PDF Basics

Answers to frequently asked questions about the basics, for people who are new to working with PDF files.

Explore PDF Basics Topics

Wondering what a PDF is? You’re not alone. More than 33,000 people ask Google that question every month. If you’re new to working with PDF files, or need a refresher on PDF basics, explore our resource library. We cover how to sign a PDF, convert Word Docs into PDFs, extracting pages from PDFs and so much more.

Working With PDFs

You know what a PDF file is, but you need help that goes beyond simply opening, closing, sharing and downloading a PDF file. Explore topics that help you alter a PDF document, whether you want to rearrange pages, block out copy, markup and edit a PDF, or troubleshoot how to lock or unlock a password-protected PDF file.

Get Creative With PDFs

You can do a lot with PDF files, beyond the basic download, print, share and save. Did you know you can turn photos into PDF files and create digital photo albums? What about publishing and e-book (or e-publication) online? Here we’ll explore some of those more creative ideas that we and our readers have, working with PDF files.

Other Topics

Here you’ll find tutorials, how-to articles and tips on working with different file types, including PDF files. These “other” topics include answering questions like, “how do you scan a document to create a PDF?” We also go over zipping versus compressing files, as well as a slew of other hot topics that we thought you’d find helpful.