Compact Serialization — ObviousPDF Examples

📦 Compact Serialization

Reduce PDF file size by 20–40% with cross-reference streams and object streams (PDF 1.5+).

Compact Serialization

using ObviousPDF;
using ObviousPDF.Accessibility;
using ObviousPDF.Fonts;

var doc = new PdfDocument();
doc.Info.Title = "Compact Serialization";
doc.Language = "en-US";
doc.DisplayDocTitle = true;
doc.UseCrossReferenceStreams = true;
doc.UseObjectStreams = true;

var root = doc.EnableTaggedPdf();
var page = doc.AddPage();

var h1 = root.AddChild(StructureType.H1);
page.AddTaggedText(h1, "Compact Serialization", 72, 740,
    new PdfTextOptions { Font = StandardFont.HelveticaBold, FontSize = 20 });

var p = root.AddChild(StructureType.P);
page.AddTaggedTextBlock(p, new[]
{
    "This PDF uses cross-reference streams and object streams",
    "for maximum file size reduction.",
    "",
    "Cross-reference streams: Binary xref in FlateDecode stream",
    "Object streams: Multiple objects in one compressed stream",
    "",
    "These features are recommended for modern PDFs (PDF 1.5+)."
}, 72, 700, new PdfTextOptions { FontSize = 12, Leading = 18 });

doc.Save("compact_serialization.pdf");

Imports ObviousPDF
Imports ObviousPDF.Accessibility
Imports ObviousPDF.Fonts

Dim doc As New PdfDocument()
doc.Info.Title = "Compact Serialization"
doc.Language = "en-US"
doc.DisplayDocTitle = True
doc.UseCrossReferenceStreams = True
doc.UseObjectStreams = True

Dim root = doc.EnableTaggedPdf()
Dim page = doc.AddPage()

Dim h1 = root.AddChild(StructureType.H1)
page.AddTaggedText(h1, "Compact Serialization", 72, 740,
    New PdfTextOptions With { .Font = StandardFont.HelveticaBold, .FontSize = 20 })

Dim p = root.AddChild(StructureType.P)
page.AddTaggedTextBlock(p, New String() {
    "This PDF uses cross-reference streams and object streams",
    "for maximum file size reduction.",
    "",
    "Cross-reference streams: Binary xref in FlateDecode stream",
    "Object streams: Multiple objects in one compressed stream",
    "",
    "These features are recommended for modern PDFs (PDF 1.5+)."
}, 72, 700, New PdfTextOptions With { .FontSize = 12, .Leading = 18 })

doc.Save("compact_serialization.pdf")

open ObviousPDF
open ObviousPDF.Accessibility
open ObviousPDF.Fonts

let doc = PdfDocument()
doc.Info.Title <- "Compact Serialization"
doc.Language <- "en-US"
doc.DisplayDocTitle <- true
doc.UseCrossReferenceStreams <- true
doc.UseObjectStreams <- true

let root = doc.EnableTaggedPdf()
let page = doc.AddPage()

let h1 = root.AddChild(StructureType.H1)
page.AddTaggedText(h1, "Compact Serialization", 72.0, 740.0,
    PdfTextOptions(Font = StandardFont.HelveticaBold, FontSize = 20.0))

let p = root.AddChild(StructureType.P)
page.AddTaggedTextBlock(p, [|
    "This PDF uses cross-reference streams and object streams"
    "for maximum file size reduction."
    ""
    "Cross-reference streams: Binary xref in FlateDecode stream"
    "Object streams: Multiple objects in one compressed stream"
    ""
    "These features are recommended for modern PDFs (PDF 1.5+)."
|], 72.0, 700.0, PdfTextOptions(FontSize = 12.0, Leading = 18.0))

doc.Save("compact_serialization.pdf")

Add-Type -Path "ObviousPDF.dll"

$doc = [ObviousPDF.PdfDocument]::new()

# Enable cross-reference streams (PDF 1.5+)
# Replaces the ASCII cross-reference table with
# a compressed binary stream — smaller files.
$doc.UseCrossReferenceStreams = $true

# Enable object streams (PDF 1.5+)
# Packs multiple small objects into a single
# compressed stream — further size reduction.
$doc.UseObjectStreams = $true

# Build the document as usual...
$doc.Info.Title = "Compact PDF"
$doc.Language = "en-US"
$doc.DisplayDocTitle = $true
$root = $doc.EnableTaggedPdf()

$h1 = $root.AddChild([ObviousPDF.Accessibility.StructureType]::H1)
$page = $doc.AddPage()
$page.AddTaggedText($h1, "Compact Serialization",
    72, 720, [ObviousPDF.PdfTextOptions]@{
        Font  = [ObviousPDF.Fonts.StandardFont]::HelveticaBold
        FontSize = 20
    })

$p = $root.AddChild([ObviousPDF.Accessibility.StructureType]::P)
$page.AddTaggedText($p,
    ("This PDF uses cross-reference streams " +
    "and object streams for smaller file size."),
    72, 690)

$doc.Save("compact.pdf")
# File size is 20-40% smaller than default!

📄 Download Example PDF

Screenshot comparing two PDF files side by side: the default serialization file at approximately 4.2 KB and the compact serialization file at approximately 2.8 KB, with a green arrow showing the 33% size reduction — both containing identical content

You should see a bold "Compact Serialization" heading and a seven-line paragraph explaining cross-reference streams and object streams. The PDF itself is notably smaller than an equivalent document without these features — check file size in Explorer to confirm (typically ~2.8 KB versus ~4.2 KB for the same content).
File: 18_compact_serialization.pdf

Serialization Options

Property	Default	Effect
`UseCrossReferenceStreams`	`false`	Binary xref table → compressed stream
`UseObjectStreams`	`false`	Packs small objects into compressed streams

📦 Compact Serialization

Serialization Options

♿ Accessibility Note