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Subject:Re: Navigation in pdf From:Carolyn_Gillis -at- TVO -dot- ORG Date:Thu, 3 Jul 1997 22:46:56 GMT
Subject: Re: Navigation in pdf
To:TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU,Internet
Hi,
> Michel Vallee wrote:
> I'm trying to establish if Adobe Acrobat can really be a solution in
> the online vs. paper issue, at least for my company's needs. Presently
> we distribute a large set of documents both in html (online) and pdf
> (printable) formats. It would be nice to have only one document that
> meets all need.
The people who USE most critical and complex software are doing so on the
road, or in stressful situations where they have to use a notebook computer.
Millions of university students, engineers, musicians, movie makers, and
salespeople use them. None of these groups has time to waste for endless
scrolling through .pdf files set up for viewing on 21-inch screens.
Think of .pdf document users this way: Those who use notebook computers will
always have slower operating systems, and smaller screens, than the desktop
speedsters which documentation tech writers expect to access their .pdf docs.
I use a Macintosh SE30, which has a screen even smaller than current notebook
computers. Adobe's Acrobat Reader gives Macintosh computer-users access to
.pdf files. It's a Given that my computer is slow, (it's six years old), and
that my MacOS operating system is ancient, (System 7.1 Update 3.0). However,
that's not the point. Screen size vs. page size vs. AR-Reader file size
matters more.
I hate Adobe Acrobat Reader. So does everyone that I know, even those who own
Mac PPCs. AR: slows my computer down; clogs my system file with megabytes
worth of fonts, extensions, files and folders. Besides that, .pdf files are
impossible to read on my small screen.
On the other hand, I have no problems with: Neat HTML documents that adhere
to the "Ten Commandments of HTML"; documents formatted by word processing
software such as Microsoft Word, BBEdit, or SimpleText; Ascii Text files;
"Help" files inserted into the resource forks of applications; or
"stand-alone" DocMaker or eDoc TOC-controlled documents, etc. If a help or
user document can be read on "resizable windows", (which my Macs have had for
more than 10 years), or in a small dialog box, I can deal with it.
The more time that I've spent on the Internet, the more types of documents
that I've come across. With a Mac, I've always been able to access whatever I
find-- but .pdf docs aren't worth reading. I throw those away, and get my
information from some other source. Forget the .pdf format for creating paper
docs. It's a pain there too.
Gillis
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Carolyn Jane Gillis Member: EAC, CAJ
Secretary-Treasurer Technical Writer/Editor
WHD Concrete Technology Limited Phone: (416) 267-5414
Scarborough, (Metro Toronto), Ontario Carolyn_Gillis -at- tvo -dot- org
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