You’re an IT professional. You’re responsible for ensuring software deployment happens correctly, securely and consistently. You may be responsible for configuring and then locking down what users can do on their machines. You may even be responsible for making sure the boss can update their “I like to appear in the background on TV” fan page wherever they may be. If all that sounds like your area of expertise (although you might want to find someone else to help with your bosses online and public habits), and if Adobe Reader XI and Acrobat XI are on the list of software applications that need to be installed on several (sometimes tens of thousands) desktops, then you need to get to know the Adobe Customization Wizard. The Customization Wizard allows you to configure and lockdown the Adobe Reader XI* and Acrobat XI* installation options prior to deployment via a simple UI. Sure, you could tweak installation tables and plist files, but this free tool makes all that work so much easier and faster. What kind of options are we talking about here? Not just things like pre-accepting the license agreement, or which features get installed, but also powerful controls such as configuring and locking down the many application security controls, tweaking preferences, including custom Actions and Tool Sets, determining how the software should be updated, and much more.

You can get all the juicy details on the Customization Wizard from the documentation that is part of the Enterprise Toolkit for the Acrobat family. Speaking of updates, the Customization Wizard was just updated itself with numerous bug fixes for installation configuration to help deployments go that much smoother. You can download the Customization Wizard for Windows and Mac OS X. If you have any questions about Customization Wizard, then feel free to send us a comment here or better yet, post to the Acrobat and Reader Enterprise Deployment forum. * Customization Wizard is also available for Adobe Reader X and Acrobat X too. If you need to configure those versions, please use the version of Customization Wizard specific to that Acrobat family version.

Adobe has released security updates for Adobe Reader and Acrobat XI (11.0.02) and earlier versions for Windows and Macintosh, and Adobe Reader 9.5.4 and earlier 9.x versions for Linux. You can update your system to the latest versions from the built-in updater or by downloading the patch from the Adobe website. IT professionals can get more details on the update and deploying it from the Enterprise Toolkit for Acrobat products.

For more details please review the official security bulletin.

I am a very fortunate individual indeed, for many reasons, most of which wouldn’t be appropriate for me to divulge in a public place like this one. One of the reasons I am so fortunate is that I get to work with talented and dedicated people on a daily basis. Take Steve Cordero, for example. Steve has just posted three new how-to videos on Adobe TV just for IT professionals like you who need to configure, deploy, update and manage Adobe Acrobat XI and Adobe Reader XI within their organization.

Steve is one of our technical support managers, who tirelessly helps our largest customers through their Acrobat deployment needs. But he doesn’t bottle that knowledge up in some kind of magical memory store [due to international copyright laws I am probably not able to make a direct reference to a famous wizarding professor in a famous castle with a famous student wizard that stumbles across a famous magical memory store]. We’re grateful that Steve has been able to share with us all how to get things done.

The latest videos from Mr. Cordero are:

• Creating an AIP for Acrobat XI
• Chaining the Installer for Adobe Acrobat XI on OS X
• Building a Bootstrapper for Acrobat 11.0.01

There are also many other videos within the Acrobat IT Tips show on Adobe TV to help you be successful with Acrobat XI in your organization.

Now, time for me to go back to brewing butterbeer…

Instead of stacks of unwieldy paper documents, developers in the City of Sacramento are now submitting project documentation electronically with PDF for much easier review and distribution. By moving to a digital environment, the submittal, review, and approval process eliminates the need to output and handle thousands of pounds of unwieldy paper documents (some 13,000 building permit a year), saving time and money.

Using Adobe Acrobat Pro, engineers and developers can now submit plans electronically as a PDF. Since the staff will no long has to manually input information from the plans into the central database, electronic submissions decrease the possibility of introducing errors.

Even if only 25% of the plans are submitted in PDF, the Sacramento CDD estimates that it will save some 1,200 hours of labor previously used to receive, time-stamp, collate, and distribute documents. This time savings does not even include efficiencies associated with easier review, processing and archiving with the PDF files.

“Standardizing on Adobe Acrobat to simplify increasingly complex plan check reviews—involved in managing development projects—helps our agency make the City more economically competitive, resourceful, and vibrant,” says Matthew Sites, project manager, Community Development Department for the City of Sacramento.

To read more about how the City of Sacramento is using Adobe Acrobat, check out the full story here: http://adobe.ly/OmEiOH

Ali Hanyaloglu, senior marketing manager, Acrobat Solutions

Follow Ali on Twitter, @acroboy. 

Piscine Castiglione, the commercial arm of A&T Europe, recently adopted Adobe Acrobat X Pro to develop high-impact documentation and digital brochures for its Myrtha pool product line. The compelling product catalog—called “Encyclopedia”—in PDF contains more than 200 pages, 400 videos, 13 chapters, and photo presentations that can be viewed across devices. With built-in support for multiple file formats, Adobe Acrobat X Pro makes it easy for Piscine to add new content as soon as it’s available, whether it is text, images, or videos.

General Director Roberto Colletto of Piscine Castiglione says navigating through the detailed product information is quick and easy, “Moving from one section of the document to another is very similar to web navigation. The functionality of Adobe Acrobat X helped us develop a brochure that makes it easy for sales staff to communicate with customers efficiently, with accuracy, and leverage high-quality images and videos for more dramatic impact.” The company has even seen routine requests for additional information from customers drop because the interactive catalog covers so many topics in great detail.

For Piscine Castiglione, the Adobe solution has enhanced the impact of presentations by sales agents to customers and resellers. Now, agents can bring laptops or tablets along to sales calls and show customers polished, multimedia presentations on demand. With the help of Adobe Acrobat X Pro to create and deliver powerful product information, Piscine is further strengthening its image as an industry leader and innovator. Says Colletto, “Using Adobe Acrobat X…nicely mirrors our commitment to innovation.” To learn more about Piscine Castiglione and its use of Adobe Acrobat X, click here.

Ali Hanyaloglu, senior marketing manager, Acrobat Solutions

The need to give people everywhere timely, accurate information about Hepatitis B is greater than ever, as the disease already affects nearly 400 million people worldwide. Unfortunately, even with the broad reach of hepatitis B, many patients and caregivers still lack resources and a complete understanding of the disease. On July 28, 2012 people around the world will come together to mark World Hepatitis Day and raise awareness of viral hepatitis. World Hepatitis Day provides an opportunity to recognize viral hepatitis as a major global health problem in order to advance prevention and control.

“There is a large information gap for chronic hepatitis B patients between their initial diagnoses and the long-term management of their disease,” says Grainne Maguire, associate director at healthcare agency TogoRun. As part of an initiative called PATH B (Patients and Professionals Acting Together on Hepatitis B), TogoRun teamed up with creative agency DiViDi Projects and used Adobe Acrobat and other Adobe solutions to create an interactive and informative tool that reaches patients worldwide.

PATH B—My journey with chronic hepatitis B is a dynamic information resource in Adobe PDF containing hundreds of pages of critical health and service information to improve the lives of people with hepatitis B and their caregivers. Graphics and interactive components were created with Adobe Creative Suite software to enable readers to better understand essential information, including test results, treatment, and disease management, while collaboration and editing of all the rich content was streamlined using Acrobat and Adobe SendNow.

“Adherence to medical advice is usually much higher when a patient can understand and process the information,” explains Maguire. PATH B—My journey with chronic hepatitis B offers a unique, comprehensive way to present information and simplify understanding, empowering patients to take greater control over their health and work more closely with doctors to treat the disease.

The impactful informational resource in Adobe PDF can be viewed anywhere using free Adobe Reader, and it has been endorsed by patient advocacy groups and medical organizations alike. “Adobe Acrobat created an interactive experience that everyone could embrace, and provided an essential resource for millions of people worldwide,” says Maguire. For more information, go to http://bit.ly/K2zxw0.

Ali Hanyaloglu, senior marketing manager, Acrobat Solutions

On 28 July 2012 people around the world will come together to mark World Hepatitis Day and raise awareness of viral hepatitis. World Hepatitis Day provides an opportunity to recognize viral hepatitis as a major global health problem in order to advance prevention and control.