OT (PDF) Was : Re: Web programming tools

[eric.allen.engle at justice.com]

I *am* an academic; we have to read so much stuff that
there is literally no way to print it all. We also have
to cite stuff constantly. So copying and manipulating
text is more important than whether it looks nice (a
question of taste, de gustibus non disputandem).

I have both acrobat and distiller, so I am not sure
whether the text selection tool exists in all versions
(i.e. I may have it because I have the entire package,
others may not though). Further the text selection only
lets you select line by line - you already admit it has
problems. 

Personally I prefer manuals in word or plain text;
though in MS word pad line breaks never seem to
translate properly. 

I do not think it is ignorant to point out that the
plug in takes up time and memory. Unlike plain HTML.

Don't get me started on post script: It's even worse
than acrobat. Not only do I have to start acrobat, I
then have to distill the file and then find the file,
probably in my C:\windows\temp - which is already quite
full...

Seriously, we print way too much; we print on both
sides of the page, reuse paper, recycle paper, and
still are under rather clear instructions, "print if
necessary, but only if necessary".

Oddly, we don't use UNIX though I have pointed this out
to admin as cheaper.

I could however care less whether the product "looks"
nice. I care whether I can manipulate it. While it may
look good to you it may not to me. E.g. I read so much
I genuinely prefer monospace, i.e. fixed width,
courier. This is especially better for reading code.
Most of my colleagues don't. Can I change the text in
acrobat distiller? Yes, eventually. As easily as in
HTML? NO. Why? Familiarity. Not likely to change,
happily only about 1/3 of what I have to read is PDF.

> Would you really want to print a book from a bunch of
> Microsoft Word files? Plain Text?

Yes, because then I could easily select and manipulate
just the text I want. We don't print entire books. We
do print chapters or pages.

> a) Acrobat comes with a browser plug-in which is one
of
> the more stable, convenient browser plugins around.

Still takes time to boot.

> I apologize if this sounds a bit harsh, but I have a
> real peeve for blasting products (or anything else)
> with little apparent perspective.

Oddly, I do not think it sounds harsh, but also think I
have a good perspective. It takes time to boot, copying
is not easy, manipulating text is not easy and post
script is a nightmare, I genuinely refuse it. It's
mostly in math that I see it where it sort of makes
sense, but then again so does LaTex.

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