PDFpenPro Review

PDFpenPro at $94.95 is pretty expensive BUT it brings PDF’s to life and removes years of frustrations that I have had with them.

They say: “PDFpen enables you to edit PDF files, including…

* Show PDFs in single, facing-page, multi-page, and multiple facing-page views

* Fill out and save PDF forms

* Create cross-platform fillable PDF forms (requires PDFpenPro)

* Re-order pages in a PDF by drag & drop

* Insert pages from one PDF into another (drag & drop or copy/paste)

* Remove pages from a PDF

* Overlay text and images onto PDF (fill in forms, sign purchase orders)

* Scribble your signature or anything else directly onto a PDF document

* Use with PageSender for a complete fax turn-around solution

* Automate PDF manipulations with AppleScript”

So what made it so useful for me? Three things really; the ability to actually fill in a PDF form, the ability to add my signature and the ability to remove pages from a PDF.

I probably shouldn’t like the last one so much as I write for The macCompanion which is a monthly PDF publication (amongst other things), but once I have read it I do like to strip out some of the pages (for example MINE) so that the archived version is a little smaller and easier to browse. Seriously, for years I have never really seen the point of a PDF on a daily personal use basis – they have always seemed more hassle than they were worth, but that really has all changed for me now.

Oh, yes and I loved the email tips they sent through, for example : “Here are two different kinds of forms that you can fill out using PDFpen:

1) Interactive PDF Forms

These forms are a snap to fill out using PDFpen. The form fields are built into the PDF. When you click into a field, a blue border appears around the field. Just start typing. When you’re done, PDFpen will save your form with info you added, so you can edit the form later without losing any work.

2) Non-interactive forms

These PDFs look like forms, with spaces for you to fill in information, but they don’t have the fields built in. You’ll need to use the Text tool to fill out this kind of form. Just select the Text tool, click where you want to add information and start typing.

Important tip: by default, the Text tool will revert to the Select tool after each use. To override this, double-click the Text tool. The Text tool will stay active and you’ll be able to fill out the whole form without switching back and forth between tools.”

Once you sign up to their registration service you can opt for all kinds of information to be sent through (or not) – a very nice add on.

I started out a little cynical if the truth be told, but I ended up a big fan.