Over the years the Portable Document Format has evolved enormously. This page lists all the major releases, starting from PDF 1.0 which was released in 1993. For each PDF version, the new features are listed. A more elaborate overview of the history of PDF can be found here.
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Overall the PDF file format is remarkably flexible: obviously it is forward compatible, allowing you to open an old PDF 1.0 file in the latest version of the Adobe Reader. Backward compatibility is also pretty good: a recent PDF 1.7 file can be opened by Acrobat 4. The older software will ignore the newer features and may not be able to display page elements that use them.
PDF 1.0
Availability: November 1992 (announcement)/June 1993 (first software)
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 1.0
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 1.0
PDF 1.1
Availability: November 1994
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 2.0
New features:
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 2.0
New features:
Only the latest release of ndOffice and Adobe Acrobat/Reader are supported. If you call in for help regarding older versions, the support team will do their best to assist, but may not be able to provide a solution to your problem if you are using these unsupported versions. A free, limited but emminently useable version, 2. A paid Standard version for about $149.00/ year, and 3. A Premium version for about $349.00 / year. Acrobat.com is a project management program that includes Adobe Reader PDF, but it allows participants to colaborate from different parts of the country on projects, including reading others' monitor screens, and even taking command of their computer with the other participant's approval. There are plenty of adherents of older Windows versions and consequently, older versions of their favorite programs. This article will be particularly interesting to the category of users that want to install Adobe Reader on the computers running older versions of Windows, such as XP and earlier. Adobe Acrobat Reader DC software is the free global standard for reliably viewing, printing, and commenting on PDF documents. And now, it's connected to the Adobe Document Cloud − making it easier than ever to work across computers and mobile devices. The 11.0 version of Adobe Acrobat is provided as a free download on our website. Adobe Acrobat relates to Office Tools. This PC program works fine with 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows XP/Vista/7/8. The following versions: 11.0, 10.1 and 9.5 are the most frequently downloaded ones by the program users. This tool was originally developed by Adobe Systems Incorporated. The following versions: 10.1 and 10.0 are the most frequently downloaded ones by the program users. This download was scanned by our antivirus and was rated as clean. The most frequent installation filenames for the program are: Acrobat.exe and acrobat.setupmindxpert.exe etc.
- External links – embed a link to external documents or URLs.
- Article threads – articles that span multiple columns or pages are linked so that readers can easily navigate the text.
- Security features- protect PDF files by a password.
- Device independent color – PDF 1.0 only supported RGB, which left quite some room for improvement.
- Notes
PDF 1.2
Availability: November 1996
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 3.0
New features:
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 3.0
New features:
- Forms – allow users to add data to a PDF or use a PDF as an electronic form.
- Unicode – use extended character sets.
- Multimedia features – adding interactive page elements such as mouse events and support for additional multimedia types.
- Support for the OPI 1.3 specifications
- Improved color support – both the CMYK color space and spot colors can be used.
- Halftone functions, as well as overprint instructions, can be embedded.
PDF 1.3
Availability: April 1999
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 4.0
New features:
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 4.0
New features:
- 2-byte CID fonts
- Support for OPI 2.0
- Additional color spaces – ICC-based colors are supported. A new color space called DeviceN improves support for spot colors.
- Smooth shading, a technology that allows for efficient and very smooth blends (transitions from one color or tint to another).
- Annotations
- Digital signatures
- JavaScript actions
- RC4 encryption – 40 bit (Acrobat 4) & 56 bit (Acrobat 4.05)
PDF 1.4
Availability: May 2001
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 5.0
New features:
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 5.0
New features:
- Transparency
- Improved support for JavaScript, including JavaScript 1.5 and better integration with databases.
- Support for Tagged PDF – Tagged PDF files also contain structural information about the data that are represented by the PDF document. This means that meta-information like defining titles, blocks of text,… can be part of a PDF-document.
- JBIG2 compression
- 128-bit RC4 encryption
PDF 1.5
Availability: April 2003
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 6.0 & Adobe Reader 6.0
New features:
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 6.0 & Adobe Reader 6.0
New features:
- Improved compression techniques including object streams & JPEG 2000 compression
- enhanced XRef table – XRef streams, support for more objects,…
- Support for layers
- Improved support for tagged PDF
- XFA – XFA is the abbreviation to XML Forms Architecture.
- 12 additional transitions when using PDF pages for presentations.
PDF 1.6
Availability: January 2005
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 7.0 & Adobe Reader 7.0
New features:
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 7.0 & Adobe Reader 7.0
New features:
- NChannel – an extension of the DeviceN mechanism for defining spot colors.
- AES encryption
- Some minor enhancements to annotations and tagging
- Direct embedding of OpenType fonts – these no longer have to be embedded as TrueType or Type 1 fonts.
- PDF 1.6 files can be used as a kind of ‘container’ file format by offering the possibility to embed files into a PDF.
- Embedding 3D data (U3D) – a useful addition for engineers but also for the packaging and display markets.
- XML forms
PDF 1.7
Availability: October 2006
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 8.0 & Adobe Reader 8.0
New features:
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 8.0 & Adobe Reader 8.0
New features:
- Improved support for commenting and security.
- Add comments to 3D-objects and more elaborate control over 3D animations.
- Embed default printer settings such as paper selection, the number of copies and scaling.
Adobe extension levels
Since Adobe handed over the PDF standard to the ISO organization, they can no longer release new versions of the file format. To still have the ability to extend it, they now add custom features to PDF that only their own software supports. Obviously Adobe strives to have ISO accept these enhancements as new features of an upcoming new version of the PDF specifications.
Extension level 3
Availability: 2008
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 9.0 & Adobe Reader 9.0
New features: 256-bit AES encryption
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 9.0 & Adobe Reader 9.0
New features: 256-bit AES encryption
Extension level 5
Availability: 2009
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 9.1 & Adobe Reader 9.1
New features: XFA 3.0 – an update for the XML Forms Architecture.
Matching software: Adobe Acrobat 9.1 & Adobe Reader 9.1
New features: XFA 3.0 – an update for the XML Forms Architecture.
PDF 2.0 (ISO 32000-2)
Availability: August 2017
New features:
New features:
- Each page in a PDF 2.0 file can have a separate output intent. That can, for example, be practical if a single PDF contains all the pages of a magazine for which the cover will be printed on a sheetfed offset press on glossy stock and the inner pages on a different press on matte paper. It is also handy when you merge two PDF files that each have a different output intent. With PDF 2.0 all the pages can keep their original output intent.
- There is more freedom to define the halftones that have to be used for screening the entire page or certain page elements. This can be handy in processes that make use of special types of custom screening, such as flexo or gravure printing.
- Transparency will be handled more consistently, especially when combining multiple PDF files with different output intents on a single press sheet. The more explicit way in which transparency handling is defined in the PDF 2.0 specifications should lead to better consistency across vendors: the output from the RIP of vendor A should match that of the workflow of vendor B.
- Tagged PDF is a technology that has been part of the PDF specifications since version 1.5. It allows applications to better define the structure of the data such as the text flow. In PDF 2.0 a lot of work has been put in extending the Tagged PDF specifications. This may help with editing PDF 2.0 files since editing tools can use the structural data for modifying the PDF content.
- Spot colors can be specified using spectral data. This is done using the CxF/X-4 standard and it should lead to more accurate proofs, especially when spot colors are printed on top of other page content.
- A PDF 2.0 file can contain information about the order in which inks will be applied during the printing process. The ink order laydown data can help improve proofing accuracy.
- PDF 2.0 files can contain more information on how an application or device should process the files, including control over black point compensation. In most workflows, however, it is the workflow software itself that takes care of job ticketing.
- If you are dealing with confidential information, it can be useful to know that PDF 2.0 adds support for secure AES-256-bit encryption.
- There are additional 3D capabilities, such as embedding 3D measurements or cross-section data. This can be useful in packaging or point-of-sale applications.
If you're running Mac OS, see Install an older version of Adobe Reader on Mac OS.
Follow the instructions below to download and install Adobe Reader on a Windows computer.
Solid State Networks: Adobe licenses download technologies from Solid State Networks in Phoenix, Arizona. For more information on Solid State Networks and their products, click here.
Before you install, make sure that your system meets the minimum system requirements.
Follow these steps to install Reader using Internet Explorer.
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- Close all versions of Reader. Close any browser that is displaying a PDF.
- Note:If you're running Windows 7 or later, install the latest version of Reader. For step-by-step instructions, see Install Adobe Acrobat Reader DC | Windows.
- Select your operating system, a language, and the version of Reader that you want to install. Then click Download now.
- When the File Download - Security Warning dialog box appears, click Run.
- When the Internet Explorer - Security Warning dialog box appears, click Run.
Note: Reader installation is a two-part process: The installer is downloaded and then Reader is installed. Be sure to wait until both parts are complete. A progress bar displays the time remaining. - When you see the confirmation message that the installation is complete, click Finish.
Follow these steps to install Reader using Mozilla Firefox.
- Close all versions of Reader. Close any browser that is displaying a PDF.
- Note:If you're running Windows 7 or later, install the latest version of Reader. For step-by-step instructions, see Install Adobe Acrobat Reader DC | Windows.
- Select your operating system, a language, and the version of Reader that you want to install. Then click Download now.
- When the Opening dialog box appears, click Save File.
- When the Downloads window appears, double-click the .exe file for Reader.
Note: If you don't see the Downloads window, other applications or windows could be hiding it. - When prompted to open the executable file, click OK.
Note: Reader installation is a two-part process: The installer is downloaded and then Reader is installed. Be sure to wait until both parts are complete. A progress bar displays the time remaining. - When you see the confirmation message that the installation is complete, click Finish.
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For quick troubleshooting steps, see Troubleshoot Acrobat Reader download.
For a list of known issues and more in-depth troubleshooting, see Troubleshoot Adobe Reader installation | Windows.
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To see if other users are experiencing similar download and installation problems, visit the Reader user-to-user forum, or the Deployment & Installation forum on AcrobatUsers.com. Try posting your problem on the forums for interactive troubleshooting. When posting on forums, include your operating system and product version number.
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