How to program a text search and replace in PDF files

Question

How would I be able to programmatically search and replace some text in a large number of PDF files? I would like to remove a URL that has been added to a set of files. I

Answer 1

I have also become desperate. After 10 PDF Editor installations which all cost money, and no success:

pdftk + editor suffice:

Replace Text in PDF Files

• Use pdftk to uncompress PDF page streams

  pdftk original.pdf output original.clear.pdf uncompress

• Replace the text (sometimes this works, sometimes it doesn't).

• Repair the modified (and now broken) PDF

  pdftk original.clear.pdf output original.clear.fixed.pdf

(from Joel Dare)