Adobe Acrobat

Adobe Acrobat is a software application for creating PDF (Portable Document Format) files. PDF files have become a standard format for delivering documents containing text and graphics.

Acrobat is not a page layout program — it is designed to convert existing documents into PDF, as well as performing related tasks such as combining multiple PDF files into a single PDF.
(Note: Adobe's flagship page layout program is InDesign.)

The PDF Format

PDF documents:

• Can be displayed on any common operating system such as Windows, Macintosh and Linux.
• Can be displayed in any resolution.
• Can include vector graphics, raster graphics and text.
• Support hyperlinks, forms, JavaScript and 3D objects.
• Support various levels of security/encryption.

Despite the runaway success of the PDF format, there are some criticisms. For example:

• The Adobe Reader program is heavy and slow to load.
• PDF documents opened in a browser are slow to load, and sometimes appear to have frozen until the entire file is downloaded.
• Browser plugins may leave unterminated threads in memory, causing a drain on the CPU until the computer is restarted.
• The inclusion of JavaScript support (from v3.02) is a potential security risk.
• Adobe Reader constantly "calls home". The option to disable automatic updates is not easy to find.