Does anyone else find .pdf an annoying format?

[Padraig18]

I don't have Adobe, and am resisting downloading it. I have Word, etc., so why another god-damned format, ffs? Why not use one that already exists?:grr:

/rant off

[Deja Q]

1. Adobe is universal...

to read. The reader program is harmless and easy to install.

The fuckers want $300 per license to be able to make 'em.

Lord only knows, hidden in their EULA, it says Adobe gets copyright of any document madei n pdf format. x(

[Rooktoven]

19. Not everyone can read rtfs

where anyone can get adobe reader (or Preview for Mac, or Ghostview for Linux)

Many programs can generate pdfs. OpenOffice.org (a full _free_ office suite_ generates pdfs with a single click.

[Deja Q]

22. rtf = rich text format, that's not pdf... Generate? Or convert?

Your points are well taken.

I know that many apps can generate a PDF. But how about converting a pdf to another format? Or making a pdf editable iwthout needing to spend hundreds? (Oh, converters exist. But I doubt their efficacy.)

Adobe has people in a chokehold with their outrageous pricing schemes.

[stopbush]

2. I much prefer pdf to Word, but I'm on a Mac.

I often convert Quark graphic/text files to pdf for internet use.

[nadinbrzezinski]

3. First off the reader is free

second off, it is there to protect the producers from those who may steal material...

And third off, without a PDF Editor (Aka the full program) you cannot edit the darn thing.

As a producer of goods, I use it all the time... and that is why it makes sense

[mr blur]

14. Make your own for free

Here's a program - PDF995 - which is free and will enable you to make pdf files using your printer settings. And it works!

http://www.pdf995.com/

(I think they're pretty good myself - people send me all sorts of stuff for websites and it doesn't matter thst I use a PC and they don't. It does what it says, so...)

[MrSlayer]

4. Yeah, it sucks.

I try to avoid it if possible.

[CalebHayes]

5. YES

agreed.

[kera]

6. hi

I fell the same way. I have been trying to find a way to convertit to another format but I could not. And when you need to copy and past on word what happens is that you have almost to go line by line to make the text fit the window

Have you found a way to convert this format because most of administration files are in this format

thanks

[Cush]

7. yup

[strategery blunder]

8. Reader makes my computer freeze

No idea why.

I've tried uninstalling/redownloading it, but still have the problem. So I CAN'T read anything in PDF.:grr:

[HornBuckler]

12. I Had The Same Problem

If Yers Is Like Mine, It's A Run32.dll Driver Problem That Seems To Arise By Something Adobe Does When It Is Launched. To Fix This, I Downloaded A New Run32.dll From Microsoft And Got Adobe 6.0 - Reboot And You Should Be Fine. (If yer using Windows XP that is, otherwise I can't help ya)

[strategery blunder]

17. I downloaded Adobe (again), do you have a link for New Run32.dll?

I didn't find it under Winblows driver updates...

[DS1]

38. no no no

Try this instead, open the reader software ~outside~ the browser, and uncheck the "Automatic Update" option, that's likely what's freezing your system.

Actually, it's not freezing your system, it's popping up a window behind your browser you can't see and can't do anything about, so while it effectively is freezing your OS, it's really just asking a question you can't see. Shitty design? Yes. Easily preventable? Yes.

[strategery blunder]

40. It won't even open outside of the browser!

I guess I'll have to try an earlier version...:grr:

[DS1]

42. How long have you let it process?

if you have win2k/XP, have you opened it to with the task manager running to see what kind of resources it uses before bringing your computer to its knees? And how fast/slow is your pc anyway?

[strategery blunder]

50. Yes, it uses 16-30 MB RAM

I uninstalled it before testing the processor (which is a 2.2 GHz Pentium 4, which SHOULD NOT be the problem). I have 512 MB RAM, btw, and my available memory typically runs about 300 MB.

I give it about four or five minutes to open. Any program that takes longer than that before it even looks like it's doing anything is not worth having, imo.

[RoyGBiv]

39. Earlier Version

You're probably installing the latest version. I've had a lot of problems with this version as well when it's called from within a web browser.

If you can, try to find version 5.0. In my experience, it is far more stable than the most recent versions. I know it's out there because I found it some time back, but I can't currently remember where.

[strategery blunder]

51. Can you find out where?

I tried, but everything I found directs me to Adobe, where it will only let me download 6.0.:grr:

[RoyGBiv]

52. Here ya go

http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/reader_archive.html#Win

As you can see, it's actually on the adobe site. It's a nightmare trying to find the link to it, though.

Hope that helps.

[Anus Retainus]

9. Each document type has its purpose

Word is not a "standard" format - only Bill knows how to read it correctly. PDF's are readable by anyone, just download a reader for your platform of choice (free!).

PDF's exists because of the weaknesses in M$'s format. Just because you use Windows/Mac and Word, doesn't we can't have a portable, viewable, unalterable, format so that we can share docs 'cause I'm using my Linux box today, and Word don't run on that too well.

[arcos]

21. there is a free Word viewer too! n/t

[wtmusic]

10. Get a Mac and make em for free

It's as easy as printing.

MS Word format is primitive from a graphical standpoint compared to PDF. It's probably here to stay.

[blondeatlast]

11. I have Adobe, and I still don't care for .pdf.

I warn people when I link to .pdf sites since I find it such a pain.

[Canuckistanian]

13. Yes, mainly because people don't know how to use it

Some lazy people scan documents and insert them as graphics in .pdf files AND YOU CAN'T EDIT THEM!!!!

:argh:

[RC]

16. Yeah, and I keep my copyright also.

[RC]

15. I use Open Office

And it will save to .PDF. Also my HP scanner will save to .PDF.

I use this feature to sent stuff to people that have Macs. It's either .PDF or text files and .jpg.

[yellowdawgdem]

18. very annoying /nt

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

20. A little annoying, but much less than MSWord .doc (nt)

At least you don't have to PAY to be able to read the damn files, and they don't carry viruses.

[Kellanved]

47. ahem

agreed, it is not current, doesn'T affect end-users and got patched by now, but IMHO .ps is the way to go :hi: .
http://news.com.com/2100-1001-271267.html?legacy=cnet

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

55. Ah, now THIS is a sane format

Although it's much easier to convince people to get a PDF reader than Ghostscript/Ghostview.

[JVS]

23. I like them just fine

[RebelOne]

24. Same here. I can't complain.

[KamaAina]

25. My friend who's blind calls it "Pretty Darn Frustrating"

'cause it's not compatible with her text reader.

Also you can't control the size of a printed page from .pdf the way you can the view on the screen.

[C_eh_N_eh_D_eh]

26. Because Word documents are a proprietary format.

Only people who purchase software from Micro$oft can read and edit them properly. Bill Gates might not support *, but he's still as much a greedy pig as any oilman.

The PDF format, on the other hand, is open for anybody to use. True, Acrobat is by far the most widely used viewer/editor on the market (at least by the Windows community), but Adobe doesn't own exclusive rights to the format; nobody does. Anyone with the right skills can make and market their own PDF software.

Adobe's Acrobat Reader, which will let you view PDFs you download from the Internet but not make your own, can be obtained for free from adobe.com. It's easy to download and install, and there's no spyware involved.

[mike_c]

27. I used to think so, but now so many relevant professional...

...documents are transmitted in .pdf format that I've come to like it very much. I use it all the time now and like it very much.

Note too that OpenOffice suite apps export directly to .pdf (and OOo is free). I also paid $50 for a commercial app from Neevia that integrates into the MS Office apps on my Windows machines to provide the same functionality. Portable Doc Format really is nice when you're sharing documents with dozens of others, all of whom work on different platforms, etc.

[NewHampshireDem]

28. PDF also saves bandwidth ...

as the files are highly compressed.

I also use PDF995 http://www.pdf995.com/ and have found it works very, very well. It is also simple to install, and you don't have to do any tricky file conversion stuff. It creates a virtual printer, so when you want to save a file as a PDF, you simply select the PDF printer rather than your real printer and save the file. Very simple, very easy.

[sir_captain]

29. PDFs were created

so that you'd always know exactly how the document would look to the people receiving it. With a word processing document or text file, the documents can look very differnt on different computers depending on the resolution of the screen, and the installed fonts, etc.

What PDF does is encapsulate everything into one tidy little package and guarantee that your formatting will stay the same on whatever platform the reader is using.

All in all, I think it was a very good idea.

[strategery blunder]

30. Kick

[Endangered Specie]

31. I hate not being able to copy and pastte

[Viking12]

43. You can copy and paste from most pdf files

On the Adobe Reader toolbar there is a T with a dashed line box next to it. Click on this icon (T for text), then you can highlight, CTRL C to copy, and CTRL V to paste into a word doc.

[Dogmudgeon]

32. Attack of the dumb anti-Micro$oft posts

"Word is proprietary" ... well, so is Acrobat.

"But Adobe gives reader software away, free" ... so does Microsoft.

"But Word is a bad program" ... compared to what?

Open Office uses an XML-derived format called SXW, and Microsoft's RTF still underlies the Word format.

Look, I don't have any more love for Bill Gates than most of you, but MSWord is still a "killer app", and suffers from the same kinds of problems that PDF does.

If you want a true open standard, one is evolving within the XML world even as we speak. Until then, it's Word for editing and composition, and PDF for end-user documents.

--bkl

[Kellanved]

49. well

The current Word versions can use XML. However XML is not a standard for documents, it is IMHO merely a standard for writing tree structures to text files, nothing more, nothing less. XML will neither solve compatibility problems, nor was it created to to so.

BTW: LaTex creates texts far superior to Word - write a text with more than 50 pages and you'll see.

[Van Helsing]

33. YES!

It takes for-freaking-ever for the damn thing to load, and when it does load and you want to print...you need a freakin' calendar. It goes so freakin' slow (and I have a fast computer). :grr:

[Book Lover]

34. Are you opening

the exec or just the Reader?

[strategery blunder]

35. Kick (nt)

[Don_G]

36. Always

But someone came up with a .pdf program that loads the files a hell of a lot faster.

You can find the freeware program at Major Geeks dot com.

[DS1]

37. Let me list the reasons why it's a good thing

Fonts are embedded, meaning some shitass software like M$ Word won't replace fonts ~you~ don't have with whatever it chooses.

It's available for all platforms.

You can print it out on any operating system on any printer and they will all look exactly the same.

You don't have to own M$ Word to read it, nor do you have to contribute to the Borg to write in it's format.

[Feanorcurufinwe]

41. Not as annoying as .doc

now that is a fucked up format.

text rules

[opiate69]

44. Hate it, hate it, hate it!

If you want your super-fast, badass computer to freeze, just try to open a .pdf file... works every damn time.

[Kellanved]

45. well, depends. Postscript (ps)would have been enough.

Basic PDF is pretty good, but has no reason to exist. The more advanced pdf features are know to create problems, as do pdfs created by some software products.
In the academic field Post Script (.PS) is pretty common, a format originally created by Adobe for PC- Printer communication. It is easy to create (LATEX dvips or the free adobe postscript printer drivers) and a good way to publish documents.
Viewer:
http://www.cs.wisc.edu/~ghost/

Driver:
http://www.adobe.com/support/downloads/product.jsp?product=44&platform=Windows

Latex (better than any other text system, but can be hard to learn):
http://www.miktex.org/
http://www.texniccenter.org/

[sir_captain]

57. I'm not sure I would call Latex

"better" than any other system, but it sure is good at what it does. I did know some people in college who would type their papers with it.

[Autobot77]

46. .....I'm beginning to find it annoying

Where I'm interning at because the MAC I'm using dosen't let me convert Quark files to .PDF , it keeps telling me I need a Laserwriter v7 and above.Of course we don't have a printer yet because this is a new company.The MAC I use uses OS10 and I'm not sure how to adjust the settings.Which sucks because every printer in the area requires we send .PDF files.
However I will say .PDF is useful because you can send documents back and forth without having to worry about whether its MAC or PC and it will keep the original fonts unlike MS Word.

[Dookus]

48. hate it...

scrolling sucks, navigating sucks....

It has its uses, but I hate finding something on the web in PDF that ought to be HTML. For instance, I was looking recently for a users guide to an old printer/fax machine I had. I found it online in PDF format - ugh. 124 pages of PDF, and I'm trying to find a particular page. Double-UGH.

[Autobot77]

59. Google lets you view PDF files in HTML nt

[HEyHEY]

53. YES, AND HERE'S WHY

Okay, after laying out the newspaper, I have to PDF the pages to send them to the press via email...you know how long that takes? Plus there is ALWAYS a problem the next morning and I get called in at 6:30 to deal with it.

[Tracer]

54. Actually, PDFs are great!

I'm a graphic designer (working on a Mac) and must send proofs to my clients on a daily basis. I make dozens and dozens of PDFs every week and e-mail them off for the customer's look-see.

Compared to the old days of mailing proofs, Fedexing proofs, couriering proofs, the invention of the PDF format is a g.d. miracle.!

[kiahzero]

56. Word is a horrible format

Especially for web sites.

Why are you resisting pdf? It's a superior format.

[FlaGranny]

58. I have only the reader and I really do not like it

at all. It is very, very slow to load - I sit and watch as it lists each file it opens. It takes at least 4 or 5 times longer to load than Word. I hate it when it skips totally to the next page so you can't see the previous page. Copy and paste is way more difficult. Sometimes I can highlight text and sometimes I can't - I don't know why.

I don't much like Word either (not much of it is user friendly), but I'm used to it. I used to find Word Perfect the easiest, most intuitive program to use - but it seems to have disappeared.

[retread]

60. Have been told by many CS professors that it is much more

secure than Word.