Who invented pdf files

I worked in a prepress beaureau in the late 90s. Thanks for this very informative article. Is there any indication that PDF was ever a commercial success for Acrobat. PDF is a file format, Acrobat is the software to create or process such files. I assume that you are curious whether PDF was a commercial success for Adobe? Since it is impossible to make money off a file format, Adobe has never had any direct revenue from PDF.

But the popularity of PDF has enabled them to sell tons of Acrobat licenses. There have been quarters where it was their most profitable product range. By controlling the PDF standard and tailoring their software to use its full capabilities, Adobe has managed to make InDesign the most popular design application on the market. Your email address will not be published. Introduction The paperless office. PDF 1. ISO is managed by industry representatives and others in open meetings under parliamentary rules.

Anyone can observe and participate. Adobe Systems does not dominate ISO Adobe does not always get what they want trust me on that. Adobe is not the only provider of PDF creation, manipulation or viewing software, there are many others, and more every year. A significant fraction of all the hard-drives on planet Earth are occupied with PDF files, perhaps more than any other document file-format.

Regardless of which software, hardware or platform it is being viewed on. For example, if the original document was created on a Mac, it could easily be sent via email to a colleague using Windows, and they'd be able to see the exact same visual.

And vice versa. Today's online tools can convert almost any file format to a PDF - whether it's a Powerpoint spreadsheet, Keynote presentation or a scanned, text-based form. This is helpful not only in creating crisp, easy-to-share presentations with co-workers, but can be used to share - and complete - business forms as well. This ability makes PDF an ideal tool for the 'paperless office'.

PDF users can edit a PDF form directly on their computer, saving the unneccessary waste of time, paper and the need to re-scan completed documents.

Inspired by the idea of digitizing the contents of the Library of Congress, Warnock's Team Camelot expanded to include developers with a diverse range of coding skills to build the platform-agnostic file format. Not only would the file format need to be compatible with the most popular platforms, they also needed to have developers that had experience working with printer drivers.

It was this additional element that eventually helped to boost PDF's popularity around the globe - users everywhere could choose to 'Save as PDF' instead of printing out the document.