The PDF File Infographic
Using PDF format to send a Word doc. PDF files can be exchanged without modifying the document no matter what OS/device you use.
Using .docx format to send a Word doc. Many formats, such as .docx, can change the formatting of the document when you try to send it.
The PDF file format was made in June The PDF file format is a format that is PDF files can use both lossy
1993 by a team called Team Camelot. used for transmitting files. It is compression and lossless
It’s leader, John Warnock, was one of considered the standard for compression. Lossy is usually used for
the founders of Adobe, who made the transmitting files, as it doesn’t change images, video and audio while lossless
first program to read/edit PDF files the formatting or layout of the file no is used for text documents. While
called Adobe Acrobat. PDF had little matter what OS, hardware, or device actual percentages may vary, PDF files
adoption early on: it faced stiff it is being viewed on. The PDF is can actually go up to 90% lossy
competition from other formats such mainly used to transmit text compression or above in some
as DjVu and Envoy (whose sole documents, but it can transmit any instances. The easiest way to
purpose was to compete against type of file including audio, video, compress a PDF file is to remove all
PDF), and it could only work on the image, and even vector graphics. unwanted items such as bookmarks,
costly Acrobat reader. However, PDF Since PDF format can literally include links, annotations, and embedded
became the standard for exchanging any type of file (unlike something fonts. Embedded fonts in particular
files and was given to the ISO by like .docx which can only include are on average 3-4 times larger than
Adobe in 2008 making it open file Word documents) it is almost the original document itself, and
format. impossible to find the PDF “file size”. usually take up 60-70% of the file size.
Pros of using PDF include its “universality”: it can be viewed and edited by anyone using any device/OS/hardware at any
time. PDF files can convert to Google Docs, Microsoft Office, and other document editors. PDF file editors have a lot of
features such as e-signatures that many other file editors don’t have, and can be compressed to save space. PDF format
can also be used for any type of file ranging from audio to text. In terms of sending and receiving files, the PDF is hard to
outperform and is still the golden standard.
Cons of using PDF include the fact that it takes up too much space. While PDF does include a lot of features, those
features also take up a ridiculous amount of space. In fact, for text documents in PDF format, the “extra” items such as e-
signatures and embedded fonts usually takes up 80% of the PDF or more without any compression. The processes that
make PDF files have consistent templating and formatting also make PDF files ridiculously hard to edit and almost
impossible for group work. Therefore, many people like to convert PDF files into something like a Google Doc. However,
doing so can change the formatting of the document, which is ironic given that PDF files were created to avoid this
situation.
In short, PDF files are almost unmatched if you want to send a file without any changes to the formatting/layout. This is
great if all you want to do once you receive that file is to read/watch it or print it out. This makes PDF amazing for things
like forms or research articles or documents/images. For editing things, though, you’re better off sticking to something
else.
John Warnock Sizes of Different File Types: x axis states the size in kb of files and y
PDF File Space Usage
axis shows the number of files for each file format available
“Optimizing PDFs to Reduce File Size.” Talking PDF, Talking PDF, 10 Sept. 2012, https://talkingpdf.org/optimizing-pdfs-to-reduce-file-size/.
Knowles, Sophie. “History of PDF: Creating the World's Most Popular File Format.” PDF Pro Blog, https://www.pdfpro.co/blog/history-pdf.
“Learning Center.” ABBYY, https://www.abbyy.com/en-us/finereader/what-is-pdf/.
“Are PDF Files Lossy or Lossless?” Tweak, 20 Sept. 2019, https://www.tweak.com/blog/are-pdf-files-lossy-lossless/.
