Portable Document Format (PDF) is the de facto standard for the secure and reliable distribution and exchange of electronic documents and forms around the world, with a ten-year track record. PDF is a universal file format that preserves the fonts, images, graphics, and layout of any source document, regardless of the application and platform used to create it.

What software should I use to convert my files to the Portable Document Format (PDF)?:

Adobe Acrobat is commonly used. However, there are two other software packages that would convert files to PDF — Pdf995 and PrintToPDF. Here are some of the advantages and disadvantages—

Adobe PDF files are compact and complete, and can be shared, viewed, and printed by anyone with free Adobe Acrobat Reader software.

You can convert any document to Adobe PDF using Adobe Acrobat software products. Specifically,

• Can use drag-and-drop to combine multiple PDFs
• Central Stores Prices: ~$50 (Mac) ~$21 for Window License

Pdf995 (Windows only)

This software allows the creation of PDF files by installing a printer driver that handles the PDF creation. After installation, simply choose Print from the document you wish to create, and choose the PDF995 printer. You will then be prompted with a Save As.. dialog box, and you will need to choose a name for the file. Remember to leave the .PDF extension on the file as you save it, i.e. if you want to name the document you are converting "MyFile" you should name it "MyFile.PDF" in the Save As.. dialog box. When the PDF is created, a browser will open on your machine displaying an advertisement, unless you are willing to pay for the software ($9.95). You may obtain this software from the Pdf995 website:

http://www.pdf995.com/download.html

PrintToPDF (Macintosh OS9 only)

This software functions much like the above Pdf995, but for the Macintosh OS9 operating system. Install the PrintToPDF extension in the Extensions folder inside your System Folder, then open the chooser, where you should now see PrintToPDF as one of the options. Click on the icon and close the Chooser, then choose Print from the document you wish to convert. You will then see the PrintToPDF Print dialog box. Choose Okay, then the PDF will be created. Following this you will be prompted with a standard Save As.. dialog box, asking you where you would like the newly created PDF to be saved. You can obtain this software here:

http://www.jwwalker.com/pages/pdf.html

Save As PDF... (Macintosh OSX only)

In Macintosh OS X (10.2.x and later), creating a PDF is built into the Print engine. Just choose Print from the document you wish to convert, then at the bottom of the Print dialog box, choose the button that says Save As PDF... which will then prompt you to choose a location to save the file.