Computer Lab and Instructional Services Page 1 of 5
A Quick How-To for PDFs:
How to View, Save, and Edit
* This was done through a Windows 10 PC. Your screen, windows, and buttons might look different
** If you do not have Adobe Reader or Acrobat, you can download them here. Sign in with your student credentials
⮚ https://acrobat.adobe.com/us/en/acrobat/pdf-reader.html
HOW TO VIEW
PDFs can be viewed through Adobe Reader, Adobe Acrobat, and through a browser, such as
Google Chrome, Firefox, Safari, etc.
⮚ Reader – Free to download; has features such as commenting, signing, printing, and
signing (i.e. filling out or signing something like a form)
⮚ Acrobat – Requires account sign-in as it is the premium version of Reader; has additional
features, such as editing and exporting
When viewing a PDF, it will open in your preferred
browser or automatically in the Adobe version you have.
If the PDF does not open in your desired application, there
are a couple of ways to change the default application for
the future:
1. Right-click on the PDF file
2. Hover your mouse pointer over Open with
3. Select Choose another app at the bottom of the list
4. Choose your desired application
5. Make sure to checkmark Always use this app to
open .pdf files. This can be changed at any time
Another way:
1. Right-click on the PDF file
2. Select Properties
3. Go to Opens with and select the Change…
button, and you will be prompted with the same
How do you want to open this file? Window
4. Choose your desired application
A Quick How-To for PDFs: How to View, Save, and Edit
Computer Lab and Instructional Services Page 2 of 5
PDFs can also be opened in Word, but be aware that PDF format does not translate very well within
other applications, such as Word or Google Docs. To view a PDF in Word, you can export it
1
, or open
the PDF through Word by following the above steps (steps 1 and 2). It can take up to a few minutes
for the file to open. Please also be aware that sometimes the files will appear as they did in their original
form, however, it is possible for the formatting to be off or look nothing like the original file.
1
Exporting can only be done in Adobe Acrobat. Please read the How to Edit section to see how
A Quick How-To for PDFs: How to View, Save, and Edit
Computer Lab and Instructional Services Page 3 of 5
HOW TO SAVE
PDFs themselves can be saved within the application, and is recommended you do so,
especially if it is a fillable form. A PDF that is opened through a link will either open through a
browser or download automatically. Please note that PDFs that open in a browser, such as a
form through a government or company website, will not save any changes you make to it, as it
is an original document owned by the creator. However, a downloaded copy allows changes to
be saved as it is not the original document.
To save a copy, click on the Download button at the top (the
downward pointing arrow), or click the Print icon and select
Save as PDF under Destination. Check the Downloads folder
first if you are not prompted to save somewhere specifically.
Like with any other application, always save the file in a place that is accessible, and save whenever
any changes are made. PDFs can be especially finicky and may not save every change that is made.
A Quick How-To for PDFs: How to View, Save, and Edit
Computer Lab and Instructional Services Page 4 of 5
To save a Word document as a PDF:
1. Go to File, then select Save As and select your preferred save destination. There will be
a dropdown list of file formats to choose from, as seen below.
o Save as Adobe PDF is also an option in newer versions of Word
2. The default file type in Word is Word Document (.docx). Look for PDF. Once the document is
saved, the PDF copy of the file will open. This will not overwrite the original file as it is a different kind
of file format.
You can also save Google Drive files such as Google
Docs, Slides, and Sheets, etc., as PDF files. To do so, all
you have to do is:
1. Go to File in the top left of the document
2. Hover your mouse over Download to see the
download options
3. Choose the PDF Document (.pdf) option
A Quick How-To for PDFs: How to View, Save, and Edit
Computer Lab and Instructional Services Page 5 of 5
HOW TO EDIT
The editing capability is available only in Adobe Acrobat. This includes adding text, headers and
footers, images, implementing links, attaching files, and more.
The editing capabilities are not the same as in Microsoft Word. Word allows for more editing and
formatting as it is a word processor, while PDFs are meant for easy viewing and file transference.
This is where Exporting comes in handy.
Exporting is not available in Adobe Reader,
while it is in Adobe Acrobat. There are
many online file converters that can help
convert your file to a PDF.
If you have Acrobat, all you have to do is
use the Export PDF tool and select the file
you want to transfer. The Word document
version may not look exactly like the original
PDF document.
