Can I copy and paste parts of my PDF?

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PDF files aren’t designed to be edited, but with forScore 11.2 and a forScore Pro subscription you can make structural changes to your scores using Page Copy & Paste. To manipulate the contents of a page, open the Layers panel and choose the “PDF” layer, then use the selection tool to copy, cut, and paste measures as needed. You can copy and paste page contents on the same page, between pages of the same document, and even between documents.

  • Navigate to the page containing elements you’d like to copy and enter annotation mode.
  • Open the layers panel and choose the “PDF” entry at the top of the list.
  • Tap to activate the Selection tool, if needed, and tap it again to switch between freeform (circle) or rectangular modes.
  • Select a portion of the page and tap the clipboard icon to copy the outlined contents of the page, or tap the scissors icon to “cut” it.
  • If pasting on another page, exit annotation mode, navigate to the target page, and enter annotation mode again.
  • Choose the layer you want to paste your elements into (this can be any layer, not just the PDF layer).
  • Ensure that the selection tool is still active (if an area is currently selected, tap the dimmed portion of the page to deselect it).
  • Tap the page to place the Paste indicator, then tap the clipboard icon to paste your contents into the highlighted area.
  • Drag your pasted selection to reposition it, if needed, then tap outside of it to finish this process.

Page Copy & Paste is currently available exclusively to forScore Pro subscribers. If you’re a forScore Pro subscriber and you make structural edits to a document, you can still share it with colleagues—either send an annotated PDF file with permanently embedded annotations, or share a 4SC file (the receiver can show, hide, or clear the PDF layer but can not make any changes of their own).

Note: forScore cannot copy vector information stored within a PDF file, it can only copy a high-resolution image of the selected portion of a page. If you’re working with vector-based files (which can be enlarged without limit), changes made using Page Copy & Paste will appear pixelated at higher zoom levels. Whenever possible, permanent or archival changes should be made using the same source material and application that was used to create the original PDF file in the first place.

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