Summary: Foxit Reader is fast, free alternative to Adobe Reader for 99% of PDF documents.
As you might expect, Adobe's free Acrobat PDF reader is the definitive tool for reading Adobe's own PDF format. However, it's certainly not the only tool, nor is it neccessarily the best.
One of the frequent complaints about Acrobat Reader is that it can be quite slow to load as it loads and processes modules that 99% of users never need to read a simple PDF file.
Now there is a choice. Foxit Reader offers users a very fast and free alternative to reading PDF files.
In addition to its speed, Foxit is also a much smaller download, at nearly 1/10th the size of the Adobe Acrobat reader.
There are a couple of small caveats...
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The Foxit company is, of course, a business. Offering Foxit Reader for free is an incentive for you to visit their site, become familiar with their products and hopefully purchase some of the other products they offer that are not free. The choice, of course, is yours, but I'm discussing specifically the free Foxit Reader which is a simple download that doesn't require any of your information.
Once installed, you need to check the updates because many of the updates are actually trial versions of some of Foxit's add-ons and are not free. Check the updates carefully before selecting which you want to install.
Since Adobe can be said to "own" the PDF format, occasionally there will be newer features or incompatibilities. The most recent version of Foxit Reader (2.3, at this writing), resolved all the incompatibilities that I've run into, but the potential still exists. Foxit seems to be relatively quick to track and update Foxit Reader to accommodate any issues.
But the bottom line is that Foxit Reader is a fine alternative to Adobe Reader for 99% of the PDF documents out there. It's nice to have a document snap right up on the display, rather than waiting while Adobe Reader cycles through its loading sequence.
Related:
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Ask Leo! - How do I download and read an ebook?
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Ask Leo! - What's a good portable PDF reader?
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Ask Leo! - How do I convert a Word document into a PDF file?
Article C3431 - June 30, 2008
Simlarly, you cannot print a mailing label using the Royal Mail label (UK) printing service with Foxit.
I have previously encountered problems printing things from Foxit reader but other than the aforementioned labels, these seem to have been resolved in the more recent versions.
Posted by: Eli Coten at July 1, 2008 11:48 AMI use a great piece of freeware called Adobe Reader Speedup from: http://software.bootblock.co.uk/?id=adobereaderspeedup
Posted by: Roger Turner at July 1, 2008 10:38 PMThis software safely removes all unnecessary Adobe components for much faster loading. These can be re-installed easily using the same program. Foxit crashed occasionally on my system.
I used Foxit in the past, but now switched to PDF-XCHANGE VIEWER:
Posted by: MG at July 1, 2008 11:27 PMhttp://www.docu-track.com/home/prod_user/PDF-XChange_Tools/pdfx_viewer
The typewriter mode is very useful, but could be easier to use.
For the folks who have occasional issues with Foxit, it would recommend the same approach I use with Internet Explorer and Firefox. I Keep both programs handy preferring Firefox and Foxit, but using the more mainstream products when needed for the odd website or PDF document. Aide from hard drive space, there is little to lose by having both programs.
Posted by: Mark at July 2, 2008 2:52 PM-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
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Actually for my wife's business we also use USPS and Foxit
Reader extensively. Works well for us. (The USPS site has
issues in general, but that's a different topic. :-)
Leo
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I'd also suggest PDF-Xchange Viewer because it includes annotation tools and typewriter mode that you'd have to pay for with Foxit: very handy for completing forms you'd otherwise have to print out and fill in by hand. It also provides a button that opens the same document in Adobe, Foxit or any other installed reader.
Posted by: Denis at July 3, 2008 12:52 AMLike Foxit you can pay to add more features, but the two products differ in the features provided for free.
Leo -- Thanks for great tip. -- I've been using Foxit for several days and it's great and way better than Adobe Reader! -- Al K
Posted by: Al Kubeluis at July 3, 2008 4:21 AM[edited] Guys, Foxit is not allowed to do even 10% what Adobe does! If you looking for an Adobe alternative find something more competitive! PDF pen pro is pretty god, http://pdffiller.com is a nice one too. It's not expensive either but you can really make your job done.
Posted by: kim at October 5, 2008 12:38 PMOH No don't start, I hate foxit reader. Adobe reader is so much more convenient. even though larger. The whole purpose of PDF files are that they can be viewed by everyine the same way. Now foxit reader does not do that. I tried it and I uninstalled it the next day.
Posted by: Ben Who at October 28, 2008 9:31 AMFOXIT not compatible with Renplace applications, like Accelerated Reader.....REALY WOULD LIKE TO SEE THIS WORK!!!!
Posted by: Steven Causey at February 17, 2009 9:54 AM