How to Convert PDF to Markdown with cURL, Tutorial

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Why Convert PDF to Markdown with cURL?

The pdfRest PDF to Markdown API Tool is a powerful utility that allows users to convert PDF documents into Markdown format, a lightweight markup language that is easy to read and write. This tutorial will guide you through the process of sending an API call to the PDF to Markdown endpoint using cURL, a command-line tool used for transferring data with URLs. By using cURL, you can automate the conversion process and integrate it into your existing workflows.

A user might want to convert a PDF document to Markdown for easier editing and collaboration. For instance, a technical writer may receive documentation in PDF format and need to convert it to Markdown to integrate it into a version-controlled repository, allowing for collaborative editing and version tracking. By using the PDF to Markdown API, this process can be streamlined and automated, saving time and reducing the potential for errors.

PDF to Markdown with cURL Code Example

curl -X POST "https://api.pdfrest.com/markdown" \
  -H "Accept: application/json" \
  -H "Content-Type: multipart/form-data" \
  -H "Api-Key: xxxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx" \
  -F "file=@/path/to/file"

Source: GitHub Repository

Breaking Down the Code

The provided code is a shell script that uses cURL to send a POST request to the pdfRest API's PDF to Markdown endpoint. Let's break down each part of the code:

curl -X POST "https://api.pdfrest.com/markdown"

This line specifies that we are making a POST request to the URL https://api.pdfrest.com/markdown, which is the endpoint for converting PDFs to Markdown.

-H "Accept: application/json"

This header indicates that the client expects the server to respond with JSON formatted data.

-H "Content-Type: multipart/form-data"

The Content-Type header is set to multipart/form-data, which is necessary for file uploads. This tells the server that the request body contains file data.

-H "Api-Key: xxxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx"

This header includes the API key, which is a unique identifier used to authenticate the request. Replace xxxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx with your actual API key.

-F "file=@/path/to/file"

The -F option is used to specify the file to be uploaded. The @ symbol indicates that the following path is a file path. Replace /path/to/file with the actual path to the PDF file you want to convert.

Beyond the Tutorial

In this tutorial, you learned how to use cURL to send a request to the pdfRest PDF to Markdown API, allowing you to convert PDF files into Markdown format. This process can be integrated into your workflows for automated document conversion.

To explore more about pdfRest API tools, you can demo all available tools in the API Lab. For more detailed information, refer to the API Reference Guide.

Note: This is an example of a multipart API call. Code samples using JSON payloads can be found at GitHub Repository.