What is PDF?
PDF (Portable Document Format) files are very widely used on the World Wide Web to distribute documents in a controlled form suitable for printing paper copies. Users include vast numbers of organizations in business, science and technology, as well as many government agencies such as, in the UK, HM Revenue & Customs.
Why is PDF used?
If you print an ordinary web page direct from your web browser program*, the layout of the information on the page can vary depending on factors in your computer setup (such as screen resoluton).
With a PDF file, the publisher of the document controls how the content of each page will appear each time it is viewed or printed.
What do I do with a PDF file?
First, you download the file from the internet and save it to your computer's hard disk drive; for this, right-click (if using MS Windows; the Apple Mac computer system has an equivalent) on the link and choose the Save option.
Then, to view or print a PDF document, you need to have a PDF file viewer such as Adobe Reader or Acrobat Exchange (both from Adobe Systems Incorporated) installed on your computer.
If you already have such a program installed, just click on the PDF file you saved and the program will open it for you to view the document.
If you do not yet have such a program installed, just click on the link below to download a free version of Adobe Reader from Adobe's website.
 Download Adobe Reader now |
Accessibility for people with disabilities
Adobe helps make electronic information more accessible to people with disabilities including, but not limited to: blindness, low vision, hearing, and motor impairments. To find out more, visit Adobe's website on Accessibility.