free PDF writer

  • Thread starter Thread starter Ivan Mirrione
  • Start date Start date
I

Ivan Mirrione

Is there a freeware to make good quality PDF files? (virtual pdf printer)

thanks.

Bye

Ivan
 
Ivan said:
Is there a freeware to make good quality PDF files? (virtual pdf printer)
Click to expand...
I use GhostScript(+GhostView). Creating a pdf is a two step procedure
then. First I print to a postscript file and then I convert this file to
pdf.
Advantage: Many other possibilities like converting pdf to text, merging
pdf files ...

Ciao,
Bernd
 
Ivan Mirrione said:
Is there a freeware to make good quality PDF files? (virtual pdf printer)

thanks.

Bye

Ivan
Click to expand...

OpenOffice.org says that new version 1.1 will write directly to pdf.

Dick Kistler
 
OpenOffice.org says that new version 1.1 will write directly to pdf.

Works fine for me.
Connie
 
Ivan Mirrione said:
Is there a freeware to make good quality PDF files? (virtual pdf
printer) thanks. Bye Ivan
Click to expand...

It depends what you mean by "good quality". I have still been unable
to find a freeware PDF generator that will preserve both internal and
external hyperlinks, bookmarks and ToCs, especially in non-M$ Word
documents. Many of the freeware tools boast of their ability to handle
M$ files, but if you use other products, you're SOL. I have both
PDFCreator and PDF995 (adware) installed, and hope that one day,
someone will code a truly "quality" PDF generator as freeware.
 
Works fine for me.
Connie
Click to expand...
I too have OOo installed, and have occasionally used its publish to
pdf, but it offers no support at all for links, which is a serious
limitation for many users, myself included.
 
I tried about 3 of the other pdf converters and this one works the best
IMO. Many others changed the format or look of the document - not the
case for pdfCreator. It makes perfect copies fast and easy. Yes it's
7MB; not a small download for a 56K connection. I also am on a 56K
dialup and don't want to waste my time either. Usually, I am of the mind
that smaller is better, but not at the expense of performance and
quality.

__________
"All he has to do is say that he repents of unspecified things. Then
everything will be OK and all he says will be true." Uncle Janko
 
TerryP said:
Many others changed the format or look of the document - not the
case for pdfCreator. It makes perfect copies fast and easy
Click to expand...

No, it doesn't. To make perfect copies would require it to preserve
bookmarks, hyperlinks, and ToCs, and it does not, especially if it is
used from non-M$ applications. I like PDFCreator, and hope that one
day it might perform as well as you claim, but, at the moment, it
simply doesn't.
 
Max Quordlepleen said:
No, it doesn't. To make perfect copies would require it to preserve
bookmarks, hyperlinks, and ToCs, and it does not, especially if it is
used from non-M$ applications. I like PDFCreator, and hope that one
day it might perform as well as you claim, but, at the moment, it
simply doesn't.
Click to expand...

I have not tested pdfcreater thoroughly, however, I should have chosen my
words more carefully. So my corrected statement should have been:
(1)perfect for my needs, or (2) much better than the others I have used.
 
TerryP said:
I tried about 3 of the other pdf converters and this one works the best
IMO. Many others changed the format or look of the document - not the
case for pdfCreator. It makes perfect copies fast and easy. Yes it's
7MB; not a small download for a 56K connection. I also am on a 56K
dialup and don't want to waste my time either. Usually, I am of the mind
that smaller is better, but not at the expense of performance and
quality.
Click to expand...

Am also on a 56K connection and have to pay the phone company per unit
of time. I tried CutePDF (4.4 Mb) and FreePDF (0.9 Mb for the program
+ 7.3 Mb for Ghostscript; luckily got it from the cd of a magazine I
suscribe to). CutePDF gave PDF's which load very slowly, rather
useless imo. FreePDF produces good, that is good enough for me, PDF's
(no functioning hyperlinks though) but you can't change the target
directory once the program is installed (an annoying shortcoming imo).

Peter
 
Am also on a 56K connection and have to pay the phone company per unit
of time. I tried CutePDF (4.4 Mb) and FreePDF (0.9 Mb for the program
+ 7.3 Mb for Ghostscript; luckily got it from the cd of a magazine I
suscribe to). CutePDF gave PDF's which load very slowly, rather
useless imo.
Click to expand...

In my experience CutePDF loads just as fast as PDF995 or the
Ghostscript/makePDF combo. I found all of them made good PDFs but
CutePDF installs the easiest and is the least fussy to use. CutePDF
actually creates PDFs the fastest because, unlike the
Ghostscript/makePDF combo, it's a one-step process. And unlike PDF995,
you don't have to close a nag screen.
 
M.L. said:
In my experience CutePDF loads just as fast as PDF995 or the
Ghostscript/makePDF combo. I found all of them made good PDFs but
CutePDF installs the easiest and is the least fussy to use. CutePDF
actually creates PDFs the fastest because, unlike the
Ghostscript/makePDF combo, it's a one-step process. And unlike PDF995,
you don't have to close a nag screen.
Click to expand...

I take it you did not try PDFCreator.

Peter
 
Back
Top