Working with PDFs (Adobe Reader)
OU module content is sometimes provided as PDF (portable document file). PDFs will open in your browser or alternatively you can download a PDF and open it using Adobe Reader which is freely available.
Keep your Adobe Reader software up to date
You should keep your version updated for security reasons and to take advantage of any useful new features that are added. You can install the latest version of the software from the Adobe website.
Do not download from an unofficial source because of the risk of picking up malware.
To download a PDF from a webpage
- Right-click the link to the PDF (Mac users can Control-click).
- Select the download option available in your browser, such as Save Link As..., or Download Linked File as...
- Choose where you want to save the file, for example your Desktop or Documents folder, and select Save.
- Once the download is complete, open the PDF from the location where you saved it.
For Safari users: Right-click (or Control-click) the PDF link and select Download Linked File as... Choose a location to save the file, then open the downloaded copy from your computer.
Making notes in a PDF
Many people print out PDFs and hand write notes on them. However the built-in tools for digital annotation provided by Adobe Reader are fast, flexible and free. Adobe Reader's tools are explained in Use annotation and drawing markup tools to add comments in PDFs in the Adobe help centre.
Add backwards and forwards buttons to the toolbar
PDFs often contain links to other parts of the document. After following a link, you may want to return to your previous location. Adobe Reader includes Previous View and Next View commands that work like a browser's Back and Forward buttons, but they may not be visible by default.
To add them to the toolbar, select View > Show/Hide > Toolbar Items > Page Navigation > Previous View and Next View (the exact menu path may vary by version). These buttons can save a lot of time when navigating complex PDFs.
When I print a PDF, the text appears as unreadable characters. How can I fix this?
This is often caused by a font or printer compatibility issue. A quick workaround is to print the PDF as an image:
- Select File > Print.
- Select Advanced (or Advanced Print Setup, depending on your version).
- Select Print as Image.
- Select OK, then print the PDF again.
Printing as an image bypasses some font and rendering issues that can cause text to print incorrectly, however it can sometimes produce slightly less sharp text and may increase print time or file processing time.
