Tim Huff - Man, I didn't know Acrobat could do that!

Moving this Blog to acrobat.timhuff.net

2007-08-24T03:06:17Z

Hello all, I am moving this blog to my own blog, so come on by and visit.

Adobe will remove the 'Send to FedEx Kinko's' service and functionality

2007-08-02T22:41:12Z

For all of you that have hammered my blog on this one, here is an official statement from us:

"Adobe will remove the 'Send to FedEx Kinko's' service and functionality, currently available to US customers in Adobe Reader and Adobe Acrobat."

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Yes after much discussion and banter, Adobe will remove the FedEx Kinko's button from Acrobat and the free Reader. I can understand both sides of the story, I will leave it at that. Here is a link to the official press release.

Keep some life in your life;
Tim Huff
Adobe

Thirty Dirty Tricks for Acrobat 8 PDF Download

2007-07-26T21:27:15Z

Thanks all for attending the eSeminar, it was a lot of fun, sorry I got double booked and had to leave, but Rick is outstanding in what he has to offer you guys. Here is the download of the Tips and Tricks PDF. Have a good one and keep some life in your life Tim

Thirty Dirty Tricks for Acrobat 8: An eSeminar on Thursday, July 26

2007-07-25T20:26:18Z

Thirty Dirty Tricks for Acrobat 8: An eSeminar on Thursday, July 26

Rick Borstien and I will be presenting a free eSeminar called "Thirty Dirty Tricks for Acrobat 8" on Thursday, July 26 at 10AM PST.

Click here to register. (Opens in a new window)

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Be the boss of your PDFs! In this informative session, you'll learn over 30 new Acrobat tips:

Set Preferences that offer new options and save time

Create a new PDF document . . . with Acrobat alone

Search all your PDFs with lightening fast keyword search

Create a "better" Typewriter tool

Make Acrobat do the work with Batch Processing

Create Custom Dynamic Stamps

. . . and much more

Read on to learn more about the event . . .

Although this event isn't specific to the legal use of Acrobat, you'll still pick up a lot of interesting tips. We'll be covering about thirty different tips for using Acrobat 8. Honestly, I hope we have enough time to do them all!

Myself and Rick are on the same team here at Adobe but have different backgrounds so the banter should be very interesting.

Rick is Adobe's Business Development Manager for Acrobat- Legal, and has been with Adobe for a long time. Rick's Acrobat blog is one of the best over all information blog out there:

AcrobatLegal

Bonus: All who attend will receive access to Rick and Tim's PDF Tricks . . . in PDF of course!

I'll post the Tips and Tricks document on this blog sometime soon.

Oh, and in case you haven't registered yet, click here.

Remember to keep some life in you life

Tim Huff

Big 2 Hour eSeminar with Tim Huff and Rick Borstein-All things Acrobat

2007-07-25T16:06:52Z

Hello all if you want a great overview of Acrobat 8 Professional today is your day! Myself, Bryant Bell, and Rick Borstein are going to cover Creating PDF's, Combining Multiple files, Collaborating, Forms, and Security!

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If you want to get started with Acrobat Geekdom, this is the place! You need to registar for the eSeminar and you can do that HERE, So I hope to see you there. Put some life in your life!

Tim Huff
Acrobat 8 Professional
Acrobat 3D Version 8

Setting the default for drop downs in Acrobat LiveCycle Designer

2007-07-20T23:49:50Z

Since we have been on a Forms binge lately, I was asked, "when you create a drop down list, how do you set one of the list to be a default?" Well you are lucky, I can show you in a short entry, so here we go.

]]> Ok here we go, it is easy here I have created a new form in the Adobe LiveCycle Designer by selecting a new blank form. I then dropped the US States drop down list from the custom library tab. Your screen should look like below.

Then to set a state as a default you go to the Object Edit area on the lower left panel (note if you do not see this panel, go to the Window pull down and turn on Object). Here is a something that can go over looked, you must select the drop down on the form then go to the object panel to make changes.

Once you have selected the drop down go to the Object tab and you will see 3 tabs select the tab Value, and you will see the list listed in the Default Box just move down to the entry that you want to be the default and that's it you are done! I hope this little tip and trick helps you create some killer forms! Have fun and keep some life in your life!

Tim Huff
Adobe Acrobat
Adobe LiveCycle Designer

Creating a forms Workflow in Acrobat 8 Professional

2007-07-19T01:38:59Z

If you watched the eSeminar last Wednesday (July 11, 2007), you saw me whiz through creating a Form Distribution Work flow from a word document that I recieved from my son's soccer team. I got a lot of feedback asking for a more indepth look at how to create a forms based workflow in Acrobat 8 Professional (Note: that this is a windows only workflow for now, the workflow for the Mac is slightly different and I will be putting the Mac version up here as soon as my Mac comes in :-). So for all my adoring fans, here you go! ]]>

Ok so, as with the eSeminar, I will start in Word with the orginal document that the team sent out. I mean come on, trying to type in the spaces then backing out to keep the layout correct is just a royal pain. So, if this happens to you, be a hero and follow these steps. I will start by creating a PDF from the Word Doc using the PDF makers. I can't stress enough to use the PDF Makers (the little Acrobat Buttons you see in all the office appilcations. Your resulting PDF will be a much richer and will make this process much easier.

Fig. 1 Using the PDF Makers to create the PDF from Word

Ok now that we have the PDF Created, we still can't fill in any of the fields. But, wait, there is a a way, it is called the typewriter tool!

Fig. 2 Our word document as a PDF

Just go to Tools Typewriter Typewrither and you will get a cool little cusor that will allow you to position text on the line or anywhere on a PDF (Fig 3)

Fig. 3 Using the Typewriter tool

which is a really quick way of filling out a form that is a flat document (one with out active fields), but, the person that gets this form will still have to enter the fields into what ever system by hand, and as we all know that is a huge bummer! In short the data collection is a no go! So what can we do to this PDF to make it a dynamic xml form? Well pior to Acrobat 8 you had two choices, first you could just use Acrobat and manually draw fields on the PDF. This was pretty easy to do, but, is a bit tedious. Second, you could try to import it into Acrobat Designer and even though much more powerful, not real user friendly. So what do you do? Well your a lucky dawg, dawg, (humm, losing some street cred here) you use the new Create New Form in Acrobat 8! Here how it's Done.

To start, go to Forms Create New Form, this will start a wizard that will walk you through creating a dynamic form and create a distribution/collection workflow.

Fig. 4 Starting the Form Field Recognition

Now we just answer the questions as needed:

Start with an electronic document, notice that you have a few options here as well, but will be saved for other posts

STEP 1 - In this case we will start with the Current Document

STEP 2 - Now you have an interesting choice, adding fields by hand (booo) or Run Auto Field Detection (this sounds like much more fun!)

STEP 3 - Show you have completed the Auto-Detection, notice that the fields have all been found, your mileage my vary. One of the tips for a better field detection is to make sure there is a space between the fields, and the explanation text.

STEP 4 - Congratulations! You got the first part done. Now the wizard will auto start Adobe LiveCycle Designer this is a step that requires you to create a eMail button.

STEP 5 - Add the buttons, here I add my eMail and de-select the Add a print button

STEP 6 - Now in the video you will see an expanded lesson here but for the blog entry just save it off to somewhere you can find it. Then reopen the PDF in Acrobat.

Now you have a form sitting in Acrobat, we need to send it out so that we can get some data back. We will now start the Distribution Form workflow.

Start the Distribute Form workflow by going to Forms Distribute Form.

STEP 1 - Set your delivery options; here I am using the simple eMail return, you can secure them on return but we will save that for another post

STEP 2 - Ok this is a very important step here, this is where you are going to tell the system where to put the Data Collection. This will be a repositatory for the returned form data. Make sure you out this in a location that you have access too, and will not change. If you move it, every time you open an eMail with a return form you will have to manually direct the data to the new location. Again not the end of the world but still a hassle!

STEP 3 - Tell Acrobat who else gets to play. Here you can either grab people from your Address Book, or type in an eMail, Note the you can type many eMails at once the only thing to know is to make sure to add a return between each address. Your address book will be automaticlly linked to Acrobat at install, you do not need to do any thing to your system to get this bonus.

STEP 4 - Tell the recievers what they are doing. In step 4 you tell the recievers of the form what is the about, you can have a standard boiler plate message body saved as a text file and just link it in at run time. Here I just added the text "Thanks Tim" at the bottom.

You are now done and a eMail has been placed in your Outbox. The workflow has began. The video shows what happens when a user gets the form and fills it in, adds a digital signiture, and then saves it (all things new to Acrobat 8 Professional) with the Adobe Free Reader! What will happen now is as people start to submit the forms back you will start getting eMails with the data, so this is pretty good, but, what can you do with this data, how do you COLLECT this data, what form is it? Well let Acrobat come to the rescue here, simply open your eMail and double click on the attachment. Acrobat will load and you will see a new Form but it is a PDF Package, the data you are recieving from the eMails is XML data that is propogating the fields of a PDF Package (pretty darn cool) this allows you to collect, collate, and look at the data. (fig.5)

Fig. 5 - Here the PDF Package give you a great look at your data

But, this view of the data is a bit structured and sometimes you want to do some math on the data or hook it to some other data. You have the option to export the data to either XML or a CSV file that can be opened by Excel, or almost any database program out there!

Well, that's it for this one, whew it was a long one, I better go, Brasil and Argentina are about to start the finals of the Copa America, and dude, I can't miss that! Be good and remember to put some life in your life! For a Video of this Blog Click here!

Tim Huff

I'm doing a 30 Minute eSeminar on Forms this Wed!

2007-07-10T17:18:38Z

Hey all I am doing a 3o minute Acrobat Professional eSeminar this Wednesday July 10 at noon Central Time on Data Collection and Forms, this will rock and you will be shocked at what you can do with forms and PDF's that are not forms but want to be! ]]>

In fact there are some really good eSeminars that you can sign up for here you must registar to get to see the seminars, but the cool thing about that is that you will get a reminder so you don't miss it!

Some of the topics covered in this series are

Put it ALL TOGETHER.
June 20 at 10 am PT
Create and combine a wide variety of document formats into one integrated, yet powerful PDF easily exchanging information with everyone—even extended team members.

EASIER REVIEWS, faster feedback.
June 27 and 10 am PT
Manage reviews quickly and easily—reliably sharing professional PDFs so anyone, anywhere can view them exactly as intended—simpler markup and commenting tools, too.

Faster DATA COLLECTION.
July 11 at 10 am PT
Collect and compile data automatically into designated database workflows with easy-to- use electronic forms—reducing inefficient and time-consuming paper-intensive processes.

BETTER SECURITY.
July 18 at 10 am PT
Reduce risk and protect your documents from unintended access and use—from simple password protection to authentication and digital signatures.

BONUS 2-HOUR RECAP
Put them all together on JULY 25 at 10 am PT for a special 2-hour overview of each of these 4 topics:

Put it ALL TOGETHER

EASIER REVIEWS, faster feedback

Faster DATA COLLECTION

BETTER SECURITY

These eSeminars will help you jump start and advance your use of Acrobat in your business or daily life.

So, come on by and enjoy a little lunch with the Adobe boys, and remember to put some life in your life!

Tim Huff

Recent update to Acrobat and Acrobat reader to 8.1

2007-07-09T19:19:36Z

Recently we sent out an update to Acrobat and the Adobe Free Reader that bumped the revision to 8.1and I have been asked what is the big deal and why should I run the update, well below is a short list of all the goodies that are in this point release, it ain't just bug fixes!

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The Adobe Acrobat 8.1 update fixes a number of issues that were discovered after the release of Adobe Acrobat 8.0. The Acrobat 8.1 update is a patch release for Adobe Acrobat Professional and Standard and the Adobe Free Reader. This also parallels the release of Acrobat 3D Version 8 witch I have already covered in an earlier post. But for enquiring minds here is the info:

New features in Adobe Acrobat 8.1

New operating system support:

Windows XP 64-bit edition

Windows 2003 64-bit edition

Windows Vista 32-bit and 64-bit editions

Note: There is a known issue with 64-bit versions of these operating systems which causes the Adobe PDF Printer to not work correctly. Microsoft has released a Hot Fix for this issue which is documented in Microsoft Knowledge Base Article #930627 available at http://support.microsoft.com/kb/930627. Adobe has tested and will support the Adobe PDF Printer with this Hot Fix installed.

New features:

Vista Preview Handler: Preview Handler is a new user interface for viewing PDF files in Microsoft Office Outlook 2007 on Windows Vista and Windows XP, as well as in Windows Explorer on Windows Vista. Preview Handler must be turned on in both applications.

Microsoft Office 2007 support.

PDF printer driver in Vista supports high quality PDF creation.

PDFMaker Office 2007 PDF Creation.

Option to create Quick and Simple PDFs from Word 2007.

New PDFMaker Ribbon UI in Office 2007.

Mac OS X version now includes Flash MPP for improved support for Flash files with multimedia on Mac OS.

InDesign Plug-In update supports communication with InDesign for Creative Suites 3.

Option to print documents to a FedEx Kinko?s office in the USA. English only.

Direct render of Dynamic forms

FIPS 140 Support

New features and issues addressed in the Adobe Reader 8.1 Update

What's covered

New features in Adobe Reader 8.1

Issues addressed by the Adobe reader 8.1 update

The Adobe Reader 8.1 update fixes a number of issues that were discovered after the release of Adobe Reader 8.0. The update is available as a full Adobe Reader 8.1 installer and can be download from the Adobe website.

New features in Adobe Reader 8.1

New operating system support:

Windows Vista 32-bit edition

Windows Vista 64-bit edition

New features:

Improved forms performance.

Acrobat 8 3D support: Precise CAD data (PRC), Product Manufacturing Information (PMI).

Integrated FedEx Kinko's Print Online: Send any PDF directly to FedEx Kinko's Print Online for printing.

Whew! Alot of busy programmers, but you can expect that, this has been a crazy time with new operating systems from Microsoft and Apple, new platforms in MacTel, it has been a challenge. We are focused on getting you the best solution on the market as fast as possible. And as I always say, please put some life in your life!

Tim Huff

3D AutoCAD to Acrobat 3D Ver 8 with out Autocad part deux

2007-07-02T22:45:18Z

I was recently asked this question, "Tim, You showed us that you didn't need AutoCAD on your computer to get 2D DWG files into Acrobat 8 Professional, but what about AutoCAD 3D models into Acrobat 3D version 8?" Well, you are in luck, just like Just like Beckham at a Spice Girls Concert! We got you covered here, just sit back relax and let your ol’ buddy Tim kicks this one out for you. ]]>

Ok, in Acrobat 3D version 8 and in Acrobat 8 Professional you know by now we have direct import of DWG and DWF files. This extension will help you by not making you purchase extra seats of AutoCAD for prople that are not designers. It is so easy that we don't need any pictures for this one. Just open Acrobat 3D Version 8 (hey there is a free 30 day trial just click here) and Drag and Drop the 3D DWG Autocad file (2007 or older 2008 support coming soon) and you will get the data imported in! Simple! You get both Model Space and Paper Space into your PDF file. Now let me set the rules for you here. If your AutoCAD 3D is Wireframe, Acrobat 3D does not magically make it a solid, so the import will bring in what ever state the model is. We do not sew or knit surfaces into solids.

And that’s it, too easy! That’s it for this entry. To see a video of this process click here

Have fun and remember to keep some life in your life.
Tim Huff
Acrobat for AEC / EPC

Acrobat 3D

How to get Autodesk Revit models into Acrobat 3D version 8

2007-06-25T20:24:50Z

I get asked this question alot, and I have to say it is very easy to get your Revit models into Acrobat 3D version 8. The question you have to ask yourself; do I need the BIM data, or is this just for review and mark up! Whoa, Tim, now you’re getting technical on us! Well, just sit back relax and let your ol’ buddy Tim step you through the process. ]]>

Ok, in Acrobat 3D version 7, it was a bit of a challenge to get your full Revit Models into it. But in version 8 we updated the Capture Routines to work better with Revit’s graphic sub system. ….Sub grap…syRev…..HUH! Well let me take a step back and give you a little technology back ground.

One of the coolest things about Acrobat 3D is the fact that you can make 3D PDF files from any 3D application on the planet! We have direct translators for many of the major 3D CAD packages such as Catia, Pro-E, UGS, SolidWorks, SolidEdge, Inventor, AutoCAD (yes, you can do 3D in AutoCAD), 3D Studio Max, Maya,…(For a full list Click Here) But, you may notice that the list is very heavy on the manufacturing side, so what about AEC and EPC formats? Well we are working on them, but in the mean time what do we do? As I was saying above, Acrobat 3D has a very cool technology called OpenGL Capture, what that means is any package that supports OpenGL, we can get the 3D data out of it! Very cool huh! That is the first method I will show you. Using OpenGL Capture to get your Revit 3D Model

Ok to do this first you have to open Revit with a model open, use any model here because you are just telling Acrobat 3D that a 3D program exists and you are enabling the Capture. So, Open Revit first, then open Acrobat 3D Ver 8, I will tell you that a program has been recognized for capture close the 3D package and re-open, (that is why I said to load with a small model so you don’t take the hit twice). In Acrobat 3D you will see a dialog box up with 2 buttons, select the Settings Button. This will take you to a settings dialog

Select the Settings button and you will see the 3D Capture Settings Dialog box, the Preset Name should say Autodesk Revit XXXXX(based on what version you have)

You will need to jump to the OpenGL tab and change the settings; to get the settings for Revit and other software packages please go here to get the latest and greatest! It can also be found by searching our Knowledge Base for Article 332661. Here are the settings for Revit. Note that you only have to do the set up the first time you capture from a new 3D application. After that the set up data is retained.

With that all done we can now get to the Capturing!

Ok so now close, Acrobat 3D and start Revit, load your model. Then start Acrobat 3D version 8. In Acrobat 3D go to FILE|CREATE PDF|FROM 3D CAPTURE this will start Acrobat waiting for something to grab. Go about your business in Revit, or at least rotate the model a few times. This will fill the OpenGL pipeline with data that Acrobat 3D can use. Once you have done that, HIT THE PRINT SCREEN button on your keyboard. Today, you get no indication that anything is happening, and it could take up to 60 seconds for Acrobat to come up with the Acrobat 3D Conversion dialog box but you will hear your hard drive become active as the data is written and the 3D data constructed.

In the Acrobat 3D Conversion Dialog box you will see a tabbed area that allows you to tune your import, in this workflow; I will be using the U3D format not PRC (I will discuss that one in another entry) So, on the General Tab you can set the back ground color, lighting, rendering style, Animation…, I suggest you create a small model and just experiment with these settings.

The Import tab allows you to select the format you wish to use, in the case as mentioned I will use the U3D format and keep it with a high resolution.

The Optimize tab will allow you to compress your model for size sake, again you will need to play with this to get your settings.

The Enhance Tab allows for Animation control, again this is for another post

And Transform, will allow you to manually rotate your model, set a scale and add custom units
Now just say Ok and you will get your 3D model in Acrobat 3D in about 30 seconds.

You have full control of the model, you can change lighting, create views, do mark-ups, cut sections (all will be covered in later posts) One thing to notice is the Model Tree. The OpenGL Capture will get all materials, colors, objects, really anything that is posted to the screen, but we lose the BIM data. So going back, that is why I asked what are you using the model for? If it is Mark-Ups, or visuals this is a perfectly fine workflow. But what if you need the BIM data? Well not to worry!

Did you know Acrobat 3D with the new version 8 will read in a Native DWF file? Well now you do, and with that, we can keep all the 3D metadata!
So to keep all the 3D Metadata, Publish a 3D DWF from Revit, then Drag and Drop the DWF file into Acrobat 3D

You will then get the model and all the associative data

And that’s it, sounded hard but was very easy! That’s it for this entry. To see a video of this process click here

Have fun and remember to keep some life in your life.
Tim Huff
Acrobat for AEC / EPC

Mark up tool text…How the heck do you change that??

2007-06-15T17:28:05Z

I was at one of the largest oil field tool provider today and things were going pretty good. We where discussing Acrobat 8 Professional, Acrobat 3D Version 8 and a little LiveCycle Policy Server, when a one of the ladies from the document group asked what I thought was a very simple questions…..How do you change the text style in a Text Box? Well I piped up and said…..

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As I was saying, before I got rudely interrupted by the “Read More” link, I piped up and said, oh well that is easy, you just select the Text Box, Right Mouse Click, and go to Properties and it is right…….humm, well, maybe if we select the text then Right Mouse Click and go to Properties, it is….yeah there you go under Text Style just simply……UUUMMM, let me see Superscript, bold, no change font type! Well, now I’m starting to wonder, where the heck did that go? I remember I could do it before, so….what’s up? Well, sitting there in front of them, probably looking like a deer in headlights, I just swallow real hard and say the words I hate to say, “I DON’T KNOW!” Oh the pain! The humanity! I can believe they “Stumped the Chump” with a question about changing a font, not an explicit question about the metadata extraction from a 3D file or a question about linking a form to a SQL Database, but how to change a FONT! I lost some huge Nerd points here! But, as I drove to the airport, in a pool of tears, it came to me, what about the ol Ctrl E Properties tool bar? That has to be it! But, now comes the quandary, do I miss my flight or get my nerd points back…well a quick call to the airlines and the geek Gods are smiling on me and my flight is delayed! Well, I pull over on the highway, pull out the laptop and try my newly remembered solution. THAT’S IT, it worked, well, I promptly pull out the PDA and email the customer the solution.

Ahh Geek status replaced!

Here, let me show you what I mean:

I created a blank PDF and called up the Mark Up Tool Bar (see Video on how to do this), I then added a Text Box by selecting the Text Box tool and drawing a 2 point Rectangle. I then typed some text for test.

Once here I tried all the Right Mouse Clicks I could think of.
First I tried selecting the box and RMC I got Properties for the Text Box. This is very useful in setting standards for your markup text boxes such as color, linetype, and being able to set it as the current property is very handy! But no way to change the font type and color....Humm the search continues.....

Ahh yes, of course you must select the text then RMC, there it is Text Style, but denied again, I see Bold, Italic... but no way to change Font type, Starting to sweat now.

But a quick Dr. Pepper latter (you know a little caffine to clear the mind), I remembered the Ctrl Key Commands in Acrobat (click here to download a PDF of all the shortcuts), the Ctrl e function brings up the Text Box Text Properties. Ahh Geek Nirvana! That's it, you can now change the font type color and other properties!

Well that was a fun one, remember to see a video of this click here and to download the PDF of the Keyboard shortcuts click here. And as alway, put some life in your life, and keep the questions comming!

Thanks all

Tim Huff
Acrobat for AEC
Acrobat in the AEC and EPC industry

Big 2hr Acrobat for AEC review is this Wednesday June 6!

2007-06-05T01:11:05Z

Yep, the big 2 hour Acrobat for AEC review is this Wednesday June 6! This has been a great series and really fun for me. These training video's will continue but will be more general, but, you will get some amazing information! Click to read more!

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Bonus 2-hour Recap Put them all together on June 6 at 10 am PT for a special 2-hour overview on the following 4 topics - exclusively for AEC professionals.

- Creating INTERACTIVE digital forms.

- Attaching forms to DATABASE WORKFLOWS.

- Using optical character recognition (OCR).

- PROTECT DESIGN and confidential information.

This will be the last one I do for a while, I will do a few of the general sessions, but, please search for Acrobat for AEC and EPC PODCast's and check out YouTube for some more videos from Me. You should be able to search YouTube for Tim Huff and get them that way as well. And as always I will be posting the videos here on this blog. To register for this webcast click here

Welp as always try to keep some life in your life, root for the US Men's National Soccer Team as they fight for the Gold Cup this week! Oh WAY TO GO GUYS 4-1 over China, it was a great game!

Peace!

Tim Huff

Acrobat for AEC and EPC

Acrobat 3D Version 8 is NOW Shipping!!

2007-05-30T06:46:36Z

Great news for all of you that use 3D in your AEC and EPC designs and collaboration workflow's. Acrobat 3D Version 8 is now shipping. This version of Acrobat 3D is full of new features that will take your 3D designs to millions of possible consumers! 3D PDF's can be enabled by Acrobat 3D for users that use the Adobe free Reader. Click here to read more ab out the new version of Acrobat 3D.

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So first off let me say, I am a 3D nerd! I admit it, I have been designing in 3D since 1987 using almost every 3D CAD system known. Now I will also admit that I am a mechanical engineer by training, therefore, I have been through what the AEC industry is going through now, already. I mean in the early 90's the mechanical design industry had already moved to PMI data (equate that to BIM) and the extraction of parametric metadata for cut sheets, order entry, and BOM's. In those early days of CAD they tried to set up translation standards such as IGES, STEP, VRML, DXF, and of course every CAD manufacture had their flavor of translation format. It was a convoluted MESS!! That is why I am so excited about Acrobat 3D Version 8. It is the first De Facto Standard format that address the CAD format translation.

So let's take a look as some of the cool things that Acrobat 3D version 8 brings to the table:

Added a new Precise File Format (in addition to U3D) that allows for 100% precision measurement
Over 150 times compression! Your 3D files are e-mailable! Easily handle assemblies/designs that exceed 500mb!
We now have converters for 40 CAD formats including PTC, SolidWorks, AutoCAD, Microstation, Catia, UG... Click here to see a complete list.
Extraction of PMI data on Mechanical Files
New Revit Capture
Direct import of 2D and 3D DWF's with BIM data
Get SketchUp Models in through .OBJ translation
Export to industry standard IGES, STEP or Parasolids..(Humm read in 40 formats export to standard formats!)
Use the 3D toolkit to combine multiple 3D CAD Formats
Enable measure, 3D mark up, digital signature, forms, and all 3D files for the over 700 Million Adobe Free Readers consumption
Support for Vista and Office 2007
And Much More..

This development cycle was a very intense one with over 10,000 users participating in the beta and public preview programs for Acrobat 3D Version 8. Caterpillar Inc., Dai Nippon Printing Co. Ltd., Eaton Corporation, HNTB Architecture, John Deere, and Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP were among the innovative organizations working with pre-release versions of the software. EDS, a global technology services company, was also a beta participant. At EDS, the software is helping improve 3D-based document collaboration across engineers, project managers and clients. The product also has helped the company bring additional clarity and richness to technical documentation, enabling CAD design data to be placed in Microsoft Office documents for the production of interactive 3D PDF files.

“As a consultancy focusing on engineering processes, Acrobat 3D Version 8 supports one of EDS’ primary goals—enabling clients to be more productive,” said John Brabbs, senior simulation consultant in EDS’ Modeling, Simulation and Collaborative Solutions Group. “By converting 3D models to compressed PDF files, companies can reach partners anywhere at any time with interactive 3D objects they can review and comment on simply using Adobe Reader.”

Some basic info on Acrobat 3D Version 8, Three-dimensional CAD data can be easily combined with other critical project information, such as product specifications, spreadsheets and bills of materials, into a more secure PDF document containing product manufacturing information (PMI). PMI is used to convey geometric dimensioning and tolerancing, annotations and other specifications directly on a 3D model.

The product is available for Microsoft® Windows® 2000 with Service Pack 4, Windows XP Professional, Home or Tablet PC Editions with Service Pack 2, and Windows Vista™ (32-bit and 64-bit) Ultimate, Enterprise, Business, Home Premium, or Home Basic Editions.

The icing on the cake....Registered users who purchased Acrobat 3D from Sept. 18, 2006 until May 30, 2007 will be eligible to receive a free upgrade to Acrobat 3D Version 8 (sales tax, shipping and handling may apply). Which is just too cool!

Whew, well that is a big announcement! Look for some expanded coverage in the coming weeks on the new Acrobat 3D Version 8! To find out more info go to our web page. To see examples of 3D PDF's Click Here. To see some more AEC specific examples

Whelp it's getting late and I had better try to put some life in my life, got to get ready for the England v Brazil friendly on Friday June 1 and by the way Way to go Manchester United Premiership Champions and VfB Stuttgart Bundeslinga Champions, ahh it's been a good season, now what about this Beckham chap......

Tim Huff
Acrobat for AEC
Acrobat in the AEC and EPC Industry

This Wed Acrobat for AEC/EPC Lunch is Security!

2007-05-29T15:41:25Z

This Wednesday's Acrobat for AEC / EPC Lunch is Security! Product design and confidential information. We will focus on document and policy based security. Read on for more info:

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So we wil be filling the 30 minutes with a lot on security;

How to create a Digital Signiture (with images)
How to Password Protect a Document
How to use Document Center for ASP policy Tracking

This will be a fun romp through Document Securtiy with Acrobat 8 Professional and Acrobat 3D ver 8

Click here to sign up for the webinar

Hope to see you there, Wednesday May 30, and remember to put some life in your life!

Tim Huff
Acrobat for AEC / EPC
Acrobat in the AEC and EPC Industry