PDF Document Management Software, Services & Support
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The PDF World
There's an ecosystem of support for PDF technology at every implementation level.
While by no means definitive, we've attempted to list here those organizations and individuals who make a substantial contribution to the PDF technology industry on an ongoing basis. Inclusion below does not imply endorsement, but depending on your needs, any of these organizations are worthy of serious consideration. If you know of an organization or person whom you believe is a strong candidate for this list, please let us know.
Organizations are listed under the following headings:
Software Companies and Resellers
ABBYY
Out of Russia, ABBYY is a world leader in development of document recognition and data capture technologies. Their FineReader OCR software is among the very best desktop OCR packages available for PDF generation. ABBYY also provides excellent form-recognition tool and document recognition SDKs. www.abbyy.com
Adobe Systems
The originators of the PDF format, Adobe Systems is the world's leading provider of software solutions to create, manage and deliver high-impact, reliable digital content. Adobe's products for PDF include the ubiquitious and free Adobe Reader, Acrobat and LiveCycle. www.adobe.com
Apago
Apago provides software solutions for the manipulation of PDF, PostScript, and common graphics formats. Their products range from desktop utilities to server applications and custom workflow systems for large enterprise applications. www.apagoinc.com
ARTS PDF
ARTS PDF has been developing software and custom solutions focusing on PDF since 1997. Apart from their Acrobat plug-ins, ARTS PDF now sells Nitro PDF, a third party challenge to Adobe's Acrobat. www.artspdf.com
callas software gmbh
For years, callas software has focused on PDF analysis and manipulation. The creators of Preflight in Acrobat Professional, callas software also offers numerous plug-ins directly (largely) at the prepress world. www.callassoftware.com
Cvision Technologies
Cvision focuses on enabling faster access to high-resolution, multipurpose digital images and multimedia content with compression and image-processing software. www.cvisiontech.com
Debenu
Benubird Pro is a personal content manager from Debenu, the brainchild of ARTS PDF and Planet PDF founder Karl De Abrew. We always watch what Karl's doing. Check out his Digital Documents blog.
DevDirect
A source of tools for developers. www.devdirect.com
Nuance (formerly ScanSoft)
Nuance is a leading provider of imaging and OCR solutions, including OmniPage, PaperPort and PDF Converter. www.nuance.com
Quite Software
In 1997, Quite saw that PDF was likely to be the wave of the future and began to create plug-ins for Adobe Acrobat. Drawing on our experience of the printing and publishing trades, Quite focussed on the area of pre-press production, in which space they are legendary. www.quite.com
TextHelp Systems
Texthelp develops software products for individuals and organizations to use in overcoming accessibility difficulties, such as dyslexia or simply as language learning aids. www.texthelp.com
Consultants
Karlen Communications
Karen McCall provides customized on-site workshops on universal instructional design and creating more accessible and usable PDF documents. www.karlencommunications.com
Prodok Engineering
Prodok provides consultation, development and training services to customers wishing to achieve intelligent low-paper/electronic workflow solutions. Prodok principal Max Wyss is a leading expert in "Smart PDF" - enhanced PDF solutions utilizing client-side and server-side programming. Max is a well-known figure in the Acrobat/PDF community as a guru of PDF scripting - and, of course, for his famous Swiss wit. Besides consulting, Max speaks frequently at conferences and highly regarded intensive workshops in Switzerland, Germany and the United States. ,www.prodok.com
WindJack Solutions
Led by PDF master Thom Parker, Windjack Solutions offers a line of software products intended to assist PDF document designers and developers get the most out of PDF. www.windjack.com
Government, Education, Non-Profit & Standards
AIIM - PDF/UA Committee
AIIM's PDF/Universal Accessibility Committee is tasked with creating an ISO-candidate specification for accessible PDF files. AIIM operates the PDF Standards Wiki www.aiim.org
Alternate Text Production Center (ATPC)
A unit of the California Community Colleges, the ATPC is the first publicly funded, system-wide resource dedicated to serving the alternate media needs of the largest post-secondary educational system in the world. There are 109 community colleges in California and each of them has equal access to the media services provided by the ATPC. www.atpcnet.net
Information Technology Technical Assistance and Training Center
The Information Technology Technical Assistance and Training Center, or ITTATC, strives to increase the availability of accessible technology in the United States. In particular, ITTATC focuses on improving the accessibility and usability of information and telecommunication technology, such as computers, websites, and telephones, and office technology, such as copiers and fax machines. www.ittatc.org
High Tech Center Training Unit of the California Community Colleges
A state of the art training and support facility for community college faculty and staff wishing to acquire or improve teaching skills, methodologies, and pedagogy in Assistive Computer Technology, Alternate Media and Web Accessibility. The HTCTU supports High Tech Center programs at one-hundred and fourteen community colleges and satellite centers. www.htctu.fhda.edu
National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS)
The NIMAS guides the production and electronic distribution of digital versions of textbooks and other instructional materials so they can be more easily converted to accessible formats, including braille and text-to-speech. nimas.cast.org
PDF/A Competency Center
An industry organization promoting understanding and adoption of PDF/A. www.pdfa.org
section508.gov
Section 508 requires that Federal agencies' electronic and information technology be accessible to people with disabilities. The Center for Information Technology Accommodation (CITA), in the GSA's Office of Governmentwide Policy, has been charged with the task of educating Federal employees and building the infrastructure necessary to support Section 508 implementation. Using this web site, Federal employees and the public can access resources for understanding and implementing the requirements of Section 508. www.section508.gov
W3C's Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI)
The WAI develops:
- Guidelines widely regarded as the international standard for Web accessibility
- Support materials to help understand and implement Web accessibility
- Resources through international collaboration
Media
Planet PDF
Planet PDF caters to all PDF users from professional Web or print publishers seeking appropriate tools to beginners wondering what "PDF" stands for. Since 1998, Planet PDF has offered a comprehensive, popular web site exclusively focused on PDF users and uses. Planet PDF is a division of Nitro PDF, Inc., which also owns ARTS PDF and PDF Store. www.planetpdf.com
pdfzone.de
A thriving German-language site for all things PDF. www.pdfzone.de
Acrobat User Community
The Acrobat User Community is an Adobe Systems marketing program intended to provide professional users of Adobe's Acrobat and PDF technology with access to community resources for information, questions and assistance. A variety of PDF industry notables (including DSI CEO Duff Johnson) are bloggers on the Community website. www.acrobatusers.com
4xPDF
4xPDF is a blog dedicated to bringing you all of the news, articles, tips and rants on PDF -- no matter how big or small. www.pdfpdfpdfpdf.com
Electronic Publishing Magazine
Electronic Publishing covers technologies and methods from design to print. ep.pennnet.com
Accessible Content Magazine
Accessible Content is devoted entirely to accessibility issues. The publication delivers how-to articles, skill building exercises, product profiles and accessibility community news to the professionals who create and maintain accessible content. www.accessiblecontent.com
Axistive (Assistive Technology News Portal)
Axistive Assistive Technology News Portal offers free news, articles, product reviews and all product and vendor information of assistive technology devices. www.axistive.com
Journal Publishing
Published by Allen Press, Inc., Journal Publishing is designed to meet the needs of journal editors and society directors and staff. JP addresses such issues as electronic publishing, journal production and distribution, editorial, marketing, advertising, meeting management, and more. www.allenpress.com
PDFzone
PDFzone is a collection of online resources dedicated to all things PDF. Operated by Ziff-Davis, the Zone includes a number of articles and tips. The site is moribund these days, but we leave it on this list for old-times sake. www.pdfzone.com
