Adobe Acrobat is synonymous with PDF creation software. It has become the standard tool for businesses to create, edit and manage PDF files. But lately, many alternatives to Acrobat have been popping up. And these programs are frequently less expensive than Acrobat.
With this competition, some may be considering dropping Acrobat for one of its competitors. But, Acrobat is still the premium PDF suite, and it has plenty of strong features that will keep businesses coming back with each new version of the program. Let's take a look at what you can expect from Acrobat X Pro.
With this competition, some may be considering dropping Acrobat for one of its competitors. But, Acrobat is still the premium PDF suite, and it has plenty of strong features that will keep businesses coming back with each new version of the program. Let's take a look at what you can expect from Acrobat X Pro.
Interface
Acrobat X starts up quickly with no annoying splash screen. When you start the program, you're presented with a screen giving you several options, such as creating a PDF, combining several documents or opening a recent file. It's an easy way to get started with Acrobat. However, some people, myself included, would prefer to skip the helper screen and go directly to the program. You can close the screen, but that's one extra step.
Once you get past the helper screen, you'll notice that the interface is clean, and in the case of the Mac version, rather sparse. When you're working on a PDF document, you're given a limited number of tools on the toolbars. This makes it quick and easy to perform common tasks. The tools are fairly self-explanatory, and unnecessary options likely won't get in your way. Of course, you can customize the toolbars by adding frequently used tools.
There is a drawback to this. You'll have to dig to find more advanced tools. Adobe has carefully thought out the placement of the advanced tools and how you access them. Clicking the Tools button on the toolbar brings up a bevy of advanced tools. Unfortunately, users run the risk of missing other important tools. For example, there's no option for editing document properties from the Tools panel. Instead, you'll need to use the menubar to access document properties.
For experienced users, this is nothing more than an inconvenience. But new users run the risk of missing these tools altogether.
Once you get past the helper screen, you'll notice that the interface is clean, and in the case of the Mac version, rather sparse. When you're working on a PDF document, you're given a limited number of tools on the toolbars. This makes it quick and easy to perform common tasks. The tools are fairly self-explanatory, and unnecessary options likely won't get in your way. Of course, you can customize the toolbars by adding frequently used tools.
There is a drawback to this. You'll have to dig to find more advanced tools. Adobe has carefully thought out the placement of the advanced tools and how you access them. Clicking the Tools button on the toolbar brings up a bevy of advanced tools. Unfortunately, users run the risk of missing other important tools. For example, there's no option for editing document properties from the Tools panel. Instead, you'll need to use the menubar to access document properties.
For experienced users, this is nothing more than an inconvenience. But new users run the risk of missing these tools altogether.
Actions
Don't let Acrobat's clean, uncomplicated interface fool you. There are plenty of advanced features to make editing and creating PDFs a snap.
Among the best of these is Acrobat's Actions feature. Actions are much like macros in Microsoft Word. They let you perform a serious of actions quickly and easily, with minimal input. That means you can automate tasks like protecting your PDFs or recognizing text with a document. It is particularly handy in environments that have exacting standards for publishing PDFs. You can ensure that everyone in the department creates PDFs that meet the same security requirements, for example.
You can access Actions from the File menu. There are several pre-existing Actions that will help you prepare a PDF for the Web or archive paper documents.
You'll also find a handy Actions Wizard. Selecting this option brings up a box that will help you create Actions. It walks you through the process step-by-step, from choosing a trigger to selecting the series of event that follow the trigger.
Anyone who spends a lot of time using Acrobat will love this feature. It is also useful for those who have a complicated processes for working with PDFs. Of course, Actions can be shared with other users.
Among the best of these is Acrobat's Actions feature. Actions are much like macros in Microsoft Word. They let you perform a serious of actions quickly and easily, with minimal input. That means you can automate tasks like protecting your PDFs or recognizing text with a document. It is particularly handy in environments that have exacting standards for publishing PDFs. You can ensure that everyone in the department creates PDFs that meet the same security requirements, for example.
You can access Actions from the File menu. There are several pre-existing Actions that will help you prepare a PDF for the Web or archive paper documents.
You'll also find a handy Actions Wizard. Selecting this option brings up a box that will help you create Actions. It walks you through the process step-by-step, from choosing a trigger to selecting the series of event that follow the trigger.
Anyone who spends a lot of time using Acrobat will love this feature. It is also useful for those who have a complicated processes for working with PDFs. Of course, Actions can be shared with other users.
Collaboration
PDFs are frequently used to gather comments during a document's review process. So it should come as no surprise that Acrobat X has excellent collaborative features.
As you would expect, it is a breeze to highlight portions of text and insert comments via the Sticky Note feature. A Sticky Note is like a digital version of a Post-It Note. Simply anchor it to a portion of the document and enter your comments.
Now, Adobe is making it easier for you to gather comments and corrections on PDF files. Users of the free Adobe Reader X will be able to add their comments to the document. They don't need their own copy of the full Acrobat. And the creator does not need to enable commenting. However, the creator can decide to allow Reader users access to some advanced commenting features.
This alone may be enough to convince businesses to stick with Acrobat. They can include more people in the review process without having to invest in more copies of the software.
As you would expect, it is a breeze to highlight portions of text and insert comments via the Sticky Note feature. A Sticky Note is like a digital version of a Post-It Note. Simply anchor it to a portion of the document and enter your comments.
Now, Adobe is making it easier for you to gather comments and corrections on PDF files. Users of the free Adobe Reader X will be able to add their comments to the document. They don't need their own copy of the full Acrobat. And the creator does not need to enable commenting. However, the creator can decide to allow Reader users access to some advanced commenting features.
This alone may be enough to convince businesses to stick with Acrobat. They can include more people in the review process without having to invest in more copies of the software.
Other Features
Acrobat X is full of other features that will make your life easier and will help you create stellar PDF documents.
The recently added Portfolio feature is still present in Acrobat X. As the name suggests, this allows you to gather a series of files into a single PDF portfolio. And, you're not limited to PDF files. You can include Word documents and spreadsheets, for example.
In Acrobat X, the Portfolio screen is cleaned up, with fewer distractions. And now, you can add live Web content, such as YouTube videos. This is handy, as more and more content is being hosted online. Of course, Acrobat includes a number of templates to help you create visually appealing Portfolios. It's a great way to put forward a comprehensive package to clients that is easy to use and share.
A lot of features in Acrobat don't have the same wow factor as the Portfolio feature. But, they'll make your life easier nonetheless. The ability to insert screenshots is a good example. You can opt to copy the entire screen or a single window. You don't have to mess with a separate screen capture program.
Of course, Acrobat also includes text recognition tools. It is excellent at picking out text from an image such as a screen capture. And it is surprising fast at recognizing text.
And, your text is not stuck in Acrobat. You can select portions of text to export to, say, Word.
Finally, as you would expect, Acrobat has a number of tools to help you redact and protect content within documents. For those who frequently work with sensitive documents, the importance of these tools can't be stressed enough!
The recently added Portfolio feature is still present in Acrobat X. As the name suggests, this allows you to gather a series of files into a single PDF portfolio. And, you're not limited to PDF files. You can include Word documents and spreadsheets, for example.
In Acrobat X, the Portfolio screen is cleaned up, with fewer distractions. And now, you can add live Web content, such as YouTube videos. This is handy, as more and more content is being hosted online. Of course, Acrobat includes a number of templates to help you create visually appealing Portfolios. It's a great way to put forward a comprehensive package to clients that is easy to use and share.
A lot of features in Acrobat don't have the same wow factor as the Portfolio feature. But, they'll make your life easier nonetheless. The ability to insert screenshots is a good example. You can opt to copy the entire screen or a single window. You don't have to mess with a separate screen capture program.
Of course, Acrobat also includes text recognition tools. It is excellent at picking out text from an image such as a screen capture. And it is surprising fast at recognizing text.
And, your text is not stuck in Acrobat. You can select portions of text to export to, say, Word.
Finally, as you would expect, Acrobat has a number of tools to help you redact and protect content within documents. For those who frequently work with sensitive documents, the importance of these tools can't be stressed enough!