How to reduce document size

Sometimes we add big images to a document, and reduce its size to fit our needs. But still, the document has a big size. Here we can see how to compress the images inside the document without losing quality but at the same time reducing the document size.

We start with a big image inside a text document:

Original document with big image

Because the image is big, the document is also big:

Original document Size

With a few more images, it can occupy too much. We need to compress the image, but without losing image quality.

1. Select compress image

Click with the right mouse button on the image. A context menu will be presented. Click on “Compress Graphic”:

Select compress image

2. Calculate new size and apply

A compression dialog will be presented. Click on the “Calculate” button to determine the new size.

Click on calculate

It might take a few seconds. Then click on “OK” to apply the new size. The dialog will close, and it might hang for a few seconds again.

Click ok to apply compression

3. Save and compare sizes

To compare sizes, we will save the document with a new name:

Save document with compressed image

And check the document size. Notice how it is much smaller than previously, while the image looks the same.

Size of document with compressed image

4. Done

And that’s it. Here is a video with all the steps above:

How to Add Image Caption

Sometimes we want to add a small text next to an image. This post describes how to do it with LibreOffice. This is similar to how is done with OpenOffice.

Step 1 – Select Image

Click on the image to select it. You know it is selected because of the green squares on its edges.

Step 2 – Insert Caption

On the top menu click on “Insert > Caption…”. This will open the caption edit window.

Step 3 – Select Category

Each caption contains a number. This number is automatically updated when captions are added or removed and can be used for creating an image index (more on this in a future post). We can have many series of numberings. For example, we may have drawings and photos in the document and want each to be classified differently. To allow that, we can select a caption category. The next number added to the caption will depend on the category.

In the “Insert Caption” window, we can see there are already some categories we can use:

But we can create new ones by clicking on the input field, and writing any name we want. Given our example image is a photo of a pencil, a “Photo” category seems adequate:

Step 4 – Add Caption Text

Write the text which will appear in the caption. Do not forget to refer to the source of the image if you were asked to do so.

After you are done, click on the “OK” button to create the caption:

Notice the grey background behind the number: it means this number is automatic.

Step 5 – Adjust Caption Area Size

Depending on the layout of your document, you may not want a caption with two lines. For this example, the solution is to increase the width of the caption frame. To do so, first click anywhere in the document but not on the image. This will deselect the image, making the green squares disappear. Then, click on one of the grey lines next to the caption text.

The green squares will be again visible, but now they are selecting the caption. Drag the right one to resize the caption frame:

Video

Here is a video showing these steps:

How to Adjust Image Size

Inside the Document

Sometimes, the image we want to add to our document is larger than we would want. When that happens, we can resize it right after it is inserted:

Step 1

Click on the image to select it. You can see it is selected when it has small squares on its edges.

Step 2

Click on one of the green squares in the corners (I prefer the bottom right one), and hold the mouse button down as you move the mouse. You will see a dashed outline representing the new size the image will have when you release the mouse.

Step 3

Release the mouse button. This will change the image size to the dashed outline you seen previously.

Video

Here is a video showing these steps:

Using GIMP

Sometimes the image is just too large to resize inside the document. If you are having trouble resizing inside the document an external image editor can help. Personally, I prefer to use GIMP (click here to download it), it one of the most powerful open source image editing tools, and is available for free on all operating systems.

After GIMP is downloaded and installed, open it (the first time can take some time, it needs to catalog all fonts in the system).

Now, to resize your image:

Step 1

At GIMP top menu bar, select “File”, then “Open…”

Step 2

Navigate to your image, click on it, and click on the “Open” button. The image will be opened and ready to edit.

Step 3

At GIMP’s top menu bar, select “Image”, then “Scale Image”. This will open the scale image pop-up.

Step 4

At the scale image pop-up, ensure the top little chain is connected. So the image is resized keeping the relative width and height.

Step 5

Change the width, value as you need. The height will adjust automatically. When you are done, click on “Scale” button.

Usually 600px width works fine for me in a text document. But depending on how the image looks on your document you may want to change to other value.

Step 6

To save, click on “File”, then “Export As…”. Choose a name for it, and click “Export”. Another popup will show, just click “Export” again.

That is it, the image is now resized and ready to be imported into the document.

Video

Here is a video showing these steps:

How to import images from a website

This articles continues from the previous one on how to find usable images. Click here to read it.

Step 1

Open the maximum size version of the image
This depends on the image website, and might not be necessary. Place the mouse over the image. If it changes to a magnifying glass, then it will have a larger size. In that case, click with the left mouse button.