I have written up Day 1 and Day 2 of the PDF association conference. After a busy 2 days of PDF related items, here are my 5 key takeaways:-
1. The PDF file format is very much alive and well. While some traditional uses may be in decline (print publishing), there are new expanding usages (email archiving and packaging). PDF is still a natural choice for many requirements such as archiving.
2. The PDF community is working together very effectively to take the format forward. There are still areas to improve (like consistent validation).
3. PDF has a very dynamic ecosystem with large and small companies, commercial and Open Source solutions. Adobe is an important and valued player but the community is much larger than a single company.
4. PDF can be a very structured format. PDF has had tagging since 2001 and this has been updated (and the documentation totally rewritten) in PDF 2.0 – you can created very structured documents in PDF if setup correctly.
5. There is still a market for small, specialised conferences. Even with the internet, there is still no substitute for meeting your peers over a few beers…
If you missed the PDF Association conference you can now view the playlist here.
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