Viewing PDFs in a web browser

You can view PDFs in a supported web browser, or you can set your Reader Internet preferences to open linked or downloaded PDF files in a separate Reader window. If you open PDFs in Reader outside the browser, you cannot use Fast Web Viewing, form submittal in a browser, or search highlighting on the web.

Supported Windows web browsers include Internet Explorer 5.5 or later, Netscape Navigator 7.1 or later, and America Online 9.0 or later. On Mac OS, Safari version 1.2.3 or later is supported.

Because keyboard commands may be mapped to the web browser, some Reader shortcuts may not be available. Similarly, you may need to use the tools and commands in the Reader toolbar rather than the browser toolbar or menu bar. For example, to print a PDF document, use the Print button in the Reader toolbar rather than the Print command in the browser. (In Internet Explorer, you can choose File > Print, Edit > Copy, and Edit > Find on the Internet Explorer toolbar.)

Important: (Mac OS) If you have Adobe Reader installed on your system and subsequently install Acrobat, Safari continues to use Adobe Reader to open PDFs in your browser. To reconfigure Safari to use Acrobat, you must quit Safari and all versions of Acrobat or Adobe Reader, start Acrobat, and then start Safari while Acrobat is running.

Internet preferences

To open the Internet preferences, choose Edit > Preferences (Windows) or Acrobat > Preferences (Mac OS), and select Internet under Categories.

Display PDF In Browser: Displays any PDF opened from the web in the browser window. If this option is not selected, PDFs open in a separate Acrobat window. On Mac OS, if you have installed versions of Adobe Reader and Acrobat, you can select which application and which version to use.
Allow Fast Web View: Downloads PDFs for viewing on the web one page at a time. If this option is not selected, the entire PDF downloads before it is displayed. If you want the entire PDF to continue downloading in the background while you view the first page of requested information, also select Allow Speculative Downloading In The Background.
Allow Speculative Downloading In The Background: Allows a PDF to continue downloading from the web, even after the first requested page appears. Downloading in the background stops when any other task, such as paging through the document, is initiated in Acrobat.
Connection Speed: Choose a connection speed from the menu. This setting is also used by the multimedia plug in.
Internet Settings [or Network Settings]: Click to open the Internet or network connection dialog box or panel for your computer. For more information, consult your operating system Help, your Internet service provider, or your local network administrator.