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You may want to convert a *.doc file into a *.pdf file especially if you want to preserve typographic, image, colour and layout characteristics of the original document and, especially, if you want to distribute your documents via the Web or CD-ROM.
Acrobat files have become very popular particularly for distributing or delivering books, magazine articles, research reports, government documents, forms and computer manuals on the Web.
To create a *.pdf from a Word file (*.doc) you first have to have installed the software Acrobat Distiller or Adobe Acrobat. Then you can:
- Go to the File menu in Word
- Select Print
- Make sure in the Print dialog box that Acrobat Distiller or Adobe PDF is selected as printer
- Click on Properties and verify that the properties to create a PDF file are correct
- If all options are correct, click OK
- You will now create a *.pdf file of your Word document
Another way to do this is to close the document you want to convert as PDF, select the file, right-click on it with the mouse and select Convert into Adobe PDF. A *.pdf file will automatically be created.
Why is this information important for translators and translation teachers?
If for example a translator receives a PDF document to be translated, he/she will have to convert the PDF file into a text or Word file, in order to translate it. After finishing the translation, he/she will need to deliver the file in the original format and for that must be able to convert e.g. a Word file into a PDF file again.