【PDF File Extension】 What is .Pdf and how to open them? ▷ 2024

.PDF file extension What are and how to open such files?

PDF files have become one of the most commonly used formats, this is due to its excellent tools when you want to edit or configure that document.

Due to its great popularity in recent years, most browsers nowadays have PDF readers included. In order for users to open this type of file without any problem.

Keep in mind that if your browsers do not have these readers, you will need to install a special program in order to open this type of file. In this way, here we will show you several ways to open this type of document either from your computer or mobile.

Index:

What is it and what files with extension are used for. PDF?

These files are used to present documents within a computer or Smartphone, in such a way, this type of file representation is totally independent of any operating system, software program and of computer equipment.

A PDF file can contain text, graphic, style, video, multimedia presentations, audios, bookmarks, links and any other information that the user wishes to incorporate into the document . In addition, it has security elements and restrictions that help the privacy of it, so that it cannot be modified or deleted by third parties.

Keep in mind that all these variants that can be included in these files are what determine the different types of PDF format, where we get the following:

PDF / X: This is mainly used for those files that are handled with images, therefore, it has special features.
PDF / A: This type of PDF is mainly used for those documents that will be stored digitally for a long time. Therefore, avoid being at risk, either by preventing external factors from making use of them or by simply disappearing.
PDF / E: A format that is used mainly for those engineering documents where geometry, manufacturing, construction flows are handled, since it allows a very precise means for printing this type of documents.
PDF / VT: It helps improve what is the printing of modern documents in terms of text and image processing. This format allows you to create customized pages, which gives you the possibility to customize a document for each of the recipients.
PDF / UA: It allows reading to people with disabilities and which usually use support technologies.
PDFx-1: Used for when handling grayscale paper, direct inks and CMYK.
PDFx-3: It is used for hybrid formats, that is, for documents that can be viewed digitally or online.
PDFx-4: Allows hybrid formats and gray scales, as well as transparency and information layers.

How to open and read .PDF files on smartphones or computers?

Perhaps one of the biggest inconveniences that users may encounter when editing PDF files is when they can open or read them either on the computer or mobile phone , taking into account that the system must have a program or PDF reader in order to work with this type of document. In this way, here we explain how you can do this either from a Windows or Mac , mobile device, among others.

To do this, just follow each of the methods we will teach you below:

On Windows PC

If you are using a Windows computer you will need to perform the following steps so that you can start opening those PDF documents in a very simple and fast way.

To start this process you need to install the “Adobe Reader ” program on your computer, a free program and which will allow you to open PDF files without any problem.
Once you have installed the “Adobe Reader” software you will automatically be checked a box to add “McAfee” to your team, you must uncheck the box in case you don’t want to install this program.

Having the program installed on your computer you must search for the .PDF file in your documents or desktop and double click on it. Usually, the program opens automatically and shows you your document so you can read and view it.

Otherwise, you will see a new window where you will be asked for a password . This occurs if the creator has protected the file with a password. In this case it will be necessary to know this key to access the file or unlock the PDF .

On Mac computers

In the case of Mac computers , opening this type of file is a simple and quick task, which you can do through a few simple steps that we will explain below:

The first thing will be to double click on the PDF OS X that comes in “ Preview ”. This tool gives you the possibility to open a large number of files in different formats, including the PDF. Note that the preview will not allow you to edit the files.

In case you don’t want to continue using the OS preview program to open the .PDF files , but want to try new software, you can start changing the settings so that these documents begin to open with the new program that you have installed on your computer.
To be able to modify this you must simply select the PDF file in Finder without open it . Then click on the “File” menu and select “Get information”, there you must expand the “Open with” section, now select the program you wish to use and finally click on “Change all”.

Note that as in the case of Windows, the file can be opened automatically and show you the content stored in it. But, you can also ask for a password in case the document is found. In this case you should look for that password or as a last option use a program to decrypt the password .

On Android mobile phones

It is very common to have our synchronized emails on our mobile device, therefore, we can constantly view the files you send us from the Smartphone . However, as we do when we have a PDF document and we want to open it in the terminal, but we don’t have a software for it.

So, here we show you how you can do this:

In the event that your mobile device does not have an integrated tool to read these types of files, there are a lot of free applications that we can get from Google Play to be able to accomplish this. The most recommended for this are: “Google Drive”, “Google PDF Viewer”, “Adobe Acrobat Reader” and “Quickoffice”.

Now you must find the PDF document that you want to open, usually these are stored in the “Downloads” folder of your menu.

The following will be to open the application of “File Manager” or “My files”, in case you do not have it you can download it from Google Play.
Open the “ Downloads” folder where your PDF is stored .
Click on the PDF file to be able to open it, if you have already chosen a default application it will open automatically, otherwise, you will be asked to choose the application with which you want to open it.

On iPhone devices with iOS

iOS devices come with a PDF reader included in your system which will allow your users to open these documents in a very simple way without the need to require third-party applications .

However, here we explain step by step how to achieve this:

The first thing will be to click on the PDF document that you want to open. Note that iOS teams have a PDF reader that is attached to emails or is online.
Now touch the file Now open to access your menu. This way you can select another application to open these files if you wish.
If you want to see the document using the application from the email you must press in the “Share” option. If you want to see it from Safari you must select the option of “Open with”, there will appear a list with the available apps to be able to open the PDFs.
In this case select the application you want to use, and the document will automatically open so you can read and edit it if that is the case.

In Amazon Kindle

Another way of being able to view these types of documents is by transferring to Amazon Kindle, for this there are different ways of doing them and which we present below:

The first way that you can do this is by connecting your Kindle to your computer and adding the file to your Kindle’s storage.

The second way with which we can do this is about transferring the PDF file wirelessly via Kindle transfer email .

Once you have managed to transfer this document to your Kindle, you can open it from the library . In the case of Kindle there are not many ways to interact with your PDF file since it does not have the added features of other apps.

Online without using programs

Another way to open these PDF files is online through the web browsers . Note that, when you want to open these documents in Windows or Mac, you will be asked to install a program in order to start the files. However, in this case you don’t have to worry about using some kind of software, since the same browser will show the document in a tab.

If you want to open all your PDF files with a special browser, either Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge or Mozilla Firefox, you will simply have to activate some options through the settings to choose the default tool for this type of format.

Search for a PDF file on your computer and right click on it. There you will have to select the “Open with” option.
Now a new drop-down menu will appear where you must select the option “Choose another application”.
There you must choose the browser you want to open your PDF documents by default. The one you choose will appear in the icon of your file as it appears in the image. In this case “Microsoft Edge” has been selected.

Keep in mind that if you don’t see the application you want to use, simply click on “More applications”.

In case you want to use the Chrome browser, and it does not appear you must slide the window down until you select “Search for another application on your computer”.

Now you must go to the path of your computer where the browser you want to use is installed, in this case it is Chrome , which should appear as follows in your team: C: Program Files (x86) Google Chrome Application and click “Open.”

Finally, you must check the box of “Always use this application to open the .pdf files” keep in mind that this is essential so that the browser fits you by default. This way, every time you double-click your document, it will open automatically with your browser.

As we mentioned earlier, there are many programs available in the market to be able to open image files , data etc in your computer or device mobile , this is why we present here a small list of the best programs you can use to carry out this type of procedure.

Google Drive

Many users are still unaware that Google Drive is an application with which you can open these types of documents with PDF extensions . However, you should keep in mind that it is only available for Android mobile devices and is currently one of the most recommended programs to carry out this type of process. Therefore, if you are constantly working with your mobile or Tablet you can start using this free app to start opening and viewing your PDF files in an easy and fast way.

Nitro PDF Reader

This program has become one of the most recommended for all users when they want to open PDF from a Windows computer. You can also download it from free of charge and has a large number of available functions that will allow you to carry out editions in each of your files.

Note that there is also a version of Nitro PDF payment, but, the main difference between the two is that the free version does not allow you to search for words within the text in documents that have been previously scanned, and clearly have fewer features than the paid version.

Foxit Reader

A specialized software to be able to send back those signed PDF documents . Foxit Reader has a large number of editing options that will allow you to make modifications to almost the entire document. However, this program usually consumes enough resources from your computer.