Preview is the default app for opening and editing images and PDF files in macOS. It has several useful tools built into it. For instance, Preview offers a color palette in the Annotations Toolbar to allow users to highlight PDF documents in different colors. In short, Preview is a highly capable PDF utility and image editor that can help you annotate a variety of files, ranging from PDFs to JPGs.
Using the same subscription version of Word as CPG 1 and having exactly the same problem of super faint highlighting on my Mac. I Have tried changing all the settings on the computer to no avail. Wondering if it is related to using Mac display 'dark mode'. I hope that someone has found a solution they can share.
- MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Highlight Face Powder is a luxurious, slow-baked, velvety soft, domed face powder with a radiant finish. Strategically buff on to add highlights to the high points of the face, or blend all over for a sheer luminous polish to the skin.
- Standard Shipping is always complimentary on MAC Gift Cards. No offer code necessary. Shipping offer not applicable to Pro members. Place order prior to 3:00 PM EST for same day processing. Please note, due to the volume of orders, processing may take 1-3 business days.For details on free returns, click here.
The Preview app was changed a bit in High Sierra. As usual, most of the changes lean towards the positive side. However, there are a few changes that inconvenienced users. For instance, the right-click functionality in Preview no longer has an option for highlighting text. Sometimes it is also hard to open multiple PDFs files in a single Preview window. Perhaps the most troubling one is that annotations in PDFs and image files are crippled. Performing simple operations, such as adding a note or highlighting text, requires more clicking and mouse-pointing steps. In some cases, the entire color palette in the Annotations Toolbar is dimmed, so you can’t select any color. In fact, some users have found Preview highlight not working on High Sierra. Unfortunately, most of these users have no idea why the Mac Preview highlight is disabled.
It is frustrating that Preview on High Sierra isn’t better. But don’t get me wrong – I still believe that Preview is far more useful than most apps. That is why we developed this guide to help you resolve the Mac Preview highlight problem. In any case, we have all come across a bug or two while using different computer programs, and Preview is not an exception.
How to Fix the Mac Preview Highlight Problem?
Annotations are actually part of PDF standards, and most PDF readers, such as Adobe Acrobat, Foxit, and Preview, are cross-compatible with standard annotation and highlighting formats. So PDF-related inconsistencies could be ruled out in this case. To help you fix this issue, we will recommend some common troubleshooting steps for non-responsive Preview tools.
Step 1: Use Another Account for Testing
Before you try other troubleshooting steps, check whether the unexpected behavior is related to files or settings in your user account:
- Click on the Apple menu and choose System Preferences > Users & Groups.
- Click on the user icon and then enter a password and administrator name.
- Tap on the Add button (+) and complete the provided fields, then click OK.
- Ensure the documents you want to test are available to the new user account. You can drag them to the Shared folder.
- Remember to log out of your current account and log in with the new account details. If you are asked to sign in with your Apple ID or iCloud account, skip that step.
- Now try to use Preview in your new account. If Mac Preview highlight is disabled, then know that the issue is not related to settings or files in your user account.
Step 2: Restart Your Mac in Safe Mode
There could be something wrong with your Mac. To isolate issues with your computer, restart it in Safe Mode. Starting your Mac in Safe Mode will prevent some applications from automatically loading. It will also perform certain checks. Follow these simple instructions to boot your Mac in Safe Mode:
- Restart your Mac, then instantly press and hold the Shift key.
- Wait for the Apple logo to appear on your display.
- After that, release the Shift key and log in to your account.
- Your Mac will check and repair the startup disk directory, and then it will restart automatically.
Step 3: Update Preview to the Latest Version
Apple may have listened to the growing discontent about the problem of Preview highlight not working on High Sierra and released a fix to this issue. Therefore, updating your Preview to the latest version may resolve your problem and other common bugs.
Alternative Solutions
Sometimes Preview does not support editing of scanned PDF files. You can use an inexpensive third-party Optical Character Recognition (OCR) application to resolve this problem.
You can also highlight text using the line-drawing tool, but you need to set the color to a transparent yellow or simply choose a color of your choice and click on the ‘Show colors’ option to change the opacity for highlights to about 50 percent. For bigger fonts, select the thickest line to ensure that highlight covers the whole text.
Additional Tip: Check for and Repair Errors on Your Mac
Junk and corrupted computer files can make macOS misbehave. You should, therefore, scan for and repair bad sectors within your Mac. Viruses that target macOS are rare, but they exist.
Besides sluggish performance, one of the most cited symptoms of malware infections is misbehaving apps. You can avoid most Mac problems by using an intuitive repair tool such as Tweakbit MacRepair. This repair tool will pinpoint and remove infections within your system.
How to Highlight Files in Preview?
Highlighting text is usually an important task, yet most Mac users are still unsure about how to do it. Thankfully, you can use Preview to make highlights and other markup options. Please follow these steps to activate text in Preview:
- To highlight text in Preview, open the specific file using the app.
- With the file open, tap on the Tools option in the menu bar and then choose Annotate.
- From here, hit on the Highlight button and select the text you want to highlight.
- Repeat this process as necessary.
You can expedite this process by using the Markup Toolbar, which has shortcut icons for regular tasks, such as highlighting text. If your Markup Toolbar is not visible, tap on the View option in the Preview Title Bar and select Show Markup Toolbar.
Wrap-Up
Spend some time experimenting with a few tools in Preview. If you haven’t previously used the highlight option or other annotation capabilities, you will find the Annotation tool to be so helpful.
Preview is simple to use, and it is already built into your macOS, so there is no need to load or buy an expensive third-party app to open files or perform routine PDF editing tasks.
If you have an issue with highlighting on Preview, the above troubleshooting steps should help you to fix it. But if you experience this problem repeatedly, consider contacting the Apple Support team. We would love to know how it goes. Please share your experience with us in the comments.
See more information about Outbyte and uninstall instructions. Please review EULA and Privacy Policy.
Sep 29,2020 • Filed to: Edit PDF
With the popularity of PDF documents comes the need to manipulate the text for instance highlighting. You may need to highlight PDF documents with PDF highlighter for several reasons:
- Highlight important information in long documents for your reference for example when you read.
- Sharing of information which you need the other reader to see first.
- Highlighting the areas of the PDF that need correction.
- In case of annotations, highlight will show where exactly the comments and any other markup point to.
There are several programs in use today that have the highlighter for PDF features. Here are the top ten PDF highlighters for both the Mac and Windows platforms, including PDFelement Pro.
Part 1: Top 5 PDF Highlighter for Mac
#1: PDFelement Pro for Mac
Among the most popular software, PDFelement Pro is an all-in-one software for the creation, editing, conversion to other formats, annotation and most importantly highlighting PDF documents. You access the PDF highlighter feature using the Highlight button at the top right corner. It is simple; you click the highlight button and select the text to highlight. You can change the color of the highlight to green, red, and any other custom color you want. You can enjoy a broad range of other features with this software.
- Easily highlight PDF files and add a sticky note, text box, and freehand drawing to PDF.
- Edit PDF texts, links, images, pages with multiple editing tools as easy as working on Word files.
- Convert PDF to Word, Excel, PPT, EPUB, images, and convert multiple PDF files in Batch.
- Easily fill out the PDF form and extract data from PDF forms in 1 click.
- OCR scanned PDF and allow you to combine, split, and compress PDF files.
#2: Foxit Reader for Mac
A flagship PDF Reader for Foxit software is the second in this list of the best highlighter for PDF. It is a reliable and versatile program that enables you to view, create, convert or annotate your documents. The user interface gives users just what they need making the handling of PDF documents an effortless process. As you view your document, you can select and highlight important information. You can leave comments and use an array of other markup tools in this application.
#3: Scribus for Mac
Scribus is open-source publishing software that offers a range of features besides versatile PDF creation. You will enjoy the user-friendly interface as you deal with PDF documents from creation, editing and other manipulations. The highlight feature enables you to view key points at a glance if it is a long document. There are two versions, one stable and the other more recent one under development and so you will choose according to your needs. Whether you are a professional or a beginner, Scribus is a good choice.
#4: PDF-X change for Mac
Control Highlight For Mac
One of the reliable software is this highlighter for PDF editor that allows users to personalize the pages with sticky notes beside the addition of images and manipulation of text. Highlighting is simple on this application and therefore a good option when looking for good PDF software. The changes you make in the document are saved with the document, and thus you can open later and access the text as you highlighted it. The tooltip feature allows you to see what will happen before you do a particular action.
#5: Preview
Highlight For Macbook Pro
This free pdf highlighter helps accomplish most PDF needs effortlessly. You can edit or view images besides the PDF editing feature. Users can view PDF, add simple modifications, annotate, and highlight PDF documents seamlessly on this application developed by NeXT. Other features include the editing and filling of forms that is the current trend. You can view and print the PDF documents at a click of a button. It completes the list of the top 5 highlighters for Mac.
Highlight Tool For Mac
Part 2: Top 5 PDF Highlighter for Windows
#1: PDFelement Pro for Windows
The best software in this group is this PDFelement Pro for Windows that gives you control over your PDF files. With this software, you can insert, delete, extract and add watermark, change the background and other things. The highlight for PDF feature allows you to manage the information in your documents easily. Highlighting enables you to master your documents as you read, though. Another feature that goes hand in hand is annotation is an excellent way to manipulate your work.
#2: Foxit Reader
Currently, the best alternative for Adobe Reader is the Foxit reader that is available for both Windows and Mac. Just like the Mac version, the Windows version is suitable for creating, viewing, converting, annotating PDF documents and an array of other features. With this pdf reader with highlight functions, you can easily interact with your document in an easy-to-use interface. The interface is ribbon-based similar to Microsoft office thus easier for you to navigate the application. It meets your expectations in dealing with PDF.
#3: Nitro PDF Reader
Among the best highlighters for PDF, Nitro pdf reader with highlighter stands out with its amazing capabilities in handling PDF. You can scan, edit and convert documents using this software. Review of documents, securing and conversion of PDF to other formats makes this software a one-stop solution to all needs. The highlight feature that comes along with annotation and markup is crucial in enabling you to personalize your document the way you may want it to be.
#4: Adobe Acrobat Pro
The standard pdf reader with a highlighter for windows is Adobe which delivers all you need in dealing with your documents. Ability to handle even the most complex documents that some other PDF software cannot handle, Acrobat has stood tall even with many alternatives available. Among the features users can access, is the highlight for PDF which comes in handy when reading documents. Adobe gives more flexibility and the ability to customize your highlighting. The premium version is what gives you access to these features and more.
#5: Xodo PDF Reader & Editor
To complete the list of the best PDF highlighters is this innovative Xodo PDF Reader and Editor that makes handling PDF documents an enjoyable thing. Besides the powerful viewing, creation, and editing, you can highlight your text in an easy way. It comes together with other exciting annotating features like underline, strikeout text, the addition of sticky notes, and the addition of text. You just click on the highlight button and then select the text to highlight. You can customize the colors to suit your preference. It is available for Windows 8.1 and later versions only. It is available for free download from Microsoft store.
The list of the best PDF highlighters is long, but these ten applications enable you to highlight PDF documents besides a lot more features. Both free and premium software is available and depending on your budget, you can find what is best for you. The premium versions have trial versions where you can see how best it suits you before purchasing it.