Adobe Acrobat Reader
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Adobe Acrobat is a way of putting a printed page on a computer so that it looks the same as it would if it had been printed.  A quick example:  Someone uses Microsoft Excel to create a nice report.  They want to send it to the district sales manager.  The manager doesn't have Excel so he can't open the report.  If the Excel report is printed as a PDF file, then the manager will be able to open it without much trouble.  And it will look just like it was intended.  Adobe has been around for as long as I can remember working with computers.  I've never seen their reader offend or corrupt a computer.  For more information about Adobe Acrobat Reader, check www.adobe.com.

The reader only needs to be installed one time.  How can you tell if it's been installed?  Click here.  If a screen appears and says it is installed, then Acrobat Reader is already installed on your computer.  If you are prompted to save a file, follow the directions below to get Acrobat Reader.  I'm using version 5.1 and know there are more recent versions available.  This one works with Windows 95 through Windows XP and is considerably smaller than the new releases.   The setup file is 8.2 Mb.  Retrieving the program will take 30 minutes or more if you are using a 56k modem.  If you have high speed internet it will take less than a minute.

I acknowledge that there are other ways to install the reader.  These directions lend themselves to all versions of Windows and all versions of most browsers.  When you click on the link at the bottom of this screen it will want to know where to save the file.  On the white bar labeled "File Name" use the Backspace key to erase what's there.  Then type c:\adobe.exe on the white bar and click OK.  That will download the setup file to your hard drive.  When it's done, get off the internet and close any programs that are running.  Then click on the Start button, then on Run.  On the white bar next to Open, type c:\adobe.exe and click OK.  Follow the supplied directions and the program should install without problems.  To begin click on Get Adobe Acrobat Reader

Another tip.  If the PDF document opens in your browser make sure you use the correct print button.  That's right, there could be two print buttons on the screen.  Note on the example below that the smaller print button on the Adobe toolbar is the one you should use to print the document.  Also, if you want to save the document to print again later use the save button just to the left of the print button.   And remember to save it somewhere that you will be able to find again later.