How to scan documents in Acrobat XI

Learn how to scan to PDF or how to do a PDF scan, including how to convert paper documents to PDF and make the text searchable (OCR).

By Donna Baker – September 20, 2012

Donna Baker

In this tutorial, learn how to scan to PDF or how to do a PDF scan, including how to convert paper documents to PDF and make the text automatically searchable (OCR) in Acrobat XI.

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16 comments

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Lori Kassuba

Hi miguel sison,

Thanks for letting us know that your issue is fixed after the updates.

miguel sison

thanks all for your comments/suggestions… i tried everything and nothing worked. but i had some 25 updates from microsoft. once i did those, it seems the program was repaired and it works perfectly now!

Lori Kassuba

Hi miguel sison,

Do you have the latest point updates for Acrobat 9 installed? Just as a test, are you able to create a new Windows user account to see if it’s a permission issue?

miguel sison

I’ve tried the repair command but it still does not work. I get this message rtl160.bpl not found… I never used to get this…what else can be done? thanks a lot…

Lori Kassuba

Have you tried running the Repair command in Acrobat (Windows) to see if it corrects the issue?

MIKE SISON

greetings. i have always been able to create pdf files from my adobe acrobat 9. today i tried and i got an error saying FAILED TO CONNECT TO THE DEVICE. I TRIED opening up a pdf filed and was able to print it wirelessly. also, i tried scanning from adobe elements and it went through. there was also no trouble printing via word.

Debbie

Lori, My updater says I am completely up to date and still not working! I have given up just use my printer scanner…..

Lori Kassuba

In the Custom scan dialog, under the Sides dropdown try selecting only “Front Sides”.

Lori Kassuba

The Acrobat 11.0.04 updated fixed numerous scanning issues and specifically enabled ICA support on the Mac in 10.7 or higher. Have you tried updating to this point version?

greg

My scanner scans both sides of page. How do I stop this from happening and scan just one side?

Debbie

Hi Donna,
Adobe says that it is a known issue of Acrobat X1 still no answers if they will fix the problem. With all the technology out there you would think it would have been fixed by now the is is a almost 6 month issue for me!

donna baker

If you are applying the OCR process to your files, then you will have searchable text. You can either capture the text as you’re scanning, or use the OCR options to capture it later.

If you have searchable text on a page, you’ll be able to select paragraphs using the Edit Text & Graphics tool.

Eimear Moran

Im digitalising a small business which enquires me to scan all documents. I’ve chosen adobe acrobat XI pro and have followed your tutorial, however, I can not make the documents searchable?

Im using windows interface and a cannon MX890 scanner.

donna baker

You have to check through your settings in your email client to see if there’s a step where the email is sent to an outbox for you to manually send.

George Jinbo

can create pdf and tried sending it thru email. Typed in address and press send, and it looks as if the email has been sent, however, I never actually receive the email. I am wondering where the email has gone. and what is happening. thnx

donna baker

There are many reasons why you may not be able to scan properly, based on drivers installed, your type of printer/scanner, and your settings. Please read through these threads to see if they’ll help with your problem:

You may be missing a driver - please check with your printer/scanner’s website.

Debbie

I have recently gone to a Mac and purchased Acrobat X1 Pro for Mac. My printer has been installed and I have chosen my printer in the scan part of utility. When I go to scan to pdf the box pops up and says pick you printer but my printer does not appear. How can I get the program to find or recognize my printer so that I can scan within the program? HELP!

donna baker

It sounds like you’re working on Windows, so you can repair the installation. Choose Help > Repair Acrobat Installation. Let the program check through all its components, including the scanner. That could do the trick.

Calvin Hopper

Some years ago I purchased a license for Adobe Acrobat 9 Pro, Version 9.5.2. I have a new wireless all-in-one printer/scanner that I want to use for scanning documents. When I try to scan I get the following message:
“Error while interacting with the scanner: the selected scanner was not found.”
How do I get Adobe Acrobat 9 Pro to find my printer. The printer does work with this PC that I am using with MS Word, etc.

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