Extract text from layout files (PDL)
To convert PDL layouts to another format, you need Siemens SIMATIC WinCC or other Page Layout software.
To convert other file formats to the "Industrial UI & Print Layout" file type, you need software like Siemens SIMATIC WinCC or a similar tool.
A .pdl file is most commonly a SCADA process picture file used by industrial automation systems like Siemens SIMATIC WinCC or ABB 800xA. Alternatively, the same extension is heavily used as a Page Description Language file for HP and Brother printers, or as a legacy document layout created by consumer software like Print Shop Deluxe and Print Artist. It can even function as a recorder setting data file for Yokogawa factory equipment.
The massive fragmentation of the .pdl format makes it incredibly frustrating to handle. SCADA process files are heavily proprietary, typically locked inside Microsoft Compound internal structures, and require expensive factory hardware and active software licenses to open. Print Shop layout files are virtually obsolete, meaning modern web browsers, standard image viewers, and mainstream office suites cannot read them. Furthermore, printer-specific .pdl files contain raw hardware rendering commands designed strictly for physical printers, not for computer screen viewing.
For legacy layout and print files, converting to PDF, JPG, or PNG is the best target to ensure accessibility and preserve the layout for modern devices. Unfortunately, standard online converters universally fail because they cannot determine which specific variant of the format they are dealing with, nor can they parse the proprietary binary streams. If our system detects an embedded image, raw text stream, or supported layout structure, viewing or conversion may still be possible without the original software.
Convert.Guru analyzes your PDL file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted P_DISPLAY_LETTER, PDF, P_DISPLAY_PAL, PCL6, PFL, PCL, DPL, JPG, PLD, DOCX, PNG, PDI and PLT files.
If you want to convert PDL file to PDF, JPG, INDD, QXP, PUB, PMD, PM6, PM7, PM8, PM9, PM10 or PM11, you can use Siemens SIMATIC WinCC or similar software from the "SCADA Process Pictures & Layouts" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert MDI, PUB, PDP, PM4, P65, COMIC, WEBTEMPLATE, PMD, SPUB, INDD, PM5 or QXP files to PDL, try Siemens SIMATIC WinCC or another comparable tool in the "SCADA Process Pictures & Layouts" category.
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our PDL converter.