Acrobat 5

However, there's a slight snag in that you can't share comments directly from within Acrobat itself. Instead, you must load your Internet browser to access the PDF and download and upload comments from there - though clearly this also has major advantages in terms of universal access. The good news is that the system works with a variety of standard protocols such as WebDAV (Web Distributed Authoring and Versioning) and, if you don't already have a shared data repository, this is easy to set up via ODBC, Microsoft Office Server Extensions or as a shared network folder.

Apart from document review, the Web-hosted PDF also comes into its own for form processing. For the end user, the most noticeable change here is the addition of a spelling checker, but the real changes are behind the scenes. To begin with, Acrobat 5 now adds Calculate and Validate tabs to the Form Tool's dialog so that you can quickly total an expenses list or check an identity number without having to resort to JavaScript.

For those who are happy programming, the most significant change is the ability to submit form data via the ODBC and XML protocols to tie in with back-end databases and processing systems. Most advanced of all is the ability to set up dynamic forms where, for example, entering that you have dependants generates new fields on the fly. However, unlike the other form-handling capabilities, dynamic forms need the end user to be using the full Acrobat program rather than the free Reader, so it's only suitable for closed workgroups.

Repurposing

Another focus of Acrobat 5 is the ability to repurpose content so that the PDF isn't necessarily the end of the line (unless set as such for security reasons). Using the Export | Extract Images command you can now save all images above a given size to JPEG, PNG or TIFF. Alternatively, using the Save As command, you can save each page of your document to these formats or to PostScript or EPS. To keep your text editable, you can save your document as RTF (rich text format) complete with much of its formatting.

Most of Acrobat 5's new features have a strong corporate bias, but Adobe hasn't forgotten the importance of PDF as the exchange medium for high-end designers. To begin with, Acrobat now shares the same ACE (Adobe Colour Engine) as Photoshop 6 (reviewed issue 74, p190) and Illustrator 9 (reviewed issue 70, p183). With the same colour choices in each program this should ensure accurate and consistent colour throughout the design process. It also means that you can use the new View | Proof Colours command to simulate how your work will come out under different press conditions. Then there's the OverPrint Preview option that uses composite colours to simulate the appearance of overprinted process and spot colours.

Acrobat 5's print capabilities have also been boosted with an all-new Print dialog. Among other improvements, this lets you rotate and centre pages, override halftone settings and transfer functions and tile areas of an oversized page. In addition, with its support for the new 1.4 PDF format, Acrobat can now handle transparency in the same way as Illustrator 9, trading off vector-based quality against bitmap-based speed. Transparency support is undoubtedly a major step forward for Acrobat, but without a print preview or any imposition capabilities, Acrobat 5's print capabilities are still seriously underwhelming.

The same is true of many of the remaining new features that Adobe is pushing. The program's existing Batch capability has been extended so that you can now apply virtually any function to a collection of PDFs. Pre-supplied options include printing, changing security and Web optimising. Also helping to squeeze the most out of your files is the PDF Consultant tool, which can be used to inspect, analyse and repair PDFs and strip out unused bookmarks, links and so on.