pdf-parse

Pure javascript cross-platform module to extract texts from PDFs.


Important update

This repositary is a fork of https://gitlab.com/autokent/pdf-parse. The original is not maintained anymore and has mutliple issues, refer https://gitlab.com/autokent/pdf-parse/-/issues/24. This fork aims to patch these issues and republish the package.

Similar Packages

- pdf2json buggy, no support anymore, memory leak, throws non-catchable fatal errors
- j-pdfjson fork of pdf2json
- pdf-parser buggy, no tests
- pdfreader using pdf2json
- pdf-extract not cross-platform using xpdf

Installation

npm install pdf-parse-fork

Basic Usage - Local Files

``js
const fs = require("fs");
const pdf = require("pdf-parse");

let dataBuffer = fs.readFileSync("path to PDF file...");

pdf(dataBuffer).then(function (data) {
// number of pages
console.log(data.numpages);
// number of rendered pages
console.log(data.numrender);
// PDF info
console.log(data.info);
// PDF metadata
console.log(data.metadata);
// PDF.js version
// check https://mozilla.github.io/pdf.js/getting_started/
console.log(data.version);
// PDF text
console.log(data.text);
});
`

Basic Usage - HTTP

You can use crawler-request which uses the pdf-parse

Exception Handling

`js
const fs = require("fs");
const pdf = require("pdf-parse");

let dataBuffer = fs.readFileSync("path to PDF file...");

pdf(dataBuffer)
.then(function (data) {
// use data
})
.catch(function (error) {
// handle exceptions
});
`

Extend

- v1.0.9 and above break pagerender callback changelog
- If you need another format like json, you can change page render behaviour with a callback
- Check out https://mozilla.github.io/pdf.js/

`js
// default render callback
function render_page(pageData) {
//check documents https://mozilla.github.io/pdf.js/
let render_options = {
//replaces all occurrences of whitespace with standard spaces (0x20). The default value is false.
normalizeWhitespace: false,
//do not attempt to combine same line TextItem's. The default value is false.
disableCombineTextItems: false,
};

return pageData.getTextContent(render_options).then(function (textContent) {
let lastY,
text = "";
for (let item of textContent.items) {
if (lastY == item.transform[5] || !lastY) {
text += item.str;
} else {
text += "\n" + item.str;
}
lastY = item.transform[5];
}
return text;
});
}

let options = {
pagerender: render_page,
};

let dataBuffer = fs.readFileSync("path to PDF file...");

pdf(dataBuffer, options).then(function (data) {
//use new format
});
`

Options

`js
const DEFAULT_OPTIONS = {
// internal page parser callback
// you can set this option, if you need another format except raw text
pagerender: render_page,

// max page number to parse
max: 0,

//check https://mozilla.github.io/pdf.js/getting_started/
version: "v1.10.100",
};
`

$3

If you need another format except raw text.

$3

Max number of page to parse. If the value is less than or equal to 0, parser renders all pages.

$3

check pdf.js

- 'default'
- 'v1.9.426'
- 'v1.10.100'
- 'v1.10.88'
- 'v2.0.550'

> _default_ version is _v1.10.100_
> mozilla.github.io/pdf.js

Test

- mocha or npm test`
- Check test folder and quickstart.js for extra usages.

Support

I use this package actively myself, so it has my top priority. You can chat on WhatsApp about any infos, ideas and suggestions.


$3

If you find a bug or a mistake, you can help by submitting an issue to GitLab Repository

$3

GitLab calls it merge request instead of pull request.

- A Guide for First-Timers
- How to create a merge request
- Check Contributing Guide

License

MIT licensed and all it's dependencies are MIT or BSD licensed.