Reader's Bench
User's Guide
Introduction
Reader's Bench is a PDF reader and markup app with note-taking features optimized for serious reading.
Read, Annotate, Take notes, and Review for a study and research!
Reader’s Bench has versatile features with lightning-speed performance and handles a big PDF file efficiently. No more distractions from reading and study.
* Read
- PDF reader
- Vertical/Horizontal, Single/Continuous pages
- Lookup word definition
- Translate sentence
- Apple Intelligence Writing Tool
- Instant search
- Bookmarks
* Take a note
- Add annotated texts & clipped image box to note
- Handwriting & Drawing
- Expandable canvas
- Supporting background patterns and colors
- Export notes to share as pdf or print
* Annotate
- Highlight, Underline, Strikethrough with various colours
- Take a box image capture for anywhere of the pdf pages
- Handwriting
- Insert typed text box and image box
- Link all these annotations to note and annotation extraction review
- Export annotated pdf to share or print
* Review
- Automatic extraction of highlighted annotations
- Instant search
- Export review excerpts to share as pdf or print
- Drag and drop annotations from review to Note
Getting Started
Creating new document
To create a new document, touch the '+' button on the top menubar or the 'Create Document' icon in the app folder.
Importing PDF file
When a new document is created, there will be no imported pdf file or created note. To import a pdf file, touch the import button on the top menubar, and the import popover sheet will be displayed.
You can choose a pdf file you want to import from any location.
Creating a note
You can create a note by using the new note button on the top menubar.
When the note is created, it is opened in view mode. You can touch the handwriting button on the top menubar to write or draw on the note.
Writing or drawing with fingers
After enabling handwriting mode, you can use various drawing tools on the bottom. You can use an Apple pencil, or you can use a finger to draw or write by changing the configuration in the pencil kit settings.
Disabling dark mode color
Reader's Bench matches the system dark mode settings and inverts the colors to reduce the strength of bright colors. If the inverted color doesn't read well in PDF document view with annotation colors, you can disable the dark mode color by changing the settings in the more menu.
PDF Reader & Markup
Sending annotation from PDF document view to Note (using edit menu)
Tap annotation in the PDF document view
In the edit menu select "Send to note" menu
Annotation will be added to the middle of the current Note View
Sending annotation from PDF document view to Note (using drag & drop)
Tap annotation in the PDF document view
Press the selected annotation until drag preview image appears
Drag the selected annotation to Note Canvas View
Drop the annotation to any location in the Note Canvas View
Changing captured image (square annotation) highlight color
Tap inside of image capture (square box)
Square box border will be changed to dashed line and edit menu will appear
Select any color from the edit menu
* You can choose color picker menu to select any color not listed in the edit menu.
Resizing captured image (square annotation)
Tap inside of image capture (square box)
Square box border will be changed to dashed line and edit menu will appear
Drag any inside corner of the square box to change the size
Select any color to finalize the change
* If you tap out side of the square box, it will cancel the modification and will go back to original size and color.
Annotation Extraction & Review
Locating annotation in PDF document and Note
Open PDF document view or Note view along with the Annotation Extraction view
Tap annotation in annotation extraction view
PDF document view and Note view will be focused to the location of the tapped annotation
Sending annotation from Annotation Extraction view to Note (Drag & drop)
Select and drag annotation fromAnnotation Extraction view
Drag the annotation to the Note
Drop the annotation to any location in the Note
Dragging annotation from extraction view to PDF view
Dragging an annotation from the extraction view and dropping it to the PDF document view will change the PDF page on the view to the page and place where that specific annotation exists.
Note Taking
Selecting annotation in Note
Tap any annotations in the note view
Selected annotation will be highlighted with dashed line border
To add additional annotations you can keep selecting another annotations
To exclude any selected annotations you can tap the highlighted annotation again
With selected annotations you can resize, move, or delete them
Deleting annotation from Note
Tap an annotation to remove and it will be highlighted with dashed line border
Press and wait until the context menu appears
Select Remove from Note
Adding image or text to Note from another app
You can drag and drop an image or text from another app by selecting the image or text and dragging it to Reader's Bench's Note. Reader's Bench will create a new image or text annotation in the PDF document by adding an image to the note. So, the PDF document should be opened to add an image to the note.
Tips & Tricks
Entering full screen mode (hiding top toolbar)
You can enable pdf document view in the full screen mode by touching(tapping) in the middle of the pdf view. It will hide the top toolbar and gives you more readable space. You can get the tool bar back by touching the middle of the pdf view again.
Focusing note to a specific position
When you double-tap anywhere on the note view canvas, the point tapped will be centred and zoomed to 100%.
Clipping pdf view to a fixed zoom and position
If you zoom and position the page in a single page view mode, it will be clipped with the configured zoom level and position, and you can use a swipe gesture to change pages with the same cut view.
Exporting PDF document without markup annotations
Select More menu (...)
Select Export/Print in PDF Section
Wait until preparation progress complete
Select Print
Turn off Print PDF Annotations option
Select share button on the top
Reducing the image size before importing it to Reader's Bench
Reader's Bench will keep the original resolution of the image inserted into it. If many high-resolution photos are inserted, the size of the document will be increased to the number of the images. Please try to reduce the quality or size of the image before inserting if you are adding many images.