RE: Adobe confirms PDF zero-day attacks. Disable JavaScript now |Zero Day | ZDNet.com

[Fred Ridder <docudoc -at- hotmail -dot- com>]

Brian Henderson wrote:

> Yeah, I have pretty much an "anything but Adobe" attitude these days.
> Unfortunately, for all-around PDF handling there's nothing BUT Adobe
> (please please tell me if I'm wrong about that).
> 
> They have such tight control of the format that they can do whatever
> they want, without regard for users. Most companies in such a position
> end up considering their customers as mostly "trouble", and their
> behavior can become anti-customer.


Sorry, but this is simply not correct. 

It is true that from 1993 to 2008 PDF was a proprietary standard in the sense that Adobe held patents regarding the format and controlled the spec and its evolution. But in July 2008 PDF was made an officially open standard published by ISO, which means that Adobe no longer controls it unilaterally.

And even when it was a proprietary format, PDF was open in the sense that the PDF spec was made available to the public and anyone who wanted to could develop a software tool to view or generate PDF files with no patent royalties due to Adobe. Dozens of non-Adobe software tools are available to create, view, edit, and manipulate PDF files, including both commercial and FOSS applications (See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_PDF_software). Even the tools in the Office 2007 suite generate PDF natively without need for Acrobat or any other Adobe software. 

-Fred Ridder
 		 	   		  
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