How to Annotate PDFs with Microsoft OneNote

Edited 3 months ago by ExtremeHow Editorial Team

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In today's digital age, the ability to efficiently annotate PDFs is a vital skill for students, professionals, and nearly everyone who manages digital documents. Microsoft OneNote is a versatile tool that allows you to add comments, highlight text, or draw images directly on PDFs. Understanding how to effectively use OneNote for these purposes can boost your productivity and make handling your digital documents more manageable.

Although Microsoft OneNote is known for its note-taking capabilities, it can also be particularly powerful when it comes to working with PDF documents. This article will walk you through different ways to annotate PDFs using OneNote. Each step will be explained in simple terms, making it easy for anyone to follow, regardless of their technical expertise.

Getting started: Importing PDFs into OneNote

Before you can start annotating a PDF, you must first import it into OneNote. The following steps will guide you through the process:

1. Open Microsoft OneNote. This can be the desktop version or the web version, depending on your preference.
2. Create a new notebook or open an existing notebook where you want to store the annotated PDF.
3. Go to the section or page where you want the PDF to appear.
4. Go to the Insert menu on the toolbar.
5. Select File Printout. This allows you to insert the PDF as a still image that you can write on.
6. Select the PDF file you want to comment on and click Insert. The PDF will appear on the OneNote page as a series of images equal to the number of pages in the PDF.

Now that the PDF is in OneNote, you can annotate it using the various tools provided by OneNote.

Annotation tools in OneNote

Once PDF pages are in OneNote, several tools can be used to annotate them. Here are some of the annotation features available in OneNote:

Highlighting text

Highlighting is one of the most common methods of annotation and allows you to draw attention to key parts of your document.

1. Select the Draw tab on the OneNote toolbar.
2. Select the highlighter tool. It may look like a highlighter icon.
3. Choose a color that contrasts effectively with the text and background of the PDF document.
4. Drag the highlighter across the text you want to highlight. You can adjust the highlighter's thickness in the same toolbar to ensure accuracy.

Adding text notes

You may want to make notes directly on your PDF without obscuring the original text.

1. Still in the Draw tab, select the Text tool. It may also appear as a T icon.
2. Click anywhere on the PDF where you want to place the text. A text box will appear.
3. Write your notes in the text box. Adjust the font size, style, and color to make your notes stand out from the PDF text.

Inserting shapes and lines

Adding shapes or lines can help you connect ideas or focus on specific details inside the document.

1. You can access shapes in the Draw tab by selecting Shapes or a similar option, depending on your version of OneNote.
2. Choose from different shapes like rectangle, circle, arrow, or line.
3. Drag the shape you want to the place you need it on the PDF. You can resize and change the color to suit your annotations.

Freehand drawing and writing

For more personal annotations, freehand drawing can be incredibly useful, especially when using a stylus or touchscreen device.

1. Select a pen tool from the Draw tab. You can choose from different pen styles and colors.
2. Start drawing or writing directly on the PDF. This can be helpful for making quick notations or doodles.
3. Adjust the pen thickness and color as needed to improve visibility or differentiate between different types of annotations.

Working with layers in OneNote

When annotating PDFs, it's important to understand how layers work in OneNote. The PDF file itself becomes a background image on which your writing and drawings sit. This can be beneficial because your annotations are distinct, and you can move or edit them independently.

If you need to move an annotation:

1. Use the Lasso Select tool to draw a line around the annotation.
2. Once selected, move it as needed or edit it using the available toolbar options.

Collaboration and sharing

One of the great features of OneNote is the ability to share notebooks and collaborate in real-time. This feature can be incredibly useful for group projects or shared work environments.

Sharing your annotated PDF

Once you've completed your comments, you can share the annotated PDF with others if you want.

1. First, make sure your OneNote notebook is saved and synchronized with OneDrive or another cloud service integrated with OneNote.
2. Go to the File menu then Share.
3. Choose who you want to share with. You can grant editing permissions or set it to view only.
4. Send sharing links to your colleagues via email or chat platform as needed.

Exporting an annotated PDF

You may want to export annotated PDFs from OneNote for other purposes. Although OneNote doesn't allow exporting directly to PDF, you can use the following alternative methods:

1. Use a third-party PDF printer:
   1. If you don't have a PDF printer tool on your Mac or Windows computer, install it.
   2. “Print” the document from OneNote to a PDF printer. This will convert and save the page as a new PDF.
2. Take a screenshot:
   1. Take screenshots of your annotated OneNote pages and compile them in a PDF editor.
   2. Export images as a single PDF document.

Organizing annotations

It's important to organize your annotations for future reference. OneNote provides features that allow you to categorize your notes and annotations, making them easier to find later.

Tagging annotations

OneNote has tagging options that can help streamline your annotations.

1. Select the text or annotation you want to tag.
2. Use the Tags menu, often found on the Home tab, to assign tags to your selection.
3. Categories can include things like “Important”, “Questions”, or other custom tags you create.

These tags can help you quickly find important notes in a large PDF or multiple documents.

Final thoughts

Annotating PDFs in Microsoft OneNote can transform your digital document management by organizing thoughts, highlighting important information, and collaborating effectively. Using OneNote's integration of tools for text, drawings, and shapes, you can capture a variety of annotation styles to suit your specific needs.

Whether you're a student marking up study guides, a professional reviewing reports, or just someone organizing digital documents, OneNote's capabilities can help make the task easier to manage. While it may seem a bit overwhelming at first, once you become familiar with how OneNote works with PDFs, it can become an invaluable tool in your productivity arsenal.

Start experimenting with these features in OneNote today, and you'll find yourself on the path to a more organized and efficient document workflow.

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