Xojo Plugin Requires Chilkat v11.7.0+

Search for Text in a PDF

See more PDF Text Extraction Examples

Demonstrates the "search" operation, which finds every occurrence of a string in a PDF and returns each match with its page number and the text around it. Matching ignores case unless caseSensitive is true. Xojo Plugin

Dim success As Boolean
success = False

//  This example requires the Chilkat API to have been previously unlocked.
//  See Global Unlock Sample for sample code.

//  The three-page PDF used in this example is available at search_context.pdf

Dim pdf As New Chilkat.Pdf
success = pdf.LoadFile("qa_data/pdf/search_context.pdf")
If (success = False) Then
    System.DebugLog(pdf.LastErrorText)
    Return
End If

Dim json As New Chilkat.JsonObject
Dim jsonOut As New Chilkat.JsonObject

//  The string to find.
success = json.UpdateString("query","chilkat")

//  The number of characters returned before and after each match.  The default is 40.
success = json.UpdateInt("context",30)

success = pdf.ExtractText("search",json,jsonOut)
If (success = False) Then
    System.DebugLog(pdf.LastErrorText)
    Return
End If

//  "count" is the number of matches.  Each match has the page, the matched text as it appears
//  in the PDF, and the text before and after it.
System.DebugLog("Matches: " + Str(jsonOut.IntOf("count")))

Dim i As Int32
i = 0
Dim count_i As Int32
count_i = jsonOut.SizeOfArray("matches")
While i < count_i
    jsonOut.I = i
    System.DebugLog("page " + Str(jsonOut.IntOf("matches[i].page")) + ": ..." + jsonOut.StringOf("matches[i].before") + "[" + jsonOut.StringOf("matches[i].text") _
         + "]" + jsonOut.StringOf("matches[i].after") + "...")
    i = i + 1
Wend

//  The search ignores case by default.  Set caseSensitive to find only the exact spelling.
success = json.UpdateBool("caseSensitive",True)
success = json.UpdateString("query","Chilkat")
success = pdf.ExtractText("search",json,jsonOut)
If (success = False) Then
    System.DebugLog(pdf.LastErrorText)
    Return
End If

System.DebugLog("Case-sensitive matches for Chilkat: " + Str(jsonOut.IntOf("count")))

//  Sample output:

//  Matches: 5
//  page 1: ...[Chilkat] River Field Notes The Chilkat...
//  page 1: ...Chilkat River Field Notes The [Chilkat] River runs for about fifty mi...
//  page 2: ...DAY ONE: UPPER [CHILKAT] FLATS Clear and cold, minus e...
//  page 2: ...he river is sometimes spelled [chilkat] in older records, and the val...
//  page 3: ...y because the fish run on the [Chilkat] was thinning. Two tagged bird...
//  Case-sensitive matches for Chilkat: 3