Category: General

How to Save a Web Page as a PDF

In our last post, we showed how a web page could be saved as a PDF file. However, the method outlined in that post was ONLY available to Apple iPhone or iPad users using iOS 13 or later, so it significantly limited its usefulness, especially for desktop PC users or users of other phones or devices like Android or Chrome.

Well, good news! We have just introduced a new feature on our web site called HTML to PDF. If you’re navigating from the main win2pdf.com home page, it is located under FEATURES as shown below with the blue arrow.

HTML to PDF is a free web service and it allows you to enter in the web site address (URL) of any public web site and click Submit. Once submitted, the web page will automatically be converted to a PDF file directly from your browser. You do not need to download or install any software on your computer to create the PDF file.

For example, suppose you want to save an article about how to carve a Thanksgiving turkey. Find the article you want to save online, copy the web page address, and then paste it into the HTML to PDF web page.

After you click Submit, the web page will be converted to a PDF file and returned to your web browser. If you have Adobe Reader installed as your default PDF viewer, it will open automatically and you’ll see the PDF file on your screen, where you can save it, edit it, or do anything you want with it.

For security reasons, this feature currently only works with web pages that are public and do NOT require a user login (like email, online banking, etc.) If you need to convert a secure page, you can download and install Win2PDF and print the web page to the Win2PDF printer.

This is part of a new set of capabilities that we are developing for Win2PDF. If you are a company or a software developer interested in an HTML to PDF API (where the PDF is generated as a cloud-based service as opposed to being installed as a local software component), let us know and we can provide more details.

In the meantime, give it a try and let us know if you have any questions. It may be a useful tool to share with friends or families this Thanksgiving… and it’s free.

Win2PDF for the Enterprise: Integration

In our last post, we talked about how Win2PDF can be customized for the enterprise.  In this post, we’ll continue the theme of enterprise users but focus on how Win2PDF can be integrated with other applications or business processes.

img_488306First, all of the Win2PDF products make use of the standard Windows API for printers. This means other applications can print to Win2PDF automatically, without any user interaction.  It does require some level of technical proficiency in programming, but there are a variety of programming environments we have documentation for, including Visual Basic (VB), Visual C for Crystal Reports, .NET, and Microsoft Access.  For a broader perspective all all features, just visit the Developer Information section of the Win2PDF user guide.

This in and of itself is a powerful tool that allows enterprises to create PDF files with specific naming conventions, file locations, and output options automatically.

Other useful features for incorporating Win2PDF with enterprise processes are:

  • Post-action setting:  This is a registry setting that can be set to allow the PDF created by Win2PDF to be passed to another program.  This can be useful for doing a secondary step with the PDF file, like processing it into a document management, email, printing, or reporting application.
  • Command-Line interface:  This was something we recently added and dedicated a blog post to it earlier this year.  It supports simple command line access to Win2PDF for merging, compressing, extracting pages, encrypting, and a variety of other PDF functions.
  • Win2PDF Mail Helper:  This free utility provides a SMTP mail client that can be used to send PDF files via email without user interaction.

Basically, if you have the ability to modify the application you are using to generate PDF files, using the integration options described here will give you the most powerful and flexible options to link PDF files into your workflow processes.  If you do not have the ability to modify the application, then the customization options for the enterprise would be the best option.

Let us know if you have questions about these or any other integration issues.  Again, if you can think of a situation where your PDF files can be incorporated into an enterprise process, there’s a good chance we’ve already figured out a way to make it happen.

Win2PDF for the Enterprise: Customization

Generally, Win2PDF has two main types of users.  The first is the individual user who simply wants to use Win2PDF as a desktop printer to interactively convert a variety of documents to PDF files.  The second type of user is an enterprise user in a company or larger organization.  Often, these users need Win2PDF for a specific application, process, or to generate PDF files in a consistent way across their team or department.

gear-icon-svg-2 (2)Based on the support requests we receive, many of these enterprise users don’t realize the extent to which Win2PDF can be customized for their specific organization’s needs. “I didn’t know Win2PDF could do that?” is something we hear all too frequently.

Just consider a few examples that an administrator or manager of a larger group of users may wish to use:

  • Create a dedicated copy of the Win2PDF printer that prints and names PDF files automatically when used from a specific application, and save them in a specific network folder.
  • Have all PDF files automatically sent as e-mail attachments after they have been created.
  • For all PDF files generated, preset a Master Password that only the system administrator knows. [requires Win2PDF Pro]
  • Force certain default settings and disable certain interface fields that you don’t want users changing (i.e., “always save the file as a PDF/A file, in a specific location, and don’t allow the user to email or print that to a paper printer when it is being created”)

Many of these things can be enabled directly by the user or administrator with our free Admin Utility or free Mail Helper utility, or by using the Auto-name feature.  Other things may require some level of customization in the Win2PDF setup program (particularly for large deployments).

If you are a manager of a enterprise group of users, let us know if there are particular things you want to do.  In most cases, we’ve probably already had a similar request and can direct you to what options are available.

PDF: The World’s Most Important File Format

I still haven’t seen Avengers: Endgame, but that doesn’t mean I don’t like a good origin story.  This new article explains why the PDF’s superpower is that it’s The World’s Most Important File Format.

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As the article notes, the PDF format has a long history and it’s here to stay.  “In 50 years, these PDFs, even with their weaknesses, will help us document history with little of the ephemeral nature of the web. And unlike in paper form, those PDFs won’t suffer from frayed pages. The history of our generation will probably be in PDF form.”

What’s up with all of the revised privacy policies I’m getting these days?

Have you been getting a lot of email notices for updated privacy policies? Well, it’s not a coincidence. Many companies are updating or clarifying their online privacy policies to be compliant with the new European Union (EU) General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which will technically take effect on May 25, 2018.

What is the GDPR?

GDPR was designed to harmonize data privacy laws across Europe, protect EU citizens’ data privacy, and to regulate the way organizations approach data privacy. There are a total of 99 articles that the regulation covers and you can read more about the details of this regulation through the EU GDPR Portal.

In essence, these are a series of regulations that control what information a company can collect about an individual (who reside in the EU), what they can do and how they store that information, and penalties for those companies if they violate the regulations.

Who is affected by GDPR?

From a user perspective, the protections cover any resident of the EU. Although, many companies are voluntarily extending their changes and privacy policies to include all users for simplicity.

From a company perspective, it applies to any organization who collects data on EU residents.

What should you know about GDPR, encryption, and your PDF files?

There are many more thorough sources of information on this topic (just Google ‘GDPR’), but one thing that may concern our Win2PDF customers is that the regulation restricts sending personal information unsecured. Encryption isn’t explicitly mandated by the regulations, but it is suggested several times as being part of the the compliance solution. For example, as this article points out:

…of the 261 pages of GDPR, the word ‘Encryption‘ appears just 4 times;

“…implement measures to mitigate those risks, such as encryption.” (P51. (83))
“…appropriate safeguards, which may include encryption” (P121 (4.e))
“…including inter alias as appropriate: (a) the pseudonymisation and encryption of personal data.” (P160 (1a))
“…unintelligible to any person who is not authorised to access it, such as encryption” (P163 (3a))

Does the term ‘may’, ‘such as’ and ‘as appropriate’ indicate that Encryption is mandated by GDRP, as some are suggesting? I don’t believe it does.

Do these terms suggest that Encryption is an OPTION and a good idea? Then yes, it does.

If you are sending a customer’s personal information in a PDF file, you should seriously consider encrypting the PDF.

What can you do to being compliant with GDPR?

First, here is a 12-point PDF available that gives a broad 12-step overview to achieving compliance with the GDPR.

Second, you may wish to review your current processes involving customer data that may be included in PDF files that you generate.  How are they disseminated?  Is the data secured?  If you do not currently encrypt PDF files, now may be a good time to do so.

Our Win2PDF Pro software has strong encryption included, and it is available as an upgrade if you currently have standard edition licenses.

Celebrating 10 years as a BBB accredited business

Hooray!  Even though we’ve been in business over 18 years, we just received our official 10-year certification as an accredited business from the Better Business Bureau (BBB).  Our company — Dane Prairie Systems (the creator of the Win2PDF software) — has an A+ rating.  To be an accredited BBB business we have to abide by this code of business practices.

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There’s a lot of concern these days about who you are doing business with online, if they are trustworthy, and how they are treating you as a customer (with good reason).  One thing that contributes to our A+ rating is the fact that we do not bundle adware, spyware, or malware — you just get our Win2PDF software when you purchase from us.  Nor do we share or sell your email address or customer information with any other companies (unless you explictly opt-in, of course, for things like online reviews).  You can review our policy policy or view our rating with the Better Business Bureau.  And if you have any questions about how we do business, please let us know.

Thanks to our customers, we’ll continue to be your trusted software source for the next decade.

How to Add a Signature and Date to a PDF file

One of the questions we frequently get is:  Can I use Win2PDF to add a signature to a PDF file?

While Win2PDF doesn’t directly support this, many people don’t realize the free Adobe Reader software they already have installed already has this capability.  And it’s quite easy to use.

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For example, suppose you are using Win2PDF to create a sales quote for a new customer, and you want to have them sign, date, and return the quote as a PDF file so it can be archived.  In the “old days”, the customer would need to print the PDF file, sign the paper, and then scan it back in to the computer.  With Adobe Reader, this is not necessary.  Just open the PDF file, insert a digital signature and add text for date, initials, PO number, etc., and then save the PDF file to return it.  Here’s a short tutorial that shows how it can be done:

For additional information, you can visit Adobe’s support page on signing PDFs.

Happy signing…

Video tutorial – Save PDF invoices electronically & print to a paper printer at the same time

One of our customers recently asked us how they could streamline the process of printing out invoices to their normal paper printer, and saving an electronic PDF file at the same time without any user prompting.  The paper invoice would be mailed to their customer, and the PDF file would be date and time stamped and saved in a directory that would be backed up nightly.

It just takes a few steps to set up a copy of the Win2PDF printer that will do all of this. We’ve posted a short video tutorial that walks you through this process, and this and more video examples can be found at our Win2PDF YouTube channel:

You could use this same process to create your own Win2PDF printer with your customized ‘Print and Save’ settings for any type of document.


	


	





	

		
		
Print to PDF – A Win2PDF Tutorial
	


	
	
	

		
Recent posts have focused on some of the new features in our Win2PDF 10 update.  Now, we’ve created a tutorial that illustrates how you can use these new features to create a copy of the Win2PDF printer that is dedicated to a particular use.  In our example, we’ll save encrypted business receipts as PDF files to a specific folder without any user prompting.


This is one example — you can use the same basic principles to set up multiple versions of Win2PDF that are streamlined for specific uses.  It’s an easy way to quickly back up files to a specific folder with minimal user interaction.


Watch the following tutorial and then experiment on your own.




If you have any questions, let us know at our Win2PDF Technical Support page and we’ll help you out.

	


	





	

		
		
Win2PDF 10: Adding new copies of the Win2PDF printer
	


	
	
	

		
In Win2PDF 10, there is a new Add Win2PDF Printer option in the Win2PDF program group (which is accessible from the Windows Start menu or Start screen).  This feature can be very useful if you want to dedicate a version of Win2PDF that has specific settings for a specific application, a type of company document, or a particular group of users.


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For instance, consider if you were a Win2PDF Pro 10 user and you wanted to have special Win2PDF printer created that would: ALWAYS create a PDF file with a company watermark.  ALWAYS password protect a document.  Or ALWAYS save certain file types (e.g., invoices or weekly reports) to a specific folder location without any user prompting.  And you could do all of this while still having the main Win2PDF printer reserved for normal interactive printing.


With Win2PDF 10’s Add Win2PDF Printer new menu item, you can easily make as many of these special-use PDF printers as you’d like. Here’s a short video showing how to add a new copy of the Win2PDF printer.




In an upcoming blog post, we’ll describe how to combine this and other new Win2PDF 10 features to automate tasks and improve your workflow with PDF files.