Adobe Acrobat 7 in a Snap

Acrobat 7 has at least seven areas that are either new or significantly changed from Acrobat 6.

One of the biggest changes is Acrobat 7 is the creation of Acrobat Designer. This gives one the ability to design and create a PDF form completely within Acrobat. This enhancement is not available for Mac users, only windows users. However, this shouldn't be a show stopper - just create the form in Word or some other program, use the Acrobat distiller to convert it to a pdf file and then use the instructions from "Acrobat 7 In a Snap" to insert it into your pdf document.

Another impressive advance is Reader 7 that now allows document review of documents for those who do not have Acrobat but only Acrobat Reader 7. If Acrobat 7 Professional prepared the document then Reader 7 now allows the Reader 7 user to add comments. Another neat tool added is the Organizer. This allows you to easily locate and manage al the PDF files on your hard drive. The list goes on but what is really important to note is "Acrobat 7 in a Snap" takes you by the hand and walks you through these new powers in a manner that allows you to immediately take advantages of all the new enhancements as well as the old standby powers of Acrobat.

The first impression of this book can be very deceiving. It is approximately 9X8 and about a 1/2 inch thick. It looks so small but I was pleasantly surprised when I discovered it had 213 pages, not counting the index and table of contents, that articulated many of the extraordinary powers Acrobat 7 has to offer. What is really impressive is the content. Ms Nakano doesn't just fill in space but covers 80 different tasks that all who expect to utilize the power Acrobat 7 must know. The book does an exceptional job explaining the task, what it is suppose to do, and the necessary steps to accomplish the task. The book's layout is very intuitive. Each step is headed in bold, usually blue colors, if the task has special properties or powers then on the side bar "tips" are included. Then, to further assist the user, the author has screen shots of each window one sees as they process through the steps. In many programs this approach would not be useful for a Mac user but Acrobat's windows have the same feel and look for both the PC and Mac versions. If there is a negative in the author's process it is the screen shots are small, thus making it difficult to see clearly or read the various screen shots. However, when you compare the screen shots to the actual screen that you bring up on your computer for the task in question you can decipher enough to develop a feel for what you need to do.

If you need a quick reference to accomplish Adobe Acrobat 7 task this is a great tool. Acrobat 7 has a different feel from Acrobat 6. and this book does an excellent job of walking one through steps to accomplish the task and thus making the switch from Acrobat 6 to 7 a little easier. You will not become a "power user" using this book but you will be able to competently execute many of the essential tasks Acrobat 7 makes available to the user.

Other Reviews

• The book's title says it all
• Acrobat made easy
• Adobe Acrobat 7 in a Snap
• Understanding and Using Acrobat 7 starts here!
• This book is an effective learning tool.