How to Fix Vietnamese Text and Times New Roman Errors When Creating PDFs
Question details
The user is experiencing font rendering issues where Vietnamese characters and Times New Roman text appear incorrect after converting a Word document to a PDF.
- Product
- Microsoft Word 2010 / Adobe Acrobat
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Converting a Microsoft Word document containing Vietnamese text into a PDF file using the Adobe PDFMaker add-in.
- Observed behavior
- The resulting PDF displays corrupted, incorrect, or missing Vietnamese characters, and the Times New Roman font does not render properly.
Verify that your original Word document uses a Unicode-compliant version of Times New Roman that fully supports Vietnamese characters, and ensure your Adobe Acrobat software is up to date.
Enable Font Embedding in the PDF Maker Settings
Force the PDF creator to embed the specific fonts used in your document so that special characters and Vietnamese text render exactly as they do in Word.
When fonts are not embedded during the PDF creation process, the PDF viewer attempts to substitute them with local system fonts. If the viewer lacks the exact font with Vietnamese character support, the text will appear scrambled or display as empty boxes.
Open your document in Microsoft Word 2010. Navigate to the 'Acrobat' tab on the top ribbon and click on 'Preferences'.
In the Acrobat PDFMaker settings window, go to the 'Advanced Settings' or 'Conversion Settings' menu.
Locate the 'Fonts' folder or tab. Check the box labeled 'Embed all fonts' to ensure Times New Roman and the required Vietnamese character sets are included.
Click 'OK' to save your settings, then click 'Create PDF' from the Acrobat ribbon to generate a new file with embedded fonts.
Use Microsoft Word's Native Save As PDF Feature
Bypass the Acrobat add-in completely by utilizing Microsoft Word's built-in PDF export feature, which handles standard Unicode font embedding natively.
Create Flawless PDFs with WPS Office
Avoid third-party plugin errors and font corruption entirely. WPS Office features a powerful, built-in PDF converter that automatically embeds Unicode fonts, ensuring complex scripts like Vietnamese text render perfectly every time.
- 1. Open Document in WPS Office: Launch WPS Office Writer and open your Word document containing the Vietnamese text.
- 2. Access Export Menu: Click on the 'Menu' button located in the top-left corner of the interface.
- 3. Select Export to PDF: Choose 'Export to PDF' from the dropdown list to open the conversion dialog.
- 4. Export the File: Confirm your save location and settings, then click the 'Export' button to instantly generate a perfect PDF.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do Vietnamese characters appear as boxes or question marks in my exported PDF?
This occurs when the font used in the original document is not embedded in the PDF during creation, or if the PDF viewer on the device lacks a local font that supports the necessary Vietnamese Unicode characters.
How do I check if my fonts are successfully embedded in an existing PDF file?
Open your PDF file, go to 'File' > 'Properties' (or 'Document Properties'), and navigate to the 'Fonts' tab. You should see the text '(Embedded)' or '(Embedded Subset)' listed right next to the font name.
What should I do if a font cannot be embedded due to licensing restrictions?
If a specific font restricts embedding, you must switch the text to a universally supported and embeddable Unicode font like Arial, Calibri, or an updated version of Times New Roman before converting the document to PDF.
