Completing PDF forms

[#1]

I run a paperless office and hate it when I get a PDF form to complete, because it means printing a paper copy, filling it in by hand and then scanning it - all too complicated.
I already use PDF995 which lets me "print" a document as a PDF file.  So sometimes, I open a Word document, paste a "picture" of the PDF form and then use text boxes to complete the form, then print the whole thing as a PDF file using PDF995.  It works, but it is a bit fiddly.
Can anyone suggest a better way of doing this ?  I am not referring to PDF forms that have been generated with auto fields for completion; I am talking about the lowest form of PDF file.  I also realise that no doubt purchasing Adobe Acrobat or something like that is the right solution, but I am simply too mean (even with the wonderful generous reduction in VAT !)
PDF995 is freeware and works very well, but it does not have a facility to amend PDF documents.
Any ideas appreciated.

[#2]

I came across this yesterday and tried it a couple of times and it did convert PDF to Word. I was able to edit and save the word doc.
http://convertpdftoword.net/
Might be worth a try to see if it helps you.

[#3]

Thanks.  I tried it.  Unfortunatelly, all it did was to convert the PDF into a picture which was then opened in Word, much like I already do.  To complete the form, I would then have to use text boxes in Word like I did before.  Thanks anyway for the link.

[#4]

Oh well never mind.
I just tested with a couple of simple text PDF, not forms that you would need to work with.
Good luck with the paperless office!

[#5]

You could try Foxit pdf editor. You can get a trial here http://www.foxitsoftware.com to see if it works for you, it's $99 which is a bit cheaper than Adobe Acrobat.

[#6]

...unless there are issues with it

[#7]

Thanks for the heads up

[#8]

This one may do what you want and it is free http://www.docu-track.com/home/prod_user/PDF-XChange_Tools/pdfx_viewer/
There is a screen print of a form I received as a pdf file with the bit I added using the Typewriter tool

[#9]

Find someone with a Epson printer as most of them you get free OCR software which will scan the pdf and make it into a word document as text and pictures  or you could try
http://www.softi.co.uk/freeocr.htm
Which is a free OCR software if you google for free ocr software there is loads of free ones. Its costing more in time and effort than just buying Adobe pdf were you could edit them straight away

[#10]

Thanks so much for all the feedback and suggestions.
Oldjim's solution - http://www.docu-track.com...Change_Tools/pdfx_viewer/ - is just what the doctor ordered.  I have tried it and it does just what I want - it lets me complete forms without difficulty using "Typewriter" mode.
Combining PDFviewer above with http://www.pdf995.com (also freeware) in fact gives you every feature you could want.  PDF995 lets you extract or add pages and also lets you convert any document format to PDF format, neither of which PDFViewer does.  For instance, it is an ideal "screen dump" to retain a copy in PDF format of any display, like a *.mht file or perhaps ctrl+alt+prtscr which is cumbersome.  It is a virtual printer, so that when you hit the "Print" button, you can select PDF995 and simply print to file.  Wonderful for a paperless office.  And with Google Desktop everything is so much more easy to find than with paper files !
One feature of Oldjim's solution which I particularly like is there is a portable version - in other words, there is no installation, no messing up the registry.  It is completely stand-alone.  So often I try a new piece of software, don't like it, try to uninstall and find it leaves behind all sorts of bits and pieces and must make a mess of the registry.  PDF995 is also stand-alone.
I'm delighted with the solution.  So the Plusnet forum did it again !  Thanks to all.

[#11]

Glad we could help.
I actually use Cutepdf which is almost the same as pdf995 but doesn't allow the addition of pages - goes away to check pdf995

[#12]

PDFCreator is another to look at. It's very simple to use.

[#13]

  Thanks Oldjim for a solution to a problem that's been haunting me for months...........

[#14]

Quote from: Oldjim

Glad we could help. I actually use Cutepdf which is almost the same as pdf995 but doesn't allow the addition of pages - goes away to check pdf995

Remember, the addition of pages is a feature of PDFEdit995 which is a seprate download but still freeware. PDF995 is only the virtual printer.

[#15]

For anybody using Linux there is <a href="http://pdfedit.petricek.net/index_e.html">PDFedit</a>. It is in its early stages of development and the interface needs some work, but it seems to do the job.