The Easy Button: Digitized Documents and PDF

Portable Document Format or PDF is a widely accepted file format for exchanging, displaying, and printing documents. Most of the collections of digital documents that we have purchased in recent years feature a PDF function to permit researchers to print or save items. In addition, I have found that it is often faster to save and work with documents as PDFs, rather than to use them online. This is especially true when navigating large files, accessing databases of such documents from home, or using a wireless internet connection. So, the next time you are using Early English Books, America’s Historical Newspapers, or similar products, and response time seems a bit slow, hit the PDF button and see if you can’t make your work go a little faster.