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Subject:RE: Survey: how do you use PDFs From:"John Locke" <mail -at- freelock -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Fri, 11 May 2001 16:46:31 -0700
Becca asked, a few days ago,
> When you get a document in PDF form, how do you use it? that is,
> do you:
>
> * read it online
> * print it out
> * read it online and print out only sections of the document
>
And a bunch of people then proceeded to bash Acrobat and PDFs, with only
Sean Brierly defending them...
Here's some previously unmentioned points. I used to hate 'em, for all the
reasons already mentioned. But then, after several years of holding out, I
had to buy Acrobat to satisfy the needs of the client. Namely, for internal
documentation that was difficult to edit/change. I was writing the
"official" version, and the company had problems with different groups
grabbing and changing paragraphs and pages of their documents.
And, what do you know? I'm slowly becoming a fan...
The big caveat here, is that my client wants online versions of printed
documentation to speed delivery, and because their customer base is small
(in number, not size...) Their documentation must be cross-platform, and
accessible without necessarily having a web connection. PDF works... not
perfectly, but it certainly has its place.
Regarding reading PDFs, my attitude completely changed when I upgraded to my
new flat panel monitor that rotates into portrait mode. I turn the monitor
vertical, and can easily read an entire page at a time, and it's very sharp
and readable.
Another benefit of Acrobat: it finally has replaced the typewriter for
filling out paper forms. I scan the form in, type on it in Acrobat, and
print it out or fax it to wherever.
One unmentioned drawback: the Internet Explorer plug-in consumes memory, and
doesn't close down properly. It's one of the programs that eventually leads
me to reboot my Win2K machine every week or two...
I think the best thing PDFs have going for them is that you can encapsulate
huge documents into single, cross-platform, searchable, printable files--and
it is ubiquitous. If it wasn't already everywhere, I doubt it would be the
best option--but for many situations, HTML, the other contender, isn't an
option.
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