Free pdf file reader

I am looking for a free pdf reader with the ability to fill in pdf forms
that I can download and then fill in?

Thanks for any recommendation

Windows 7 64 bit

--

Walter

"Walter E." wrote:

I am looking for a free pdf reader with the ability to fill in pdf forms
that I can download and then fill in?

Windows 7 64 bit

I would think and PDF viewer that says it has annotation would fit your
criteria. I use PDF-Xchange Editor but there are others than can do
annotation.

You might want to ask in a newsgroup that focuses on freeware, like
alt.comp.freeware.

Annotation is not the same as filling in a table or a form. It lays
text or drawings atop the PDF (layering). If you want to edit the forms
within a PDF document, you need a PDF editor. Some are listed at:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...ware#Editors_4

However, either they are commercial programs (so they do not meet your
free criteria) where the .pdf gets converted and you edit in some other
file format but then have to figure out how to convert back to .pdf,
command-line programs (oh joy) that take an input file whose syntax you
will have to learn, and only a couple are actual PDF editors but they
are payware.

You did not limit your criteria to only local programs. There are sites
that will let you convert or edit. The wikipedia article mentions a
couple web-based PDF editing sites: one is free (but pollutes your PDF
with their spam watermark -- YUCK!), the other is fee based. Just
remember with an online PDF editing site that you have to give them a
copy of the PDF document. Probably don't want to do that if you are
filling out a PDF doc with a form asking for banking, credit card,
social security, and other financial or sensitive information.

Thank you

Would the Adobe reader (free) be able to fill in forms like a 1040?

"VanguardLH" wrote in message
...
"Walter E." wrote:

I am looking for a free pdf reader with the ability to fill in pdf forms
that I can download and then fill in?

Windows 7 64 bit

I would think and PDF viewer that says it has annotation would fit your
criteria. I use PDF-Xchange Editor but there are others than can do
annotation.

You might want to ask in a newsgroup that focuses on freeware, like
alt.comp.freeware.

Annotation is not the same as filling in a table or a form. It lays
text or drawings atop the PDF (layering). If you want to edit the forms
within a PDF document, you need a PDF editor. Some are listed at:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...ware#Editors_4

However, either they are commercial programs (so they do not meet your
free criteria) where the .pdf gets converted and you edit in some other
file format but then have to figure out how to convert back to .pdf,
command-line programs (oh joy) that take an input file whose syntax you
will have to learn, and only a couple are actual PDF editors but they
are payware.

You did not limit your criteria to only local programs. There are sites
that will let you convert or edit. The wikipedia article mentions a
couple web-based PDF editing sites: one is free (but pollutes your PDF
with their spam watermark -- YUCK!), the other is fee based. Just
remember with an online PDF editing site that you have to give them a
copy of the PDF document. Probably don't want to do that if you are
filling out a PDF doc with a form asking for banking, credit card,
social security, and other financial or sensitive information.

"VanguardLH" wrote

| I am looking for a free pdf reader with the ability to fill in pdf forms
| that I can download and then fill in?


| I would think and PDF viewer that says it has annotation would fit your
| criteria. I use PDF-Xchange Editor but there are others than can do
| annotation.
|

I use PDFXChange Viewer (v. 2.5) to do my taxes.
It fills in the US Federal forms and it allows for notes
and drawing to be written anywhere on a page, using
the comment and markup tools.
The only thing PDFXCV doesn't allow is to edit the
original content. But even that can sometimes be
circumvented. While PDFXV won't allow
creating a PDF in the free version, one can open any
old PDF, such as something generated by Libre Office,
and then paste in a page edited elsewhere, to replace
the current page.

Walter E. wrote:
Thank you

Would the Adobe reader (free) be able to fill in forms like a 1040?


I think that's the intention.

You would test Reader first, before casting a net
upon the waters, looking for a lesser light.

You can see in the article here, at least one
flavor of this (XFA) was kinda "bolted onto" PDF.
Adobe just bought the company that made it (Jetform),
and so it wasn't invented in-house at Adobe. And as
you can imagine, this will put third-party competitors
off the scent. Some will choose not to implement this
(it's not really PDF), reducing the possible set of
competitors.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XFA

This is particularly a problem on Linux - there is an
Adobe client on Linux, but I suspect it is no longer
supported or hasn't received an update in a while. So
if you wanted to do your 1040 on Linux, you might be
in for a battle.

Paul

On Sun, 18 Dec 2016 13:48:21 -0600, VanguardLH wrote:
"Walter E." wrote:

I am looking for a free pdf reader with the ability to fill in pdf forms
that I can download and then fill in?

Windows 7 64 bit

I would think and PDF viewer that says it has annotation would fit your
criteria. I use PDF-Xchange Editor but there are others than can do
annotation.

I do too. It's just fine at filling in the US income tax forms, but
it fails to fill in the New York State forms. (Or at least it did ten
months ago, when I did my 2015 taxes.)


--
Stan Brown, Oak Road Systems, Tompkins County, New York, USA
http://BrownMath.com/
http://OakRoadSystems.com/
Shikata ga nai...

On 18/12/2016 18:50, Walter E. wrote:
I am looking for a free pdf reader with the ability to fill in pdf
forms that I can download and then fill in?

Thanks for any recommendation

Windows 7 64 bit


Yes. If the pdf file is created properly and the forms are fillable
then pdf reader will do the trick.

Adobe PDF reader is de-facto standard and people may like it or loathe
it, it is the main software people should try first.



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Hi Walter

Walter E. wrote:

I am looking for a free pdf reader with the ability to fill in pdf forms that
I can download and then fill in?

Adope Acrobat Reader, can do what you want, but it's a huge monster.
I have it installed for formfilling and special printing, but for daily
viewing of PDF files I use SumatraPDF very fast, light veight and free.

Best regards
Asger

Walter E. wrote:
I am looking for a free pdf reader with the ability to fill in pdf forms that I can
download and then fill in?

Thanks for any recommendation

Windows 7 64 bit

Almost any of them can do that. Try several and use the one you like.
I use both Foxit and PDF-Xchange.
They are about 25 megs compared to Adobe's 250 megs.

En el artículo , Paul in Houston TX
escribió:

I use both Foxit and PDF-Xchange.

Foxit took a turn for the worse a few releases ago. Now has a bloody
ribbon, is bloatware and it installs a tool into Microsoft office which
crashes it and remains even when Foxit is uninstalled. I cannot get rid
of it, it doesn't appear in the Add-ins menu to remove.

A shame, as it used to be really good.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/01...f_plugin_vuln/

http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r295...nstalls-Cloud-
add-on-and-uploads-all-open-files-to-it

SumatraPDF is light, fast and can also display ebooks (.epubs).

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(='.'=) systemd: the Linux version of Windows 10
(")_(")

Mike Tomlinson wrote:
En el artículo , Paul in Houston TX
escribió:

I use both Foxit and PDF-Xchange.

Foxit took a turn for the worse a few releases ago. Now has a bloody
ribbon, is bloatware and it installs a tool into Microsoft office which
crashes it and remains even when Foxit is uninstalled. I cannot get rid
of it, it doesn't appear in the Add-ins menu to remove.

Good to know. Thanks Mike.
I use old version 2.2, 2007 vintage.

A shame, as it used to be really good.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/01...f_plugin_vuln/

http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r295...nstalls-Cloud-
add-on-and-uploads-all-open-files-to-it

SumatraPDF is light, fast and can also display ebooks (.epubs).

Will have to try that one.

"Mike Tomlinson" wrote

| SumatraPDF is light, fast and can also display ebooks (.epubs).

Sumatra is nice. I use it for all reading and
even recompiled it at one point to bypass
any PDF file restrictions that might be set,
but Sumatra *does not* edit fields or add
comments.

On Mon, 19 Dec 2016 03:34:29 +0000, Mike Tomlinson
wrote:

En el artículo , Paul in Houston TX
escribió:

I use both Foxit and PDF-Xchange.

Foxit took a turn for the worse a few releases ago. Now has a bloody
ribbon, is bloatware and it installs a tool into Microsoft office which
crashes it and remains even when Foxit is uninstalled. I cannot get rid
of it, it doesn't appear in the Add-ins menu to remove.

A shame, as it used to be really good.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/01...f_plugin_vuln/

http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r295...nstalls-Cloud-
add-on-and-uploads-all-open-files-to-it

SumatraPDF is light, fast and can also display ebooks (.epubs).

I've been using Foxit Reader 8.0.2.805 for a year or so, mostly for
reading and printing, but occasional filling-in and annotation. Works
fine for me. Much better printer add-on than anything else I've found.
In deep retirement, so don't have occasion to use MS Office much, but
when I do use Word or Excel I don't notice Foxit getting in the way.

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In message , Mayayana
writes:
"Mike Tomlinson" wrote

| SumatraPDF is light, fast and can also display ebooks (.epubs).

Sumatra is nice. I use it for all reading and
even recompiled it at one point to bypass
any PDF file restrictions that might be set,
but Sumatra *does not* edit fields or add
comments.


If you can't edit or add with it, what restrictions did you remove, that
made any actual difference? (Just curious.)
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

Old professors don't fade away - they just lose their faculties.

"J. P. Gilliver (John)" wrote

| If you can't edit or add with it, what restrictions did you remove, that
| made any actual difference? (Just curious.)

PDF format includes the ability to add restrictions
to such things as extracting text. (I don't remember the
other possible restrictions offhand. I think there are
3 or 4 of them.) It also allows for encryption. I can't
bypass encryption, but the file "permissions" settings
are just flags. That is, they only exist if the reader
software checks for them. If I have a PDF I want to
read then I usually prefer to extract the text and read
it in Notepad. So I just commented out the restriction
check in the Sumatra code and recompiled. (I also
removed that garish yellow in the main window.) I
haven't done it for a recent version, though. It's too
much trouble. The latest version requires Visual Studio
2015. There's a free version of that, which would be
adequate, but Microsoft now requires people to sign
up and allow a web install in order to get it. They want
to sell their cloud nonsense and datamine potential
customers. That's all just too creepy for my taste.
Without a clean offline installer I don't want to use
their tools.