How to edit batch sequences?

You can run, edit, or create new batch sequences from the Batch Sequences dialog box (shown in Figure) that you open by choosing Advanced➪ Batch Processing. To run a batch sequence from this dialog box, click its name in the list box and then click the Run Sequence button. To edit an existing batch sequence, click the name of the sequence in the list box and then click the Edit Sequence button to open the Batch Edit Sequence dialog box. From this dialog box, you can change the sequence of commands executed when you run the sequence with the Select Commands button, change which files are processed by the sequence from the Run Commands On drop-down list, and change where processed files are located in the Select Output Location drop-down list. For details on using these options, refer to the series of steps on creating a new batch sequence in the following post (the steps for using these controls are identical for editing and creating batch sequences).

Batch Processing to the Rescue

For the final editing topic, I want to introduce you to Acrobat’s batch-processing capabilities. Batch processing (or batch sequencing as Acrobat refers to it) automates the editing process by enabling you to perform one or more actions on a group of PDF documents all at the same time. When you first install Acrobat 6, it comes with a number of predefined batch sequences. You can then edit these sequences or create your own to fit the work you need done by Acrobat. The key to successful batch processing is setting up an input folder in which you’ve moved all the PDF documents that need processing with a particular batch sequence and, if you’re going to run a sequence that makes changes to the PDF documents, setting up another output folder to hold all the processed files (which you specify as part of the batch sequence).