Free, lightweight PDF creator offering quick conversions with optional advanced customization for expert users
Free, lightweight PDF creator offering quick conversions with optional advanced customization for expert users
Vote (153 votes)
Program license Free
Developer Nitro PDF Software
Version 5.1.0.2
Works under Windows
Vote
(153 votes)
Developer
Nitro PDF Software
Works under
Windows
Program license
Free
Version
5.1.0.2
Pros
- Free to download and use
- Small program size
- Simple settings for quick conversions
- Converts very quickly
Cons
- Custom settings require expertise
- Cannot save in a Windows file format
Creating eBooks and formatting things that work with mobile devices and readers today is big business, so many people like using their Windows PC to create PDF files, and PrimoPDF could be the right tool for the job.
Overview of PrimoPDF
At this point in time, with PCs being around for decades, most people who own a Windows computer also has some form of PDF reader. However, converting another document type to PDF is an entirely different story. Even if you used Office or another program, you can't really get the formatting correct and it ends up more trouble than it's worth. PrimoPDF handles these issues for you by giving you a PDF conversion tool that you can customize and tweak to ensure that your PDFs are formatted perfectly.
PrimoPDF was created and released by Nitro PDF Software. It will work with most current versions of windows, up from XP. Anything older than that and you're likely to run into some compatibility issues. The program is also free and is quite a small program size, only coming in at 7.27mb.
How PrimoPDF Works
One great thing about this particular PDF converter program is that it's pretty simple to get started with. When you open it up, the start page has a few tabs, like Screen, eBook, Print, Prepress and Custom, and you have a Document slot where you can add anything you want. You can quickly change anything to Open PDF or other PDF extensions, and you can even choose a great formatting option if you're converting a Word doc file into an eBook, for instance.
The simple conversion process was made to be as easy and painless as possible. However, as you start getting into the custom settings, you're going to find that you'll need some serious expertise with PDF files and settings to be able to master what's happening here. It's like a tale of two programs, where one end is easy and intuitive and the other is very tough to figure out.
PrimoPDF Features
The feature that presents difficulty here is the Custom feature, wherein you can fully customize a variety of PDF aspects so that your final converted copy is rendered exactly how you want it. This section gives you options like Color, Grayscale and Mono, and prompts you to pick from options like No Downsampling, Average, Bicubic and Subsample. Needless to say, it takes some know-how to navigate the custom end.
Thankfully, however, you have pre-fab settings on this program that will create simple PDF formats that are ideal for readers, such as the eBook setting, so you won't actually have to dig around in the custom settings. It really depends on what you need and your skill level.
Pros and Cons of PrimoPDF
Pros
- Free to download and use
- Small program size
- Simple settings for quick conversions
- Converts very quickly
Cons
- Custom settings require expertise
- Cannot save in a Windows file format
Pros
- PDF editor and converter
- PDF printer
Cons
- None
PrimoPDF is a powerful platform for creating, converting to and printing to PDF documents.
PDF stands for Portable Document Format. Adobe created the format to simplify and standardize the transferring of documents. You can convert any document into PDF so if a recipient is set up to accept PDFs, you can send any document in that container without concern. PrimoPDF is a tool for Windows that lets you create, edit, convert to and print to PDF. It’s also freeware, which means that you can use it to create and otherwise manipulate as many PDFs as you like without cost.
PrimoPDF lets you interact with it in many different ways. It has its own user interface, and you can create, convert and so forth from within the UI. Included in the UI is an editor that provides you all the tools needed to insert, extract, rotate and otherwise manipulate text and images. PrimoPDF also exposes itself as a virtual PDF, which means you’ll have access to it automatically from within any program that supports printing. For instance, choose File -> Print from within Notepad and that text will automatically be sent to a new PDF. That works with Word, Excel, web browser and so much more.
PrimoPDF also has a command line interface. This lets you use the application without the UI, which is particularly powerful for scripting batch jobs. Thanks to the power of Windows, the average user can take advantage of this feature via drag and drop. Drag any text document to the PrimoPDF shortcut on your desktop or anywhere and drop it. The program will automatically convert it to PDF.
This program gives you a lot of security options as well. You can secure PDF documents via 40-/128-bit encryption. You can password protect documents. Individual PDFs can be configured to disallow printing, commenting, copying, editing and more. You’re also able to send the PDFs you make via email. Finish a report, and then, convert it to PDF and send it out to a mailing list with just one click.
As mentioned, PrimoPDF is freeware. However, there’s also a paid version. It has trialware, but if you choose to continue using it, you’ll need to pay. The paid version provides integration with Word, supports collaboration and review, has form automation features and more.
Pros
- PDF editor and converter
- PDF printer
Cons
- None
