Adobe Acrobat 5.0

by Adobe

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B00005ATSQ
• Item model number: 12001430
• Date first available at Amazon.com: March 12, 2001
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,245 in Software (See Top 100 in Software)
  • #12 in Software > Web Development > Internet Utilities > Electronic Publishing
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

Any business that requires documents to be shared, reviewed, and edited across broad networks will undoubtedly benefit from Adobe Acrobat 5.0. If you've never used Acrobat before, you'll be amazed at how easy it is to convert Office documents and Web pages to PDF files (portable document format). If you already use Acrobat, new features and enhancements--including the ability to upload documents to Web sites and intranets--make this version a worthwhile upgrade.

Installation is quick and easy; within 15 minutes of opening the box we were saving Web pages as PDF files and adding comments to our documents. New users may want to take a tour around the help sections (either online Help or tool tips) to get acquainted with the program. In addition, checking out the help section will ensure you don't miss out on some of the more hidden features within the application, such as color management and timesaving Windows and Mac shortcuts.

One of the most important new features of version 5.0 is the ability to develop new documents from PDF files. You can now save the PDF file to Rich Text Format (RTF), and then edit the document using your word processor. Another important new feature is the ability to create interactive forms, which actually look a lot like their paper counterparts. And once you figure out how to upload these forms to your company intranet, you can share them with all relevant team members. Team members can even sign these forms, using a password-protected digital signature.

As always, the ability to comment on documents and Web pages remains an important reason to use Acrobat. A toolbar on the left-hand side gives users easy access to the list of comment tools, which range from highlighting tools, note boxes, pencil and line tools, and strikeout tools which let you erase lines of text. Once you've marked up a file or Web page, you can send the file to team members, business contacts and clients. As long as they have the Acrobat Reader (available free from Adobe's Web site), they should be able to read these files. And Acrobat retains the quality of your documents when you print them, so you don't have any nasty surprises when you pick up your documents from the printer.

Companies with employees in different physical locations can only benefit from Acrobat 5.0. While version 4.0 is obviously still a strong and very useful product, upgrading to Acrobat 5.0 promises a host of Internet-ready new features designed to accompany your business to the next level of high-speed communication. --Gisele Toueg--This review refers to the Windows version.

Amazon.com Review

Adobe Acrobat 5.0 is PDF-creation software, direct from the company that first established the PDF standard. PDF stands for portable document format, and it remains the best way to format documents so they can be read by anyone on any platform. Version 5.0 brings significant improvements, particularly with regard to its interaction with other leading software, such as the Microsoft Office suites and programs such as Photoshop and Illustrator.

Installation is easy. Included in the installation is a function button added to Office applications such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. When you've written a document in these programs, simply click the PDF button on the toolbar and it will guide you through saving it as a PDF. Anyone with Acrobat Reader--free and available for download from Adobe's Web site--can view the documents.

You can also upload these documents to Internet sites, or onto networks. This is a key feature of this version. This Web-savvy function means you can post documents on an intranet or a network, and other users can simultaneously view, write on, edit, highlight, and stick notes on it using Acrobat's tools in their browser windows. This has obvious merit for anyone running meetings where not all attendees can be physically present.

You can place graphics from leading software products such as Illustrator and Photoshop into these PDFs, and when clicked on later, they will launch the original creation program if editing is needed. You can also create and add digital signatures to the PDF file, and, once the key is exchanged with your chosen recipient, security of the documents will be assured, as only the recipient can open them.

All in all, Acrobat 5.0 should be an essential toolbox element for anyone who needs to share documents. It is easy to use, creates extremely high-quality items--whether business spreadsheets, brochures for customers (it maintains the integrity of the onscreen version on printers, guaranteeing that the look you intended is rendered to a high quality) or Web sites--and ensures that security is maintained through signatures, and through the fact that only the creator can edit the original file. --Alison Jardine

--This review refers to the Windows version of this product.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Powerful program, but..., November 1, 2001

By 

Steve Miller - See all my reviews

This review is from: Adobe Acrobat 5.0 (CD-ROM)

This is a great tool for anyone who wants to make files available for everyone via the web or other electronic means. However, the documentation is severely lacking and there are a number of features that have to be dug for.

This is a common problem with many software packages, as shown by the thriving market in "missing manual" type books. One wishes that the software publishers would give the info to the customers themselves, considering the prices they charge.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Acrobat the Standard for Business Electronic Information, December 7, 2002

By 

paul gerstenbluth (East Greenwich, RI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Adobe Acrobat 5.0 (CD-ROM)

Adobe Acrobat remains the standard for business and government distribution of electronic formatted documents. The free Acrobat Reader is used to view corporate reports, technical manuals, tax forms and formatted online documents. Acrobat Reader works on every platform: PC, Mac, and Unix.

Adobe Acrobat 5.0 software lets you convert any document to a PDF file. Your document's layout, fonts, links, and images will remain intact when your use Adobe Acrobat.

What's new in the Adobe Acrobat 5.0 program?

PDF Writer is missing. Adobe Acrobat Distiller is added as a System printer. Also, added are enhanced security features like 128-bit encryption for passwording files and digital signatures. In addition, you have a new user interface and new Adobe Acrobat palette comments, information, fields and tags.

Adobe Acrobat has new menu commands, catalog, distiller, spelling and the unique function of saving Adobe Acrobat on the web. You can also create eBooks using Adobe Acrobat. In addition, Adobe Acrobat allows you to drag and drop new PDF files into the Master PDF.

Electronic Comments and Acrobat PDF Forms

Adobe Acrobat can shorten your document review cycles. Writers and reviewers can add comments such as electronic sticky notes and text highlights. You can use Adobe Acrobat to receive comments from multiple reviewers. Reviewers can add electronic comments quickly to an online Adobe PDF file.

Gather information and reduce costs with Acrobat PDF forms. Create interactive forms that look like their paper versions. Now you can easily link the forms to a Web server, so that computer users can fill them in and digitally sign them from within their Web browser.

You can use Photoshop 7 or Photoshop Elements to capture your files into Adobe Acrobat. Also, most scanners allow you to save your work in PDF with your scanners' OCR (Optical Character Reader) program. This allows you to print your work as a PDF file.

Pro Reaction

You can determine the skill levels of Adobe Acrobat person from novice to intermediate and finally to expert based on their PDF files work.

In Adobe Acrobat's thumbnail palette you can insert new pages quickly. Create documents anyone can open. Easily convert your Microsoft Office documents to Adobe PDF. Gather research information from the Web by downloading and converting Web pages to an Adobe PDF file. Then, you can save them as an Adobe PDF file with active links.

Con Reaction

Navigation changes in the Adobe Acrobat menus. The Adobe Capture document in Acrobat does not work on the Macintosh.

Final Notes

I use Acrobat both for my business and home use. The cross-platform of Acrobat reader has made my work easier when dealing with clients of the Windows' persuasion. Acrobat has been and remains one of my most important applications.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the most essential pieces of software I own, September 12, 2002

By 

Joanna Daneman (Middletown, DE USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Adobe Acrobat 5.0 (CD-ROM)

Yes, it can be a bit tricky to use this software. For example, the text editor is quite a bit different from the scheme Microsoft Word uses, so there is a lot to get used to. But I DON'T CARE. It's so useful that I found it worth the initial struggle.

If you want to do web publishing, this is a must-have. I found all kinds of uses for Acrobat for my website, which is devoted to knitting (boring, I know, but there are a lot of us who like to knit and it's a surprisingly technical discipline.) I use Acrobat to prepare patterns for distribution on the Web and also by e-mail and snail mail. I frequently use the printing function to "print" a web page or document into electronic form. You can set up a virtual printer in your printer dialog box to be the Acrobat printer and end up with PDF format files. This may be the feature I use the most.

I also transfer charts created in Microsoft Excel(tm) into PDF files to make graphic representations of stitch patterns. I start in Excel(tm) coloring in the cells with symbols and end up with a PDF file that is an attractive graphic chart that can be included in a PDF text file.

In short, this software is versatile for web and publishing applications as well as printing to file instead of paper. I would not be without it.