https://bugs.documentfoundation.org/show_bug.cgi?id=158173

V Stuart Foote <[email protected]> changed:

           What    |Removed                     |Added
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                 CC|                            |[email protected]
             Blocks|                            |99746

--- Comment #2 from V Stuart Foote <[email protected]> ---
Aside from providing a specific example needing attention, please note: PDF is
a final display/printing publishing format not structured to be editable.

LibreOffice is not a PDF editor. Rather it performs a filter "import"
(poppler/cairo based) where we parse the PDF content and render as new content
on an ODF document canvas (Draw by default, but alternatively to Writer or
Impress).

During its lossy import each "object" (text run or graphic) from the PDF is
parsed and converted into an appropriate LO draw object and placed. The filters
do a reasonable job converting the content, but in no sense is the original PDF
being edited. And the resulting draw object will probably differ from its
source in PDF. There is of course potential to improve fidelity of LO import
filter(s) for *some* PDF elements. 

LO provides an alternative "Insert as image" import filter based on the Chrome
projects pdfium libs that will render one PDF page at a time in high-fidelity
as a single inserted raster image on ODF document canvas. With this filter path
ODF draw objects are not created from the PDF runs.

You can also convert your PDF externally from LO, and import PDF pages in a
different format, e.g. use pdftocairo -svg (another poppler/cairo based
project). Then insert the SVG content to an LO document. That filter path also
works (helpful for vector graphics) but can have similar issues with fidelity
of draw objects created from the SVG.

Bottom line--don't expect to use a PDF published source as an editable
document, they aren't.  If you can, best to obtain the original document. If
you can't, just realize the LO provided PDF import filter(s) will probably
loose fidelity to published original during creation of ODF drawing objects.

A double whammy as the popple/cairo based PDF export filters are used to
convert ODF drawing objects when creating a PDF export from ODF.  A "print to
PDF" (i.e. gs/ps based) can create a better PDF output.


Referenced Bugs:

https://bugs.documentfoundation.org/show_bug.cgi?id=99746
[Bug 99746] [META] PDF import filter in Draw
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