Web Wise

Portable Document Format

Portable Document Format (.pdf) was created by Adobe in 1993, enabling people using different computer platforms with different software to exchange electronic documents and see them exactly the way that they were designed.

Ideal for forms and complicated pages that can't be properly displayed online, PDF files have a higher resolution than the standard 72 dpi of a Web page. Even though PDF files show the images, fonts, colors and format as a desktop-publishing application would, their compressed size makes downloading and opening them quick and painless.

Adobe has many products for sale that will allow you to create PDF files, but the software that lets you view a PDF file, Adobe Acrobat Reader, is free and available at the Adobe Web site (http://www. adobe.com).

Most Web sites that archive documents store the pages as PDF files. For example, a search on OBD II at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Web site ( http://www. epa.gov) will generate almost 100 documents, most of which you will need to download and open with Acrobat Reader.

Acrobat Reader is available in 12 different languages, making foreign communications much easier. At the NACE '99 Web site (http://www. NACE-99.com) the international delegate registration forms are available as PDF files in French, German and Spanish.

Aside from downloading PDF files from the Web, you can also easily attach the files to e-mail messages. This is especially helpful if you aren't sure what kind of computer the receiver is using.

ASA Web Ways

Making Information Available Online

Upgrading your shop software and can't find your July issue of AutoInc.? Now your problems are solved! You can download AutoInc.'s Ninth Annual Shop Management Software System Guide from the ASA Web site (http://www.asashop.org). Previously, the report was displayed online only in Web images that were difficult to decipher. Now, the complete chart is also available in PDF (Portable Document Format) files for your convenience. Download the pages and print out a clear copy using Adobe Acrobat Reader. The official ASA Membership Form is also available online in this format. Print out a few copies and receive recognition and prizes by helping to recruit new ASA members!

Hot Sites

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Note: Web sites listed in Net Worth do not serve as endorsements of the sites themselves or of any companies or products associated with these sites. In addition, ASA does not verify the factual accuracy and does not necessarily share the opinions expressed by those within these other sites.

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