Viewing and Printing Acrobat Reader PDF Files

There are several ways to setup Netscape Navigator
to deal with Acrobat Reader pdf files ...

A pdf file is simply in a special format, the Portable Document Format. As the name suggests, this format is platform independent and pdf files are thus a wonderful way to distribute files to people with a variety of different computers (e.g. a class of sophomore students like you).

Method Number 1 to Print PDF Files

If the Netscape you are using is in its original state and Acrobat Reader is not installed on the system, then clicking on pdf files will activate a helper application called PDFViewer and the pdf file will be displayed in the Netscape window.
The pdf file can be printed while it is being displayed in the Netscape window. The pdf file is not saved to disk.

Method Number 2 to Print PDF Files

If Acrobat Reader has been downloaded and is used as the helper application to deal with pdf files, then clicking on a pdf file will activate Acrobat Reader. Acrobat Reader will display the file in a window outside the Netscape window and the file will be saved to disk as well.
Many of the computers on campus do not allow you to save files to disk. There are practical reasons so long as the disk storage space is finite. So, if you need to get pdf files of the web using a computer on campus, method 1 is the way that you should choose as it should always work.

Choosing the Helper Application to Deal With PDF Files

With Netscape active, select General Preferences under the Options menu.
Click on Helpers to obtain a listing of file descriptions and information about what helper application handles them. Scroll down until you find the entry Portable Document Format.

A fresh Netscape will show a line that says that Portable Document Format is handled by PDFViewer. If, however, Netscape has been set up to employ Acrobat Reader to deal with the pdf files, then this line will say that Portable Document Format files are handled by Acrobat(TM) Reader 3.0.

Here is how to change from Acrobat(TM) Reader 3.0 to PDFViewer: Select the line. Press Edit button. Click on circle before Plug-in in the Handled-by box. The PDFViewer after Plug-in is darkened. Press OK button to close Edit Type box. Note that the handled by entry has changed to PDFViewer. Press OK button and go about your business.

Here is how to change from PDFViewer to Acrobat(TM) Reader 3.0: Select the line. Press Edit button. Click on the circle in front of Application in the Handled by box. Note that the Browse button darkens. Use Browse button to find the Acrobat Reader application on your disk (use system manager help if needed) and open it. Press OK to close the Edit Type box. Note that the handles by type is now changed to Acrobat Reader 3.0. Press OK and go about your business.