurementUnit := muInches;

// Specify rectangle position for list box

gtRect1.Left := 1;
gtRect1.Right := 2;
gtRect1.Top := 1;
gtRect1.Bottom := 2;

// Create a list box form field

gtPDFFormListBox1 := TgtPDFFormListBox.Create();
// Specify name for the list box in the document
gtPDFFormListBox1.FieldName := 'lstCountry';
// Add options to the list box
gtPDFFormListBox1.AddItem('India');
gtPDFFormListBox1.AddItem('USA');
gtPDFFormListBox1.AddItem('Russia');
gtPDFFormListBox1.AddItem('Germany');
gtPDFFormListBox1.AddItem('Japan');
gtPDFFormListBox1.AddItem('China');
// Specify background color for the list box
gtPDFFormListBox1.BackgroundColor := clWindow;
gtPDFFormListBox1.BorderColor := clWindowFrame;
gtPDFFormListBox1.DefaultValue := 'Select a country';

// Specify location of the list box

gtPDFFormListBox1.Rect := gtRect1;

// Add the list box to the last page

gtPDFDocument1.AddFormField(
gtPDFFormListBox1,
gtPDFDocument1.PageCount); // page number

// Specify rectangle position for submit button

gtRect2.Left := 1;
gtRect2.Right := 2;
gtRect2.Top := 3;
gtRect2.Bottom := 3.25;

// Create a push button

gtPDFFormPushButton1 := TgtPDFFormPushButton.Create();
gtPDFFormPushButton1.FieldName := 'btnSubmit';
gtPDFFormPushButton1.NormalCaption := 'Submit';
gtPDFFormPushButton1.Rect := gtRect2;
// Set button to submit form contents when
// it is clicked inside a viewer application
gtPDFFormPushButton1.Action := pbaSubmit;
// Specify URL where form contents should be
// submitted
gtPDFFormPushButton1.SubmitURL
:= 'http://www.gnostice.com/newsletters' +
'/demos/200804/forms_test.asp';

// Add push button to document

gtPDFDocument1.AddFormField(
gtPDFFormPushButton1,
gtPDFDocument1.PageCount);

// Save the modified document to file

gtPDFDocument1.SaveToFile('forms_doc.pdf');
end;
...

VI. Viewing and Printing PDF Documents

PDFtoolkit’s viewer is a visual component that can be used to display PDF documents on a VCL forms
application. It does not require Adobe® Reader to be installed on the client machine. The viewer’s API
provides methods to implement navigation, zooming, and other toolbar-driven functionality.

...

gtPDFDocument1: TgtPDFDocument;
gtPDFViewer1: TgtPDFViewer;
OpenDialog1: TOpenDialog;
edFilePath: TEdit;
edNumberOfPages: TEdit;

...

// Select a PDF document

if not OpenDialog1.Execute then
exit;

// Update text field

edFilePath.Text := OpenDialog1.FileName;

// Unload any previously loaded document

if gtPDFDocument1.IsLoaded then
gtPDFDocument1.Reset;

try
// Load the selected PDF document
gtPDFDocument1.LoadFromFile(edFilePath.Text);

// Check if document has been successfully loaded

if gtPDFDocument1.IsLoaded then
begin
// Display number of pages
edNumberOfPages.Text := IntToStr(gtPDFDocument1.PageCount);
// Specify document that needs to be
// displayed by the viewer
gtPDFViewer1.PDFDocument := gtPDFDocument1;
// Activate viewer
gtPDFViewer1.Active := True;
...

(Click to enlarge)

PDFtoolkit’s PDF printer is a non-visual component. It has methods and properties that allow a VCL
application to query available printers, select a printer, specify print settings, and print a specified set of
pages to the selected printer. The most attractive thing about the printer component is that it can print PDF
documents without requiring external components such as GhostScript or Adobe® Reader.

VI. Other Capabilities

PDFtoolkit includes a visual component meant for providing interactive text search capabilities to VCL
forms applications. It needs to be used in conjunction with the PDFtoolkit’s viewer component. The
functionality of the search panel is similar to the one found in Adobe Reader. See screenshot.

PDFtoolkit has several other components such as the PDFOutlineViewer, which can be used to display a
bookmark panel for a PDF document.

In summary, Gnostice PDFtoolkit is a component suite that has well-rounded capabilities in PDF processing.

What’s Next

The next version of PDFtoolkit is currently in beta. Gnostice PDFtoolkit v3.0 will use a whole new PDF
processing engine that is separate from the PDFtoolkit API logic. The key objective in writing the new PDF
processor was also modularization of logic. The advantage of this approach has been phenomenal increase in
speed, scalability, robustness, and scope for optimization. In the next part of this article, we will learn more
about this.
---o0O0o---

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---o0O0o---

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