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May 15, 2003
How to Create PDF Files
By Jeffrey Branzburg
This page is designed specifically with the new-to-technology educator in mind. Please feel free to reproduce it for use in your teacher training sessions or other staff development efforts.
Adobe's PDF (portable document format) file format has become a popular method for sharing documents created by a wide variety of programs across both the Windows and Macintosh platforms. That's because the PDF format retains the exact look and feel of the original document — sort of like an electronic photocopy — whether it was created by a word processor, a spreadsheet, a desktop publishing document, a Web page, or other tool. If I create a document using AppleWorks and want to share it with somebody who does not have AppleWorks, I can convert the document into the PDF format and they can see it in its original form, with graphics, charts, and all.
In addition, anybody can download a program to read PDF files. Adobe freely distributes Adobe Acrobat Reader (www.adobe.com). Acrobat Reader will not, however, allow you to create PDF files. Here are some ways to do so.
Use the Full Adobe Acrobat Program
With Acrobat installed on your computer you can convert any file you create into a PDF that can be read by any computer that has Acrobat Reader installed. When I installed Acrobat on my PC, it slightly altered Microsoft Word (and other programs) so they could have the ability
to create PDF documents. All I need to do is choose Print, and then choose PDFWriter as my printer. PDFWriter is not an actual printer that prints on paper; it is what's called a print driver — a program that controls the printer, acting as a translator between the printer and the programs that need to print. In this case the driver tells the computer to create a PDF document.
Create a PDF Online
There are a number of online services that can be used to create PDF documents. You send your document to the service; they convert it to PDF and send it back (all electronically).
Adobe's online service, Create Adobe PDF Online, is available at createPDF.adobe.com. This Web-based program lets you convert a variety of documents into PDF files that anyone can view using Adobe Acrobat Reader. Supported formats include Microsoft Office files, graphics formats, Web pages, and other file types. A feature called Paper Capture enables you to create searchable PDF files from scanned paper documents. At press time, it was free to create the first five PDF files; a subscription cost $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year (available only in the United States and in Canada).
Another online PDF conversion service is offered by goBCL (www.gobcl.com). This free service can also be used to convert documents into HTML Web pages. Documents are submitted either from your Web browser or via e-mail (as an attachment). The maximum size that you can upload is 500K per file. GoBCL supports Microsoft Office files; overall it supports fewer file formats than Create Adobe PDF Online — but it is free.
Use Shareware or Freeware
Clarification
In response to this column, a number of readers pointed out the built-in PDF capabilities of Macintosh OS X, which allows users to create PDF files from any application. In addition, WordPerfect for Education includes a "Publish to PDF" option for creating PDFs from WordPerfect documents. As the PDF format becomes even more widespread, other applications may also offer this feature; check product manuals for details. |
Shareware is software you can freely download, install, and use; if you are pleased with it, you are asked to pay the publisher a fee. Freeware is exactly that: software given freely to anybody who wants it. There are a number of shareware and freeware products that create PDF files, though be aware that they do not necessarily support all file types. One example is Win2PDF (www.win2pdf.com). You can try it for free; if you want to keep it the cost is $35.
To find shareware and freeware programs to create PDF documents, you might want to visit a shareware site such as www.shareware.com and search for "create PDF."
In the Field: Using PDF Files
Now that you have created PDF files, what can you do with them? You can put them on disk and distribute them, e-mail them as attachments, or post them on Web pages for people to download. In my school district we have posted on our Web site the PDF versions of forms that our psychologists and special education teachers need. All they do is click to download the file, print the form, and complete it.
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