Screw Drivers and PDF Files

[Tony Duell]

> > There is a third alternative, that being to copy the paper documents
> > directly onto paper, as a traditional photocopier does, and distribute
> > the copies.
> 
> How do you share photocopied paper over the internet?

You don't. You use this wonderful invention called snail-mail, which for 
me is certainly cheaper and probably quicker than downloading a pdf file.

> > And here we are at the crux of the matter: it appears you inhabit an
> > alternative universe in which all the other methods of keeping page
> > scans packaged have been forgotten.  (What other methods?  To name just
> > three, (1) put the files in the same directory; (2) a zip file; (3) a
> > tar file, optionally compressed.)
> >
> > Thank you.  That cleared up my puzzlement effectively.
> 
> There are only a very few methods that are currently accepted as packaged
> scanned documents.  Only one method is considered universal, PDF's.

In your opinion. Actually, it doesn't matter if a format is considered to 
be universal, only that both sender and receiver agree on it. 

> 
> By packing the image files in zip files much of the organization can be
> lost, PDF's organize the images and allow for "universal" support.  Once the
> PDF package is created there is no question of order, size, viewer

You seem to think this is a good thing. I don't. Many times I've 
rearranged the sections of a paper document, added extra pages (with my 
own notes), and the like. I don't see why not being able to do this to a 
pdf file is a Good Thing.

> compatibility, text search where applicable, etc.

Anyway, once a pdf file is printed out, much of this is lost. And 
printing is about all you can do with a file of scanned images.

-tony