This can be a useful strategy if you are using pre-2013 versions of Word. In the PDF, click Ctrl-A to highlight all the text, then Ctrl-C to copy it. In your Word document, paste the text with Ctrl-V.

7. If the text encoding is questionable, Word displays a dialog that asks you to choose the correct one (such as Windows Default). Click the appropriate button, then click OK, and the text file opens.

The Office programs even offer to convert the files immediately via “Download as PDF” and “Download as ODT” (Word), “Download as ODS” (Excel), or “Download as ODP” (PowerPoint).

Andy Wolber explores how well Google Docs supports Open Document Format (ODF) files.