--pdfascii

The --pdfascii option allows the PDF file(s) to be compressed to a file that consists of printable ASCII data instead of non-printable binary data. A PDF file that is created using printable ASCII data is allowed to be printed, viewed with a text editor, transferred via FTP text mode, etc. without any issues of encountering invalid binary characters within the PDF file. All characters within the PDF file will be one of the printable ASCII characters in the range from ASCII 32 (the space character) to ASCII 127 (the "~" or 'tilde' character), plus the carriage-return/line feed characters.

For example, a typical PDF file that contains compressed, binary data will invariably contain binary zeros (NULL characters) within the file. Files with embedded NULL characters can cause issues and problems with third-party products (such as editors, file transfer programs) that work exclusively on text-only files. Using the --pdfascii option guarantees that the generated PDF file will contain only printable ASCII characters, thereby allowing such programs to process the file successfully.

If --pdfascii is not specified, the PDF file will be created using various compression schemes (Flate, DCTDecode, and other compression types). Usage of these compression schemes will produce non-printable binary data within the PDF file.

If the --pdfascii is used, then --pdfencrypt cannot be used. Encrypted PDF files by design contain binary data, therefore the --pdfascii option cannot be used to generate encrypted PDF files.

Default Setting:

The --pdfascii setting is disabled, and the PDF file will contain binary (non-printable) ASCII characters..