What is your favorite PDF reader ? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: BravoV
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 07:35:59 am
content: I guess no body can live without it in this electronic world nowdays.Let me start 1st, for desktop I'm using SumatraPDF (open source) but with native x64 bit compiled binary running at Win 7 x64 system. My reason is it has a really small footprint in memory and launched very fast too, and its capable of scrolling/zooming so stupidly fast even at a humongous scanned pdf file like those A0 sized schematic from old manuals, everything seems instantaneously rendered on screen. For tablet (ipad) I use GoodReader, again with the same reason that its pretty fast and capable of opening huge pdf without any glitches compared to other competitors.Personally I never used annotation, so its pretty straight forward for me that my pdf viewer is for viewing only.Which pdf reader you're currently using now and why ?

author: david77
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 08:03:34 am
content: To be honest I've never even thought of using another product than Adobe's Acrobat Reader.I still use an older version, I think it is 5 or 6. Works realtively good, if a bit slow at times. I will give SumatraPDF a try:)

author: pickle9000
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 08:22:14 am
content: PDF-XChange Viewer the free version. It's very simple, fast, and small....mike

author: samgab
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 08:22:49 am
content: "Foxit Reader"FTW. I can't stand Acrobat, it's such bloatware.

author: BravoV
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 08:48:37 am
content: Just fyi, the sumatrapdf executable file "SumatraPDF.EXE" is only 4.5 MB (the 32bit version), and all you need is only this single file to run and doesn't need any other supporting files either, and windows registry is untouched at all. Also since its open source, its not an ad-ware of course.I used to use foxit heavily for quite some time years ago before they're turning into heavily advertisement ridden softwareand worst its now it so bloated compared to before ad-ware era.

author: AntiProtonBoy
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 09:14:07 am
content: I'm also a Foxit Reader user when it comes to quick document checks. It has a tabbed user interface, which is ace, but sadly it does not remember document states between sessions. Also the recent version is really ugly... for some retarded reason they decided to re-skin the UI and gives no option to disable it.I also found Google Chrome to be really good for opening multiple PDF tabs (like lots and lots of tabs), plus it reopens them between sessions.

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 09:41:21 am
content: Quote from: BravoV on May 31, 2012, 08:48:37 amI've used foxit for so long now, and yes, I've noticed it's gotten big and bloaty. I'll give sumatraPDF a try now.

author: kripton2035
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 10:03:04 am
content: I'm using preview, integrated with mac os x ...simple and fastdont like acrobat too !

author: Rufus
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 11:07:53 am
content: Do any of the 3rd party readers provide the 3D view in this document?http://www.hammondmfg.com/pdf/1550Q.pdf

author: firewalker
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 11:43:17 am
content: For me Okular.http://okular.kde.org/Alexander.

author: BravoV
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 12:09:09 pm
content: Quote from: codeboy2k on May 31, 2012, 09:41:21 amIf you're running Win 7 x64 platform, just google for a precompiled 64 bit binary of this program, cause sumatrapdf website only provides 32 bit version. There are a lot of this pre-compiled in win x64 bit binary at the internet by sumatrapdf fans/supporters, some are heavily optimized for modern cpu platform which supposed to be better or faster, though I haven't bench them 32 vs 64 directly, it just "feels" faster especially in opening/viewing/zooming/panning a huge hundreds MB pdf file.Quote from: Rufus on May 31, 2012, 11:07:53 amI guess you're stuck with Acrobat, the SumatraPDF can not render the animated 3D view, it displays only a static 3D view, not sure at others. I can't recall if any of my pdf files collection need this feature, guess I can live without it.

author: Chasm
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 12:29:10 pm
content: Quote from: pickle9000 on May 31, 2012, 08:22:14 amI secondPDF-XChange Viewer Free, it's neat and quite powerful. If you need more functionality the upgrades are reasonably priced.Standard and Pro versions canembed3D objects which are fully functional in Adobe Acrobat Reader. No 3D view at this time through.

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 12:43:37 pm
content: Quote from: firewalker on May 31, 2012, 11:43:17 amFoxit Reader display a static 3D view, but I couldn't seem to manipulate it to change the view. So maybe not.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 12:56:33 pm
content: The default Xpdf reader, but have the Adobe bloatware just in case i need to use a unfriendly file with Java in it.

author: free_electron
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 01:38:18 pm
content: Adobe of course. Duh !All the others are wannabe's and not guarantee to be complete in functionality.Adobe does not release the full specs of the format..The same bullshit with all those pdf printer programs. Just get the real thing.As for 'bloatware' i have the real acrobat ( the generator and the reader that comes with that ) and it is noticably faster than the free reader. I have two identical computers. Same mobo cpu ram hdd video , everything identical. One with the paying version ( came in CS5 master edition. I bought that because i needed Illustrator , Photoshop and Indesign. Was cheaper to buy the whole suite than buying individual) and one with free version.The paid acrobat opens documents much faster than the free one. Footprint is also smaller...The paid one does not say 'acrobat reader' at the title bar but something else... I believe it says acrobat preview or acrobat distiller. I'll look it up when back home

author: Chasm
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 02:16:13 pm
content: I don't have a problem with bloatware, I have a problem with the unmitigated security problem Acrobat is.

author: BravoV
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 02:31:32 pm
content: Quote from: free_electron on May 31, 2012, 01:38:18 pmNot sure if you're filthy rich or not, but you're suggesting majority of people to buy a full blown acrobat application "just for reading" PDF file is just plain stupid.Regarding incompatibilities on various features that Adobe Acrobat has, those are niche or minors that 99.99% of pdf files out there don't have that, and also for casual users that need to view only, those can be ignored.

author: free_electron
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 02:40:07 pm
content: why is it that posts on a forum are always misunderstood ...What i'm saying is that there is a noticable difference between the free acrobat reader and the paid version. I'm not suggesting everybody goes out and buys CS5. It is just something i noticed. as for the why and how ? dont knowBut i do stand by my remark on the pdf writer software as well as the free reader software. just get the real thing. the others are all wannabe's that do not have a 100% implementation. Only adobe can provide that.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 03:28:19 pm
content: The free and the paid version of course are different.FE obviously needed the distillation abilities of the Adobe creation suite, probably as a part of his generating manuals and application notes for his job. The reader part is just to test the output, and, being part of the suite, obviously does not have all of the bloat associated with having an updater, checking for updates and such, just the whole cut down core only. The suite relies on the developer being notified, and then updating the whole suite.

author: AntiProtonBoy
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 03:50:30 pm
content: Adobe is to PCs as cancer is to humans.

author: free_electron
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 06:23:16 pm
content: Quote from: SeanB on May 31, 2012, 03:28:19 pmnope. hobbyi'm writing books which requires having distiller and indesign. Plus i make all graphics in illustrator (which i am used to have at work) And i always wanted Photoshop and Premiere ( since i shoot pictures and video underwater as a hobby ) so in the end the whoel suite was cheaper than the individual components and it comes with Adobe Bridge that glues everything together.Quotehmm , now that you mention that... that may be it. CS comes with a centralized updater which is completely different than the regular updater. there's also no 'helper' applications that i can see in the process list. If i click on a pdf link in a website it does not open in the browser but in a separate window (always) so it looks there is no browser plugin either. So tere are apparently key differences. Anyway i got no complaints about it ( neither paid or free version ). It works, i'm happy.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 06:46:01 pm
content: I just use either an old version of MSOffice, or OOfice /LibreOffice or even Abiword.A curse is people who send (whatever)x documents, as then I have to go to the machine concerned ( at work) and install the converter pack ( on a server) so they can read the stuff.A pox too on computer suppliers who supply a "Trial" version of office, with a 6 month runtime. My solution is the free Libreoffice installed instead of it, most users do not notice the difference at all. Those wedded to office 2000 I demo office 2010 with the ribbon, then they want the "other office" instead.Still got a version of WP around though, but it runs best in Dosbox, and is hard to print from.

author: FenderBender
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2012, 08:07:27 pm
content: To be honest, I don't mind Adobe Reader. I know that it's fat and ugly, but I used to use Foxit and sometimes stuff just didn't work, images not rendering correctly and 3D hardly worked. So I reinstalled Adobe.I'm considering switching back because those problems have probably been fixed and Foxit was much lighter.

author: jerry507
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2012, 05:22:02 pm
content: Foxit crashed all the time when I used it. Now I just use Adobe Reader on PCs. Preview on OSX is easily the best PDF reader I've ever used though.

author: LEECH666
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2012, 08:29:59 pm
content: Using PDF XChange Viewer atm, because Opera (my browser) is incredibly slow at opening PDFs with the original Acrobat Reader.I like the original Acrobat Reader GUI better tho. I also tried Foxit but there was a slight glitch that made me uninstall it again. Whenever I viewed a PDF inside the browser the printing toolbar howered over the browser window. No matter what tab was selected. I've also used Sumatra before and sometimes it does open PDFs Acrobat reads couldnt open because it thought the PDF was damaged. So give that one a try if you can't open a PDF.Florian

author: Mechatrommer
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2012, 10:29:44 pm
content: my fav? open with adobe acrobat, print it on paper, read it. i never liked something that cannot flip pages quickly and slip my fingers in, not even kindle can do that i think.edit: and if its dropped, it still workwater? it has some level of survival, depending on what ink you are using.

author: JoannaK
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 02, 2012, 12:33:54 am
content: Quote from: samgab on May 31, 2012, 08:22:49 amSeconded.. Foxit does the necessary stuff.

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 03, 2012, 01:34:46 am
content: Quote from: FenderBender on May 31, 2012, 08:07:27 pmI found the same, when I first started using Foxit, it was fast, but some PDF's just didn't work. I went back to Acrobat Reader for a short while. However, the latest Foxit reader is still faster than Adobe Reader, and I haven't found a PDF it can't render yet. The latest release is more bloated than it used to be, but still faster and lighter than Adobe Acrobat Reader. I don't think it supports 3D rendering well. If you need that, stick with Adobe.

author: NiHaoMike
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 03, 2012, 02:39:40 am
content: On a PC, Okular. On Android, EBookDroid.

author: Zero999
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 03, 2012, 09:32:16 am
content: Quote from: free_electron on May 31, 2012, 01:38:18 pmThat's not an option for everyone.What happens if you're using a platform not supported by Adobe?QuoteThey should. The PDF format should be a fully open, free standard.QuoteI've never actually tried the real Adobe PDF creation software.Currently, I use the freeware Adobe reader. I tried others but they didn't work for all PDFs but I agree with others here, it'd be nice to have a faster lighter alternative. If Adobe released the full PDF specification, then there'd be more chance of a decent alternative implementation.For creation, I use the built-in PDF creator in OxygenOffice Professional (which I know is dated, some day I'll try LibreOffice or Apache OpenOffice) and the open source PDFCreator which I like because it can output in other formats than PDF: png, svg, eps etc.It's probably not worth buying the real thing for casual hobby use and it's not an option for those using a platform other than Mac OS X or Windows.

author: BravoV
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 03, 2012, 08:50:42 pm
content: Quote from: iamwhoiam on June 03, 2012, 04:16:54 pmYeah, guess you forgot how did this format came from, do these words like "electricity bill", "printer" and "computer+PDF reader" ring a bell ?

author: free_electron
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 03, 2012, 09:37:14 pm
content: Quote from: Hero999 on June 03, 2012, 09:32:16 amthen you switch platforms . no ?If i need to open a box that is fit together with torx screws ... i buy torx screwdrivers. And if my regular tool brand does not have them i will have to use a different brand .I really don't get this 'platform fanatism' A computer to me is a tools to run software that lets me do my work. And some software is specific to a certain os. So simply get amachine with that os.Why restrict yourself by fanaticiscm of the type 'i will only use xyz because the others are bloaware or capitialistic tripe'.. You are only doing yourself a disservice and stifling your own advancement.It's like buying a british , right hand card , that only runs on distilled spit , bringing it to a country where everyone drives left hand cars and then mope and complain that it is hard to drive when everyone is going the wrong way and that distilled spit is really hard to get by ... suck it up , adapt or do like the dinosaurs...Quotewhy ? it was created as a commercial product. The people at adobe work for money too.. Feel free to creat your own free open standard and see if you can get traction... but make sure you find a way to make money off it so you don't starve to death ...the PDF mechanism is great. you can read and print for free. wat to make one ? pay ... great. because for people that 'consume' inofmration it is costless. For people that want to create 'information' : they foot the bill.Quotewhy would they want to shoot themselves in the foot ? if they open it up they invite competition to eat their lunch.

author: NiHaoMike
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 04, 2012, 03:20:31 am
content: I can tell you that it's very rare to find a PDF that doesn't open properly in Okular or some other open source PDF viewer. And with tablets becoming more popular, you can be sure they'll likely make sure PDFs can be viewed on those.The last time I used Adobe's own viewer, it was very poorly designed. It would be slow and tended to lock up at times, certainly making you not want to buy their paid version!There's also plenty of open source software for making PDFs. LibreOffice is one common example. In fact, (back when it was OpenOffice), they have had that support long before Microsoft Office had it.