Manfred Schubert, of Germany-based Schubert|it, said in an e-mail that one of the most prevalent features of the tool is "its improvement on the accuracy of standard sizing in single and facing pages view. It optionally displays the real page numbers (in addition to the page labels) which facilitates printing of page ranges when real page numbers need to be entered into the print dialog. And it improves stability."

In addition, Manfred noted, "PDF Browser Plugin is often used in Kiosk browsers. In such environments, it is important that saving documents can be disabled. Previous versions of PDF Browser Plugin disabled saving as well as printing (since the print dialog contains a Save As PDF... button). Version 2.2 optionally allows printing from within Kiosk browsers using a simplified print dialog that does not include a Save button."

Version 1.0 was released in 2003, and PDF Browser Plugin 2 is a rewrite that allows multiple views in the plug-in, which makes things like the tool bar, the table of contents view and splitting the document into two parts possible for users.

Schubert said most of the updated features are based on user requests. Part of the power of having a browser-based PDF tool, he said, is that PDF is a file format for paged documents but the Web is not paged with each HTML document consisting of only one page. Using real-world document examples like books, magazine articles and tax forms, Schubert highlighted the popularity of the PDF format because it is paged and gives users control over typography and layout.

However, without a browser plug-in, the documents must first be downloaded and viewed in a different application, which, Schubert says, "breaks the Web experience." Utilizing PDF Browser Plugin 2, those same PDF documents can be browsed inline as part of the Web. This makes it a more convenient tool for users Web browsing because it is not necessary to switch to an external viewer.

PDF Browser Plugin 2 also has a continuous viewing mode that eliminates the need for horizontal scrolling, which makes a PDF document present more like a normal Web page, he said. This works best for users who are reading a document without particular interest in its layout.

The tool enables users to view documents in single- and facing-page mode and has the option to view any document with an external viewer quick-open button. The plug-in also lets users save the document to disk as well.

A site license of PDF Browser Plugin 2 is available for $69 and is free for not-for-profit activities if used at home or at educational institutions.

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