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Adobe announces Acrobat XI with tablet-friendly touchability, cloud services

Steve Dent
Reporter
Updated ·4 min read

Adobe has just updated its Acrobat lineup, including Pro, Standard and Reader to version 11 -- and thrown in two new programs, FormsCentral and EchoSign, to boot. The latter two are cloud-enabled services which permit "web contracting, forms creation, data collection and analysis" according to Adobe, which didn't yet specify exactly how that works. The company has also added improved tablet capability, and portable versions of Adobe Reader will now let you sign and save forms, as well as annotate and add comments. You'll also be able to modify paragraphs, images and objects by dragging them around; save PDFs as PowerPoint, Word or Excel files; and add extra security measures to documents. The upgrades will ship within 30 days and cost $449 and $299 for the Pro and Standard versions, respectively -- so if you've no time for frivolity on that new slate, check the PR for more info.

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Adobe Unveils Next Generation Acrobat XI with New Cloud Services

Powerful New PDF Solution Addresses Productivity Gap Across Devices and Platforms

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq:ADBE) today unveiled Adobe® Acrobat® XI software with cloud services, a powerful new solution that rises to today's complex document challenges. The industry standard for PDF software will now feature complete PDF editing and export to Microsoft PowerPoint; touch-friendly capabilities on tablets; and newly integrated cloud services, including sophisticated Web contracting with Adobe EchoSign® and forms creation, data collection and analysis with Adobe FormsCentral. Acrobat XI additionally supports IT departments with seamless Microsoft Office and SharePoint integration, easy deployment, applications virtualization and robust application security to help provide a low cost of ownership and sound return on investment.

"They need a solution that enables them to collaborate with others inside and outside the firewall while at the same time meeting IT and organizational requirements for streamlined management, application security, and secure delivery of information – all with a high ROI."

Products included in this release are: Acrobat XI Pro, Acrobat XI Standard, Adobe Reader® XI and newly integrated document services, Adobe FormsCentral and Adobe EchoSign.

"The compounding complexity of work has never been more pressing. As the number of mobile devices and the use of cloud services surge, information workers must be empowered to work more effectively with documents anywhere on any device," said Melissa Webster, program vice president, IDC. "They need a solution that enables them to collaborate with others inside and outside the firewall while at the same time meeting IT and organizational requirements for streamlined management, application security, and secure delivery of information – all with a high ROI."

The mounting productivity inefficiencies and cost of document-based challenges are highlighted in a recent global IDC white paper. A typical company with 1,000 employees has a productivity cost of US$15.9 million annually, the white paper calls out, and addressing these inefficiencies would be tantamount to hiring an additional 213 people.

With Adobe Acrobat XI, new and improved features and functionality for business professionals now include:

Edit PDF files, modify paragraphs, images, and objects by simply clicking and dragging using the new, intuitive Edit Text and Images tool. Arrange and visually merge select content and multiple documents into one organized PDF file, while retaining source file integrity.
Expedite document and Web contract approvals from weeks to hours with electronic signatures using the integrated Adobe EchoSign electronic signature service. Simplify forms creation, distribution and results analysis using the included Adobe FormsCentral desktop app.


Enhanced mobile capabilities. Work with PDF files across tablets and smartphones in touch-friendly Adobe Reader to annotate and add comments, as well as fill in, sign and save forms.
Save PDF documents as PowerPoint, Word or Excel files or reuse parts of or entire PDF files as Microsoft Office documents and Web pages without retyping or need to reformat.
Improved protection of all PDF files created from Microsoft PowerPoint, Word, and Excel to help prevent copying, editing, or printing without permission.

The new and improved IT features and functionality now enable IT professionals to:

- Standardize on an easy to use, full-featured, consistent, trusted PDF Reader now with full support for iPads and Android tablets. Additionally, deliver Acrobat XI and Reader XI as a centrally managed, touch-friendly, virtual application with new support for Microsoft App-V via Citrix XenApp.
- Integrate Adobe Acrobat XI more seamlessly with Microsoft Office and Microsoft SharePoint, enabling users to do more with PDF in an Office or SharePoint environment.
Streamline deployment and maintenance with free Adobe tools to aid configuration and installation, as well as enhanced support for Microsoft SCCM/SCUP and Apple Remote Desktop.
- Help mitigate risk and protect systems and data with industry-leading security technology, in addition to the Adobe PDF Whitelist Framework, allowing selective enablement of JavaScript for both Windows and Mac OS. Easily deliver multi-step PDF file preparation and security measures using the Action Wizard to help ensure organizational consistency.