Download Collections as a single PDF

Collections are a great way to organize and share content in a customizable way. Most of the time, viewing them in Showpad is a great way to present information virtually or on the go. Sometimes, it can be useful for sales reps to be able to control the order in which the information is viewed, especially if users will not be online when they view it. One way to do this is to download Collections as a single PDF file that can be easily shared online or printed out for a full picture to be perused at one's leisure, perhaps at a fancy restaurant or a spa.

Of course, it’s possible that not all files within a Collection are PDF-compatible. We have a plan for those: we'll add a placeholder in the PDF that directs readers to the original content on Showpad, so your pack of content appears seamlessly as one file.

Key features

• Option to download single items or full Collections as PDF
• Incompatible files will have a placeholder in the PDF
  • Those files will download separately in a .zip file
• One Collection all in one place

You need this to succeed

• Your Showpad account on the Web App
• Collections must be available offline before they can be downloaded 

The quick way

1. Log in to Showpad on the Web App
2. Choose a Collection
3. Download items separately or as a single PDF

Do this step by step

On the Web App, you can download content contained in a Collection as individual items or download the whole Collection as a single PDF. Showpad combines the various file types in the collection and converts them into a compatible PDF. Here’s how to do it:

1. Navigate to the Content tab and then select Collections.
2. Choose the Collection you’d like to download. Hover over it and click the three dot menu. Hover over Other, then Download, and choose whether to download as a single PDF or as separate items.

3. When you select Download > As separate items, a .zip file will download. Unzip the downloaded file and open the folder to find your content in its original format. 

   Note: If individual slides from PowerPoint or Google Slides, or pages from Word or Google Docs, have been added to the Collection, they will download as separate PDF files rather than in their native formats.

   It will look something like this: When you choose Download > As a single PDF, a processing box will pop up in the lower right-hand corner. The time required is based on the quantity and size of the requested items. When Showpad is finished stitching them together, the download will begin. If all files are compatible with PDF, you will get a single PDF file when you download them. Any files that are incompatible with a PDF viewer (such as video and 3D assets) will still be downloaded separately, and in that case, you would receive a .zip file that will look similar to this:

4. If files are incompatible, your PDF will include placeholders for assets that don't fit in that format. For instance, a video file will appear in the document with the accompanying text, “This slide was originally an mp4 file and could not be converted into a PDF. You can find the original file in the .ZIP that was downloaded.” It also includes a working link to the original video within Adobe Reader. The same type of placeholder will appear for URL assets, 3D .zip files, Showpad Pages, and videos. You will not receive an accompanying file for a URL or Showpad Page, but the PDF placeholder will link to them when viewed in Adobe Reader.