Looking for a PDF splitting tool to fix the frustrating “Expected an array object” error in Adobe Acrobat? This common issue occurs when splitting PDF files with bookmarks. While you can print to PDF as a workaround, this solution loses all your valuable bookmarks.
Why Adobe Acrobat Fails When Splitting PDFs with Bookmarks
After trying numerous solutions to fix this PDF splitting error in Adobe Acrobat, I discovered that certain PDF structures simply don’t work well with Acrobat’s built-in splitting functionality. The error appears to relate to how bookmarks are handled during the splitting process.
The SplitPDF Tool Solution
Fortunately, I found a free PDF splitting tool that handles these problematic files perfectly. SplitPDF.jar is an open-source Java application that can split PDFs by bookmarks without generating errors. You can find more information about this tool on the PDF Split and Merge project website.
How to Use the PDF Splitting Tool
Using this PDF splitting tool is straightforward. You’ll need Java installed on your computer. Then run the following command in your terminal or command prompt:
java -jar splitpdf.jar -iFile "filename.pdf" -bLevel 1 -UniqueSplitFilename -oFolder c:\outfolder
This command will split your PDF at the first bookmark level and save each section as a separate file in your specified output folder.
Benefits of Using SplitPDF for PDF Splitting
- Preserves all bookmarks in the split files
- Avoids the “Expected an array object” error
- Free and open-source solution
- Works with complex PDF structures
For those who regularly work with PDF documents, having a reliable PDF splitting tool is essential. If you’re dealing with more complex PDF manipulation, you might also want to check out PDFtk for additional functionality.
The best PDF splitting tool solutions preserve document structure while fixing common errors that plague Adobe Acrobat users.
Have you encountered other PDF splitting issues? Let me know in the comments below!