Now, I bet working with PDF files isn’t high on your list of Things You Want To Know About. However, knowing the tricks of the trade and making PDF files work for you can drastically help you organize yourself and your life.
So what’s a PDF file anyway?
I’m sure you’ve heard of them. PDF stands for Portable Document Format. The great thing about the PDF format is that it is viewable across all platforms. Regardless of what you are running, there’s a way to look at PDF documents and images. Plus, pretty much every program out there to view PDF files is free.
Working with PDF files is simple and easy. You don’t have to worry about what version of Word somebody is running, you don’t have to putz around with different file formats. In business (and let’s face it: in life), when you need to share a document with somebody, a PDF file is a great way to go.
How do you read a PDF file?
The easiest way is to go to Adobe’s website and get Adobe Acrobat Reader. It was once the bulkiest, most sluggish piece of free software on the market, but recent years and new versions have produced a fairly lightweight program, and it’s generally the default one. When you download a legal form to fill out with Reader, you will have the ability to input all the information on the form through your computer (in many cases). That’s great, because some of us (ME) have terrible handwriting and hate picking up a pen. In fact, Lifehacker recently put together a list of the most popular PDF readers online.
How do you create a PDF file?
There are two ways to do it: print to PDF and scan to PDF.
Print to PDF is great and easy. First, download a program like the free CutePDF creator. This will add an option in your print dialog for printing to a PDF instead of an external printer. To scan a document to a PDF, download a great, free program like Scan2PDF. Then you can just run a document through your scanner and click “Scan” on the program’s menu. Now you have a PDF version of your hard copy for saving to wherever you like.
If you have a bunch of separate pages that you want to merge into one PDF files with multiple pages within it, check out the free Web service Merge PDF.
That’s all well and good, but what’s the point of all this? What do I do with PDF files?
There are several great ways to take advantage of using PDFs:
Get rid of your stinking fax machine. I’ve had business colleagues who have asked, “Do you have a fax machine?” If I didn’t have to be respectful and professional about it, I would say, “No, it’s 2009.” Seriously. The fax machine has served its purpose. My simple laptop computer that cost me about $700 over two years ago – which would probably mean it’s worth around $200 today – can do anything a fax machine can do, and much better. Ditch the cover page and attach your document to an email. There’s no point in having a fax machine. At all.
Back up and store important documents. The beauty of PDF documents is that they support both text and images. If you get some piece of mail (a bill, or other important financial documents), scan it as a PDF and store it on your hard drive. Then you ditch the piles and piles of papers that sit around your house. Even better: empty out that file cabinet and scan them in as PDFs. They’d be infinitely easier to navigate.
Pair it up with an Evernote account. I’ve said before that Evernote is a killer application to empty your head. One of the coolest features of Evernote is that it scans PDFs that you store in it and makes the text recognizable. That way, you can use the search function in Evernote to find information from your PDFs quickly and easily. With the desktop application, just drag the PDF into the program and it will load, back up, and index it for you. I like to do this with magazine articles that I might want to use later. I scan it, add it to Evernote, and now I can search for magazine articles that I want to re-read long after I’ve thrown the hard copies in the recycling bin.
PDF files are great and easy to implement to transition to a near-paperless home or office. Do you have any favorite PDF tips or programs that I am not covering here? Let me know in the comments!
Tom is an entrepreneur and freelance writer, working out of his apartment full-time, or wherever he feels like taking his laptop. He doesn't take long European vacations or blogs on the beach. He's an Average Joe that took control of his life. He wants you to do the same.
