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Advantages of PDF Format

1. Smaller files. When the person who sent me the email was able to find a way to convert the MS Publisher document to PDF it shrank from 10 megabytes to 187 kilobytes (0.187 megabytes). The smaller the file, the quicker the transfer. (This size reduction will be true when the conversion is from any windows program that generates editable text (for example: MS Word, MS Publisher; Word Perfect; Note Pad, etc). If you are attempting to scan in a graphic (including scanned text) the size reduction will not be as great unless you first convert the scanned in text to editable text.

2. Compatibility with Windows' Programs.  Not everyone has MS Publisher and there is no free Publisher viewer as there is for PowerPoint and Word. Even MS Publisher is not compatible with MS Publisher. The program is not forward compatible; that is, MS Publisher 97 will not open MS Publisher 2000 and MS Publisher 2000 will not open MS Publisher XP, etc.

3. Free "Reader" Software. PDF documents can be read with a free viewer/reader. (Click here for download) The receiver of the file will not have to spend up to $150 for the latest Publisher program or other program.

Now that Adobe has "opened" the code for the pdf standard, other reader alternatives are available. Foxit is one of the most popular alternative pdf readers. It's advantages are two-fold:

1. Smaller program, thus it loads faster and opens pdfs faster
2. Has yet to be the target of those who would use it to spread computer malware, i.e. viruses, trojan horses, etc.

4. Cross-Platform Compatibility.  PDF files are readable by both Mactintosh and PCs ('wintel" = MS Windows on an Intel computer). According to the statistics about who is viewing web pages today, Macintosh users need this access.

5. Security vs Viral Infection.  PDF files are highly virus/worm/trojan horse resistant.

To increase your computer's resistance to any that would attempt to infect your machine or steal data from you using their code to infect Adobe Acrobat or any other company's software, make sure you do the following.

1. Make sure that your virus-protection and malware software is up-to-date.
2. Run the anti-virus scan a minimum of once per week for light use; if you use it everyday or its on all the time, run the antivirus scan daily. You can also use the settings of your software to run during times you are not using your computer.
3. Download and install all security updates/patches that Adobe may suggest when you open the Acrobat Reader or Full program.
4. Instead of Adobe's Reader (a "hot" target for online vandals), use an alternative pdf reader such as Foxit. Other safe software can be found under the "Downloads" tab of http://www.cnet.com/.

If you do these regularly, your chance of being infected will decrease significantly.

Unless you have the full version, i.e. Adobe Acrobat Standard or Professional, the chances for a PDF file carrying a virus to your machine are remote.

If you do have the full version, make sure that you look at the full file name. Virus spreaders will sometimes make their virus program look legitimate such as naming it example.pdf.pdf. Any time there are two extensions like this (another might be example.doc.exe) do not open; delete immediately. If you have kept your anti-virus program up-to-date, it will most likely have caught this.

6. Security vs. Changes. Adobe's Acrobat Program and a few of the others, give you the opportunity to deny access for anyone to change the document. You may also secure the document behind a password so no one but the one you send the document to (and to whom you have also sent the password) can open it.

7. PDF can contain hyperlinks. Whether you are using the document on your hard drive or as part of your web page, these links add a great speed advantage for navigation and indexing of documents.

8. PDFs can be read out loud by your computer using Acrobat Reader 8.0 and following. (Scanned in files that have not been processed by optical character recognition remain only images of a printed page, not a page of words recognizeable to the reader.)

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