How to use the command 'pdfunite' (with examples)

pdfunite is a utility tool for merging multiple PDF files into a single PDF document. It’s particularly useful when you have several related PDF files that you want to consolidate into one for easier management, sharing, or presentation purposes. The tool is part of the Poppler PDF rendering library and is open source, making it a flexible command-line solution for PDF management tasks.

Use case 1: Merging 2 PDFs into a single PDF

Code:

pdfunite path/to/fileA.pdf path/to/fileB.pdf path/to/merged_output.pdf

Motivation:

Imagine you have two separate reports, each saved as PDF documents, that you need to present during a business meeting. By using pdfunite, you can combine these reports into a single PDF file, ensuring a seamless and organized delivery. This can help in avoiding the hassle of switching between documents and maintains a professional flow during your presentation.

Explanation:

• pdfunite: This is the command used to execute the PDF merging process.
• path/to/fileA.pdf: This argument specifies the path and filename of the first PDF document. It is the initial part of your combined output.
• path/to/fileB.pdf: This argument carries the path and filename of the second PDF document you aim to merge with the first one. The contents of this file will follow those of fileA.pdf in the merged output.
• path/to/merged_output.pdf: This is where you specify the desired path and filename for the resulting merged PDF. This final PDF will contain the contents of both fileA.pdf and fileB.pdf, in the order specified.

Example output:

The resulting output, merged_output.pdf, will be a single PDF document that contains the entirety of fileA.pdf followed by fileB.pdf. Suppose fileA.pdf has 5 pages and fileB.pdf has 7 pages; the merged_output.pdf file will thus have a total of 12 pages.

Use case 2: Merging a directory of PDFs into a single PDF

Code:

pdfunite path/to/directory/*.pdf path/to/merged_output.pdf

Motivation:

Consider a scenario where you have numerous chapters of an ebook or manuscript, each chapter saved as a separate PDF file within a directory. For ease of distribution or printing, you want to compile these chapters into a single file. Using pdfunite, you can effortlessly combine all these separate PDFs within the directory into one consolidated document, saving time and preserving the order of chapters.

Explanation:

• pdfunite: Again, this initiates the command for merging PDFs.
• path/to/directory/*.pdf: This crucial argument is a wildcard path specification. Here, it tells pdfunite to include every PDF file found within the specified directory. The * wildcard means that the command will process all files with a .pdf extension present in the directory.
• path/to/merged_output.pdf: Similar to the previous use case, this specifies the output location and filename for the combined PDF. The file will be a comprehensive document containing all the individual PDF files in the directory.

Example output:

The output here will be a single PDF document named merged_output.pdf, containing the combined content of all PDFs located in the directory, ordered alphabetically by the names of the files. If your directory holds 10 PDFs, each with 10 pages, your merged document will contain 100 pages.

Conclusion:

The pdfunite command is a powerful and versatile tool for anyone looking to manage and organize their PDF files more effectively. Whether you’re dealing with a couple of documents or an entire folder of PDFs, pdfunite allows you to merge them into a single file efficiently. It simplifies file handling processes, enhances accessibility, and is particularly useful in both professional and personal settings for maintaining order and reducing clutter.