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What is PDF and How many versions of PDFs are there?

PDF

What is PDF?  

 

PDF (Portable Document Format) is a file format used for presenting and exchanging documents reliably, independent of software, hardware, or operating systems. Developed by Adobe in 1993, it has since become an open international standard maintained by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).  Portable Document Format (PDF) is a standard, universal file format used to display documents created from different applications or platforms. PDF documents offer the following advantages:

  • Using only a PDF Reader, you can view PDF documents without having to install the software used to create the original source files.

  • PDF format preserves the original layout of a source document and prevents changes from occurring during repagination when the PDF is opened on another computer. PDF files display with the same fonts and margin settings used in the original document.

A PDF file may contain additional information (bookmarks, hyperlinks, comments) to make its contents more accessible.

  • Bookmarks show the structure of a document. Click a bookmark to jump immediately to the required page. You can import bookmarks from Word documents or create them within Power PDF. You can also generate a Table of Contents automatically from bookmarks.

  • A Hyperlink is a special area that can be activated by a click. Hyperlinks give you quick access to another location in the same document or another document, or to a website page. Hyperlinks can also be used for special functions such as submitting a form.

  • Comments are written explanations or interpretation added to a document, and they can be identified by their authors based on color coding.

  • Additional controls are available, such as password protection, watermarks, compression settings and font embedding.

For details, see About PDF Versions.

About Tagged PDF files

Tagged PDF files contain metadata to describe the document structure and the order of different document elements such as pictures, text blocks, columns, titles, and more. The program can access this information and use it in addition to its own page layout detection while making editable files. Screen readers also use tag information to determine the best reading order for PDF contents. Not all PDF files are tagged.

About PDF versions

This product supports PDF versions 1.0 to 2.0; this topic summarizes which features are supported in each version. Features not mentioned here are supported in all versions. PDF files created by the product can be from versions 1.3 to 2.0 or PDF/A (based on version 1.4) or USPTO compliant (based on version 1.4 with all fonts embedded, high quality and security protection disallowed). For more compliance information, visit the US Patent and Trademarks Office website at www.uspto.gov.

Encryption

40-bit RC4: Supported in PDF version 1.1 and above (security revision 2)

128-bit RC4: Supported in PDF version 1.4 and above (security revision 3)

128-bit AES: Supported in PDF version 1.6 and above (security revision 3)

256-bit AES: Supported in PDF version 1.7 and above (security revision 3)

Document permissions

The available set of document permissions depend on the security revision number (defined in the PDF standard). Two security revisions are used: 2 and 3.

Security revision 2 (RC4-40 encryption) allows the document creator to restrict the following operations:

  • Modifying the document contents

  • Copying text and graphics from the document

  • Adding or modifying text annotations and interactive form fields

  • Printing the document

Security revision 3 (RC4-128, RC4-128 or RC-256 encryption) adds the following operations to the repertoire the document creator can control:

  • Form fill-in and sign document

  • Text inspection for accessibility

  • Document assembly including insertion, deletion of pages and creation of bookmarks and thumbnails

  • Allow only printing that does not allow perfect digital copies, but which may also result in degradation of output quality

Metadata

Metadata fields are supported in PDF version 1.1 and above.

PDF standards

PDF/A: Supported in PDF version 1.4 only.

PDF/X: Supported in PDF version 1.3 and above.

PDF/E: Supported in PDF version 1.6 and above.

PDF/UA: Supported in PDF 1.7 and above.

Linearized PDF: Supported in PDF version 1.2 and above.

 

Note If the PDF/A option is turned on, all controls in the Password Security panel are disabled.

PDF/A PDF/A is a standard designed to be usable in wide range of applications and operating systems and also withstand future technological developments. PDF/A is based on PDF version 1.4, so earlier PDF products can handle them. It excludes elements such as JavaScript, which may not be correctly interpreted in some environments. It requires certain items, such as adequate tagging, good accessibility, and suitable metadata. The program can handle all PDF/A subtypes, and its Advanced version provides a PDF compliance checker and an Accessibility checker.
PDF/X

PDF/X is a middle-state format for exchange during pre-press activities. Serves as a final-state digital format to the extent that it is used for online proofing prior to printing. PDF/X has a series of printing related requirements that do not apply to standard PDF files. For example, fonts must be embedded, and images need to use CMYK or spot colors in most of the PDF/X subformats.
PDF/E PDF/E is a document format used in engineering, mostly when documenting geospatial, constructional or manufacturing workflow. The specification supports interactive media, including animation and 3D.
PDF/UA PDF/UA (resembling Universal Accessibility) is a constrained form of PDF 1.7 intended to ensure accessibility and support for assistive technology used by people with disabilities.

Linearized PDF

Linearized PDF is optimized for faster web display, so the first page displays quickly while other pages are still being processed.


Compression methods

Power PDF supports multiple PDF compression methods:

  • TIFF G4: PDF 1.0 to 1.3

  • JBIG2: PDF 1.4

  • JPEG2000: PDF 1.5 and above

  • MRC: supported in PDF 1.3 and above for image-only PDF files

 

Note When a PDF contains many photos, use of JPEG2000 can reduce file sizes by 50% or more without notiiceable quality degradation, compared to earlier compression methods.

 

 

Source: Tungsten Automation

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