How PDF Software Saves Your Business Money

There are quite a few benefits gained when using PDF software to create documents for your business. Saving money, however, isn’t one that people often think of. Known for creating files that you can protect and that are platform independent, PDF software proved itself to be an important tool used in many of today’s companies. If you still need to make the case for implementing this type of application into your company’s computing environment, here are a few ways that your business will actually save money using PDF software. These cost savings may be just what you need to convince that one person to approve the purchase.

You save money by not having to file paper documents

Using PDF reader software on your computer or mobile device means you can share PDF files with others and never have to print the document on paper. When you consider the fact that the average office worker users about 10,000 sheets of paper every year, the costs of printing your documents start to add up. Factor in the costs associated with storing paper documents, paying someone to file all of those documents and even the eventual destruction of paper documents and it becomes rather clear that storing documents electronically rather that working with hard copies makes more economical sense.

PDF software is not expensive

When it comes to buying enterprise level word processing software, you commonly have to purchase an entire suite that includes database software, spreadsheet software and other applications. The problem is, many people never use the other applications that come along with their suite; they only use the word processor. So the cost to purchase one tool is raised because so many other software tools come bundled with it. Also, anyone who you share those documents with need to have the same software installed on their computer as well or they won’t be able to open the file.

With PDF software, you purchase one tool that you need. Eventually, you will have to share those documents you create with someone that does not have PDF software but that doesn’t hinder them from reading the file. PDF reader software is available to them completely free of charge.

Best of all, you can still convert documents created in other word processors into a PDF file with a commercial application such as a PDF editor like Foxit PhantomPDF and edit all of the content that you may need to change.

While you might find these two cost saving benefits attractive, what really should pique your interest is the less tangible savings that come from the security surrounding PDF files. By using the security features built into many PDF software applications, you have the ability to password protect files, redact sensitive information and encrypt the document’s content. While you save no direct money using these features, they will certainly help you should a sensitive document fall into the wrong hands. By protecting sensitive and confidential information, you go a long way towards shielding your company from fines and lawsuits associated with a data leak, along with safeguarding your company’s reputation. That’s a cost savings on an entirely different scale.

More Tips for Managing PDF File Size

More Tips for Managing Your PDF Document’s File Size

There are many reasons why you would opt for using PDF software over a standard word processing application to create documents. After all, an enterprise-grade PDF software application comes with a rich set of features that help you secure and design great looking files. There are times, however, when so many different features and capabilities may mean you need to think about file size.

Since there is so much you can do with PDF software, such as inserting images into your document, including interactive forms, embedding videos and audio files and applying encryption, you may run the risk of creating a file that’s too large. That’s because email servers often block large files and larger files eat up bandwidth when downloaded.

We previously covered how to decrease PDF document size via font choices, image size and compression. Now let’s look at a few additional ways to keep your PDF file size manageable.

If you’re not using PDF software, use the “Save As” command

This is a good way to start to removing file size.  Every time you use the Save in most software, you usually end up with a larger file. That’s because your software saves any changes you made and adds them to the file instead of replacing them.

Instead of using Save, use the Save As command to overwrite the entire file, eliminating unnecessary objects and amassed changes, which reduces PDF file size.

Use PDF software to create your PDF documents

PDF editor software such as Foxit PhantomPDF comes with easy ways to create PDF documents and manage their file size. That includes ways to audit your PDF document and determine what’s causing the file to be so big.

Foxit PhantomPDF offers a feature called PDF Optimizer that you can find by expanding the File tab. Opening this tool presents you with a button that reads Audit space usage. Clicking this button checks the space usage of your current document allowing you to decide which elements of the file you need to optimize.

Which elements can you optimize?

You can run a content audit with PhantomPDF to determine which areas you can optimize. You’ll likely find file size decreases by changing these elements:

• Fonts – since PDF software embeds fonts into the file, anyone on any computer or device with a PDF reader can open your file. Unfortunately, adding all of these fonts to the finished file can create a bit of bloat. The optimizer allows you to select which fonts you wish to embed, leaving out those that are not used.
• Images – like any other file, the use of images adds to overall file size. You have the ability to set the settings for both color/grayscale and monochrome images and select from downsampling, subsampling and bicubic downsampling. You can also compress images with this tool and opt to only optimize images if the process results in reducing the file size.
• Discard objects – selecting this option will remove any unnecessary object settings.
• Discard user data – this allows you to select any user related data that you want to remove.

You can find out more about optimizing your PDF documents using PhantomPDF by following the instructions provided in theuser manual.

Using PDF software to create documents affords you the ability to include a number of different elements in your file that other software doesn’t allow for. It also provides you with ways to ensure you give people the ability to read, share and work with the finished document. And that’s the goal, after all.

Common Problems When Creating PDF Documents

PDF software is an amazing tool. Combining the elements of a desktop publishing application with the ease of a word processor makes it useful in the workplace. The collaboration and security features PDF software applications boast make them essential for many job functions.

Yet despite how easy and powerful PDF software is to use, people do make mistakes when creating documents with it. These user errors may be attributed to a number of things, however, they’re all preventable—and they’re best to avoid because each one not only diminishes the professionalism of the document, but makes it harder on your audience as well.

Here are some common PDF software issues and how to avoid them.

Text is unreadable

When setting up a document, content may run too long and throw off the page layout. A common fix for this is to make the font size smaller so things fit perfectly. When working within your PDF software, you have the ability to magnify the document so the text is easy to read on screen. If you know that people might be printing the document to read away from their computer or device, this may pose a problem. Using non-traditional script fonts only makes this worse.

Best practices recommend that you use a font size between 9 and 12 points for all body text and 18 point for headings. Plain fonts such as Arial, Helvetica or Times New Roman are also better choices than decorative fonts unless the typography calls for something specific.

Also, there’s the problem of using lightly colored text on a light background or darker text colors on a dark background. Make sure that your document provides enough contrast between the two so your words are easy to read.

Images are not sharp

File size is a concern for any type of document and may make it difficult to share. To reduce file size, some opt to use lower resolution images. This practice can greatly reduce the size of a document, however, it may cause images to look fuzzy especially when the document is printed.

To test the clarity of an image in your file, zoom in to 300 percent. If it still looks sharp, then it should be acceptable when the document is printed.

When creating images for use in PDF files, a resolution of 72 dots per inch (dpi) is acceptable for documents that users will read on their screen but if you expect people will print the file then increase the resolution to 300 dpi.

Elements are missing

What makes documents created with PDF software so important is the fact that people can open them in any computing environment. To accomplish this, however, you need to embed the following elements into the file:

• Fonts to ensure that the typography is correct; a change in the font type may lessen the effect of the content and alter the page layout.
• Color profiles so that a printed document looks the same on paper as it does on the screen.
• Multimedia files that you’ve added to enhance the content.

Fixing these mistakes is easy to do during the editing stage, however, making one slight change may have an unwanted effect on another aspect of your document. Learning to use your PDF editor software, understanding the best practices of creating PDF files and checking your document throughout the creation process will help you catch these issues before they become problems.

PDF to HTML Conversion: All It Takes is the Right Tool

PDF to HTML Conversion: All It Takes is the Right Tool

It’s rather easy to turn a web page into a PDF file. You have the option of using a PDF printer to do just that, however, using a PDF software application will allow you to create a better looking, presentable document. Best PDF Creator?

But what if someone wanted to reverse that process? Is it possible to take an existing PDF document and convert it into a web page? The answer is yes. Using the right PDF software allows you to turn a file into the hypertext markup language, or HTML. So why would you want to do this?

Reasons to turn a PDF file into HTML

In most cases, it’s best if you hire a professional web designer to build the web site for your organization. Converting PDF to HTML isn’t the ideal method for establishing a strong web presence. However, there are times when a quick conversion might be the best answer. For instance:

You need to turn a PDF brochure into a one-page web site in a hurry

You want to turn an existing marketing document or advertisement into an HTML email

You want to make your content available in multiple formats

Of course, using PDF software to convert a file into HTML also makes sense if you don’t have the design or development skills to create a web site as well. After all, it’s much easier to click a few buttons than it is to learn a markup language.

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How can I do it?

Using a PDF editor such as Foxit PhantomPDF, all matters of PDF-to-HTML conversion are handled for you.

To create an HTML file from a PDF document, you simply open the document and either select FILE > Export or click on the CONVERT tab.

After you choose either option, PhantomPDF will ask you which type of file format you wish to convert your document into. To create a web page, select HTML and choose the location where you wish to save it. Et voila! PDF to HTML.

Things to consider

Turning a PDF document into an HTML file doesn’t produce the cleanest code. While this file will likely work on most browsers, you may need to clean up parts of it and validate the file to ensure everything is correct. W3C provides a markup validator that will allow you to check your file for common errors.

Another thing to consider is that if you’re creating an HTML file to use as an email, many email clients are picky about the code. If something isn’t quite right, it’ll display the email client’s defaults, taking the style and formatting out of your message.

To help prevent this from happening, run your HTML through an inliner such as the one offered by Zurb. This helps ensure that your HTML will display properly in many of the popular email clients.

While converting a PDF file to HTML may not be the ideal method of creating web ready files, there may be cases when you need to rely on this capability. Ensuring that your PDF software contains all of the features you may need to use should be one of the most important factors when you, or your organization, is looking to purchase an enterprise ready PDF solution.

Creating User Friendly PDF Documents

Over the years, users have found PDF software increasingly easier to use. The workflow of creating a document that’s readable on any computing platform or mobile device is relatively simple if you’re using the right application. The user experience, however? That’s another story. Which is why it pays to take the time to properly plan the layout and user experience of the document you’re working on.

Luckily, enterprise grade PDF software applications provide you with all of the features and tools you’ll need to create user friendly documents; you just need to familiarize yourself with some of the best practices when it comes to PDF user experience.

Accessibility

Most governments have specific laws that requires electronic and information technology developed by or purchased by their Federal Agencies be accessible by people with disabilities. This has spread to many businesses and private organizations as well, so that employees who may have disabilities will also benefit from accessibility standards.

Accessibility is often is the first step in creating a user-friendly document. This involves adding a formal structure to documents, including alternative text for images, using descriptive text for tables, tagging documents appropriately and many other requirements that are similar to the ones found on this checklist. Once you create the document, you can then run a complete accessibility check of the file through your PDF software to ensure that the document is compliant along with providing a report for others to view.

Linking and navigation

One of the benefits of a PDF document is the ability to turn static content into an interactive document. You may utilize bookmarks or a table of contents for longer documents. Readers need only click on the bookmarked tab or the specific item in the table of contents to find the content they’re looking for.

Documents also have the ability to contain hyperlinks to content on the Internet; readers looking for sources or additional information need only click on the links you provide and they can bring up the appropriate page in their browser.

Page layout

Using PDF software, you can select from a number of layout choices including orientation, paper and page size, and units of measurement. You also have access to built-in tools that allow you to arrange objects on the page, move and resize paragraphs, edit images and other objects or even modify the document by changing the background and other elements.

Embed necessary elements

The most important user experience feature comes from the ability for PDF software to embed elements such as fonts and images directly into the document file. This ensures that every reader, regardless of which fonts they have installed on their system, will be able to experience the document the way you intended.

Much like web sites, PDF documents should also employ some of the best practices that give users the best possible experience. Not all word processing tools, or even PDF software solutions, provide the capability to accomplish this. Make sure that you’re using a PDF editor such as PhantomPDF that provides users with the features and tools needed to produce high quality, user-friendly documents.