Read-only PDFs - and PDFs for phones and tablets?

[Mikeo512]

Although I'm a Mac user this question refers also to PCs and I'd be grateful for comments.

I recently looked at a PDF on a website (www.cherini.eu/pdf/Elettra.pdf) and was surprised that the content could not be copied and pasted. At the time, this was an irritation because I was using it for another project but I can understand why it's done. Presumably there are ways to get round this hurdle (printing the whole thing out?) although I didn't bother to try.

It has since occurred to me that it would thus be possible to semi-protect articles in the back-number collection of, say, a history society that is currently offering scanned back numbers of its quarterly journal as PDFs for a modest price on CDs. However, few people now have computers with CD drives and we considered putting the back numbers onto USB drives. On the other hand, phones and tablets don't have USB sockets. Can someone pse tell me whether (1) it's a simple matter to make PDFs 'read only' and (2) whether there's a way to make such back numbers also available as PDFs for tablets and phones?

Thanks in advance for comments and suggestions.

M

 

[IWT]

Don't know if this helps; but if you have a document and want to create a PDF from it, then Open the Document, Then Command + P. This brings up the Print Menu. Bottom Left is PDF. Click on that and choose Save as PDF.

This will open another window. Near the bottom left is Security Options. Click on that and you will see:



As you see, you can set a Password to Open, Copy text, images & other Content as well as Print. Would that help you at all?

Ian

 

[Mikeo512]

Well, I really didn't know that ... thanks very much.
I suppose one could give each purchaser an individual password.
But with regard to the second question ... any comments as to how tablet/phone users could get at such a PDF?
I guess there's no way that they'd be able to purchase it via a USB drive.
Renewed thanks.
M

 

[Mikeo512]

It's just occurred to me!
One could simply send a PDF to a tablet/phone as an attachment.
M

 

[Randy B. Singer]

I recently looked at a PDF on a website (www.cherini.eu/pdf/Elettra.pdf) and was surprised that the content could not be copied and pasted. ... Presumably there are ways to get round this hurdle (printing the whole thing out?)

One way around it would be to simply have gone one page back to the link that you clicked on to get to the PDF page. Then click on the PDF's link with the Option key held down. That will cause the entire PDF to download as a PDF file onto your hard drive rather than open in your browser.

...Can someone pse tell me whether (1) it's a simple matter to make PDFs 'read only'

Yes, assuming that you have an application designed to be able to do so. What you are speaking of is known technically as a PDF/A. (i.e. an "archival PDF") PDF/A files are not editable (thought you can OCR them to make them editable), and they embed the fonts that they use so that they look exactly the same on any computer, even if that computer doesn't have the same fonts installed.

Any version of Microsoft Word since Office 2011, or LibreOffice, or FreeOffice can create a PDF/A. I just tried this with FreeOffice's TextMaker, and though it doesn't have a "PDF/A" menu choice, when you choose to export a file in PDF format a small dialog box appears in which you can choose to make the file non-interactive and to embed fonts.

 

[ferrarr]

I just realized a right click gives you the option to open the file in Preview. From there you can save it to wherever you want.