searchable pdfs

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  cadeafblind · Member · Oct 11, 2023 at 10:25 pm

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  Is there a series of settings (adding something to the pdf media files? settings in search bar?) to allow using a search bar in a page to direct to linked pdf files? If someone searches for ‘anteaters’ and you don’t have a page dedicated to the subject but do have attached PDFs about it in an ‘Animals’ page — is there a way for the search bar on that page to direct to the PDF itself or the link as a target on the page?

  Looking to avoid paid add-on plug-ins.

  Thanks

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  staff-totoro · Staff · Oct 16, 2023 at 9:32 pm

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  Hi there,

  There is not (that I know of) a way to offer a website search that can also peer inside of uploaded documents and also index and provide links to those in search results.

  The primary issue is that a PDF is a non-web-friendly document format, one that requires a “PDF Reader” in order to open and view. It’s true that most computers have a way to open PDFs these days so it feels like they are pretty accessible. But from a technical perspective it’s very difficult to offer websearch that links to text inside of these document files.

  Specifically, as a best practice for both accessibility and Search Engine Optimization (SEO)we recommend that you avoid placing important text inside of documents or adding text to images because search engines and screen reader apps cannot access that content.

  For the best experience possible (as well as the best ranking possible in search engines) we recommend that you take a combination approach wherever possible. This typically means having two copies of the text, one that is in your ‘web page’ and can be accessed by site search, search engines, etc. As a convenience you can also offer a PDF copy “for download” and offline consumption, but I would not rely on PDF embeds alone for important info like this.

  Hope that helps. Please let us know if you have any more questions.