FAQ - CommonLook PDF Simplified Editor

Which editor do I choose? 

It's probably easier to start with the Simplified Editor, unless any of the following conditions exist in your PDF: 

• The document is 150 pages or longer 
• The document contains more than one language
• The document language is not English, French, Spanish, Basque, Bulgarian, Catalan, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, German, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Portuguese - Brazilian, Romanian, Russian, Slovak, Slovenian, Swedish, Turkish, Ukrainian, Polish. 
• You need to use Span tags to fix OCR errors
• The document contains very complex tables
• You want to add alt text for links that differs from the display text
• You require specific, manual control over the reading order and how your document will be presented to end-users
• You want to guarantee the document complies with standards like ISO 32000, HHS, and WCAG 2.x, OR, if you want to make sure your PDF complies with PDF/UA and one of those other standards.  

Is there a File Size/ Page Count limit?

Question: Are there file size limits for the files that I can work on?

Answer: Yes. If your PDF is 150 longer than 150 pages or larger than 200MB.   It is imprtant to note that both Web-based CommonLook PDF editors have a file size limit of 200MB. 

When should I use the "Automatically generate tags" tool in the Advanced Editor?

The "Automatically generate tags" tool will remove all previously existing tags in the Tags tree and replace them with automatically generated tags.  This is an ideal tool to use for untagged or poorly tagged documents but if you've done a lot of tagging prep work you may not want to choose this option.  

Save and come back later?

Question: Can I save my work and pick up where I left off, later?

Answer: Yes! Choose “Save and Continue Later” and then, when you’re ready to continue working, in your list of Remediations, find your “Editing” project and select “Continue.”

Question:  Wait, I missed something, can I do the same document again?

Answer:  Yes!  Back in the Remediations screen, click the three dots next to the file (the “hamburger menu”).  You'll then be able to choose to edit again with the Simplified or Advanced Editor. 

You’ll get a dialog box telling you that you’ll need to convert the file again in order to generate a new, accessible file. 

Note: This action cannot be undone.  In other words, if you choose to rework the file, you will not be able to download the file that was previously available on the Remediations screen.  You’ll need to complete the process to download a new, accessible file.  Also, if you choose to use the Advanced Editor, you will not be able to use the Simplified Editor again, for that file.  

Choose “Yes, Edit Again,” or “Cancel” as needed.

If you choose “Yes, Edit Again,” with the Simplified Editor, you’ll be brought back into the software at the “Full Document Review” stage.  Continue working as needed.

Why do I have Warnings and User Verification in my PDF/UA Compliance Report generated from the Simplified Editor?

While CommonLook’s Simplified Editor can automatically pass some verification checkpoints, there are some checkpoints that need to be manually checked by a user.  These verification checkpoints will have a verification status of user verification or warning. Users need to review both user verification and warning verification statuses for checkpoints to ensure everything is correct and make changes to the PDF if necessary.