Signals Notebook: Differences Between Full and Partial PDF Exports

Overview

When exporting experiments to PDF in Signals Notebook, users may notice differences in font rendering, spacing, column widths, or overall layout between full and partial exports.

These differences occur because the PDF export engine automatically adjusts content to fit within printable page constraints. Large or wide elements, such as Rich Text fields and tables, can affect how surrounding content is positioned and rendered. As a result, a full export may appear differently from a partial export even when the underlying content is unchanged.

This behavior is expected. While layout differences cannot always be eliminated, they can often be reduced through worksheet design and formatting adjustments.

Why Layout Differences Occur

The PDF export engine optimizes content for page size and printability. During export, it may:

• Reflow content to fit within page boundaries.
• Resize or compress wide elements.
• Adjust spacing between elements.
• Substitute or render fonts differently based on PDF generation requirements.
• Recalculate page breaks when additional worksheet content is included.

These adjustments can be more noticeable in full exports because the export engine must account for all worksheet content when determining page layout.

Recommended Adjustments

If significant differences are observed between full and partial exports, review the worksheet layout and adjust elements that consume large amounts of horizontal space.

Rich Text Fields

• Avoid excessively wide Rich Text fields.
• Reduce field width when possible to fit comfortably within the printable area.
• Review formatting that may increase horizontal expansion.

Tables

• Reduce table width where possible.
• Avoid oversized or highly complex tables.
• Keep adjacent elements proportionally sized to minimize layout compression.

Fonts

• Use commonly supported fonts such as Arial or Times New Roman.
• Avoid custom fonts that may render differently during PDF generation.

Page Breaks

If page breaks contribute to layout inconsistencies:

1. Select Actions > Print to PDF.
2. Enable Skip Page Breaks (if available).
3. Generate a new PDF and compare the results.

Validation

After making layout adjustments:

1. Generate both a full and partial PDF export.
2. Compare the resulting layouts.
3. Refine element sizing and formatting as needed.

Because PDF generation is influenced by overall page composition, some differences between export types may remain even after optimization.

Alternative Approaches

If PDF output still does not meet requirements:

Export Content as HTML

Use the GET /entities/{eid}/export API endpoint to export supported content as HTML. This can help preserve the original content structure and formatting without relying on PDF page-layout calculations.