Convert DO to PDF

Stata .do scripts are commonly saved as PDF for code submission, review, printing, or archiving when recipients should not edit or run the commands. A PDF preserves the displayed layout and opens without Stata.

The .do extension is ambiguous: it can also appear in URLs handled by Java web applications. Check the file contents before converting it; a Stata script is plain text and often contains commands such as use, regress, generate, or tabulate.

What a DO file is

A Stata do-file is a plain-text source file containing Stata commands, comments, paths, and analysis steps. It is normally created in Stata's Do-file Editor, but any text editor can open it.

A .do file is executable code, not a page-layout format. Converting it to PDF creates a read-only visual copy; keep the original file because PDF is unsuitable for editing or rerunning the analysis.

If the file came from a web address ending in .do, the extension may be a servlet mapping rather than the actual file type. Open a copy in a text editor: HTML content should be saved or renamed as .html, opened in a browser, and printed to PDF. A download containing an error page, binary data, or no usable content cannot be generically converted based on its extension.

What PDF provides

PDF stores a fixed-page representation with page size, line layout, and optionally embedded fonts. It is appropriate for distributing code as a stable record, attaching it to a report, and printing it without font or line-wrap changes caused by a recipient's editor.

A PDF of a do-file contains the source code only. It does not include Stata output, graphs, tables, or data unless those items are exported separately.

Convert a Stata do-file to PDF

Printing from Stata or a text editor is the most dependable method, because it preserves code indentation and comments as displayed.

1. Open the file in Stata's Do-file Editor. If Stata is unavailable, use a text editor with printing support, such as Notepad++ on Windows or TextEdit on macOS.
2. Select a monospaced font and a readable size, usually 9–11 pt. Disable word wrap if each command must remain on one source line.
3. Use File → Print.
4. On Windows, select Microsoft Print to PDF. On macOS, select PDF → Save as PDF in the print dialog. On Linux, select Print to File and choose PDF output, or use an installed PDF printer.
5. Use landscape orientation, a smaller font, or a wider paper size if long commands wrap. Save the result as, for example, analysis.pdf.
6. Open the PDF and check page breaks, indentation, long lines, and non-ASCII characters.

For automated conversion on systems with GNU Enscript and Ghostscript installed, create PostScript and convert it to PDF:

enscript -f Courier10 -o analysis.ps analysis.do
ps2pdf analysis.ps analysis.pdf

This method may need additional font and encoding configuration for UTF-8 text. Test accented or non-Latin characters in the resulting PDF.

Online conversion and compatibility limits

Online text-to-PDF services such as CloudConvert can be used when local printing is unavailable. Upload a copy renamed from analysis.do to analysis.txt if the service does not recognize the extension, select PDF output, and verify that the result uses a monospaced font and preserves line breaks.

Do not upload scripts containing credentials, participant data, confidential paths, API keys, or unpublished research to a third-party converter. Local PDF printing avoids transferring the source file outside the device.

Use UTF-8 when saving the do-file, and inspect the PDF on another device if it is being submitted externally. Missing fonts or printer encoding can replace characters, while long lines can wrap visually even though the original script remains unchanged.

To capture analysis results, run the do-file and export the relevant Stata log, graphs, or tables separately. A printed do-file cannot reproduce output generated during execution.