Scanner went auto-duplex on a single-sided document. Result: 30 pages of content interleaved with 30 blank pages. Total: 60 pages, half of which are blank.
Thirty seconds to fix.
0:00–0:10 — Open and scan thumbnails
Drag the PDF into Flint delete pages. All 60 pages show as thumbnails. Blanks are visually obvious — white rectangles.
0:10–0:25 — Select all blanks
Cmd-click (or Ctrl-click) every blank thumbnail. For 30 blanks, this is 15 seconds of clicking.
For strictly alternating blanks (every other page), select page 2, then shift-click to select with the pattern. Faster for clean patterns.
0:25–0:30 — Delete and download
Click delete. Remaining 30 pages compact into a clean output. Download.
Thirty pages, clean, ready to use. The blank-page tax avoided.
FAQ
Can scanners be set to skip blanks automatically?
Many can — look for 'blank page detection' in scanner settings. Worth setting up if you scan often.
What about near-blank pages (just a header)?
Visual selection still catches them. The thumbnails make near-blanks obvious.
Can I delete pages from cloud-stored PDFs directly?
Download first, delete in Flint, re-upload. About 45 seconds end-to-end.
What if I accidentally delete a real page?
Within the same session, undo. After download, you'd need to re-import the original. Keep a backup of the source until you've verified the output.
Thirty seconds, clean PDF, no blank pages. Run the speedrun in Flint.