PDF has been around for over 20 years. Its creation was met with near-universal acclaim, becoming a mainstay of the document archive industry. Yet whenever new technology and formats come along, critics quickly pronounce PDF's demise, and fans are just as sure to defend it. Several unsuccessful attempts have replaced PDF's usefulness and ubiquity: HTML, DVD-Video, Blu-Ray, etc. But where will the future of documents and media be in 10 or 15 years? Herein, we'll dive into why PDF is still a valuable format for businesses today and why it might still be even more relevant tomorrow.
They're small, portable, and universally compatible
PDFs are a great way to share documents with people who don't have the same software you do. So whether you're looking for a simple, portable file format or something more powerful like a full-blown document management system, PDF has something for everyone.
It is the best solution if you're looking for an easy way to share documents with customers, partners, friends, and family members. They're small, portable, and universally compatible.
It can be opened by any computer — even older ones that don't have the latest software installed. You can also convert your document into a PDF online if you don't have access to Adobe Acrobat or another type of word processor that creates them natively. Get one that can do edits where you can rotate pdf and save the document.
Because they're universal, PDFs are great for sharing documents that contain sensitive information like medical records or financial reports. They offer encryption options, so only authorized recipients can view them, too!
They work great for ebooks and e-readers
PDFs are a popular format for ebooks because they can be read on any device with an internet connection, even if it doesn't have the same software as your computer or tablet. If you want to read an ebook on your smartphone or tablet, upload it to the cloud and load it onto your device via WiFi or cellular data. Even if there's no app for that device yet, you can still read the file!
You can annotate them on any device
PDFs are the digital equivalent of a paper document so that you can write or draw on them. You can't do that with a Word file, which means that if you need to annotate something, a PDF is your only option.
Whether you use the desktop version or mobile app, Adobe Acrobat Reader lets you highlight text in a document and add comments directly onto it with ease. You can even use voice recognition software like Dragon NaturallySpeaking to dictate notes directly into your PDFs.
They include all kinds of information about the document itself, such as its author, creation date and last modification date, along with a link to any related files, such as photos or videos that were included in the original document when you printed it out originally. This can help make finding information within a document much easier.
You can encrypt or password-protect PDFs for security
If you need to protect sensitive information in your documents or make sure that no one changes them without permission, then consider encrypting your PDFs with a password or watermarking them with an identifier like your company logo or signature line. You can do this using Adobe Acrobat Pro DC software or other third-party apps like ScanSnap Connector (for Neat).
You can compress large files into much smaller ones.
PDF files are made to be compressed. You can compress large files into much smaller ones. The quality of the compressed file may suffer, but it will be smaller and faster to download.
Suppose you have a lot of documents that need to be uploaded to a website. In that case, you can use the PDF file format to compress them all into one file and then upload the compressed file instead of uploading each document individually. This will save time and bandwidth on your website.
To make sharing (and printing) easy, you can combine multiple file types into a single PDF
PDFs are great because they can combine multiple file types into a single document and retain their formatting. They support links between pages and annotations that can be used for collaboration or revision tracking.
You can combine multiple file types into one PDF by going to File > Export > Create PDF. Once there, select “Separate files by type” and choose which file types you want to include in your final document. Then click OK and choose where you want the file saved (to your computer or elsewhere).
Takeaway: While the PDF standards have been out there for a long time, they are still very relevant in today's digital world. While the format has evolved, achieving newer levels of success, it has remained a central part of our online lives and is likely to stay that way for a while longer. This bodes well for everyone, from document creators and publishers to consumers of PDF files.
Author’s Bio:
AJ Lloren
AJ Lloren is a loving mother of three who is passionate about writing, traveling, and public speaking. She is a self-proclaimed funny woman and dreams of publishing a book one day. She works as a freelance Outreach Specialist and SEO writer for a top SaaS company.