ScanSoft, Inc. (Nasdaq: SSFT), the global provider of speech and imaging solutions, has expanded its family of PDF solutions and introduced new products that can address the growing demand for PDF solutions in companies and organizations of all sizes.
The company unveiled ScanSoft PDF Create!, a new product that allows users to create industry-standard PDF from any Microsoft Windows application, and released a new version of PDF Converter, the world's number one solution for turning PDF documents and forms into fully-formatted Microsoft Word documents. ScanSoft also introduced PDF Converter Professional 2.0, which combines both PDF Create! and PDF Converter in a single, affordable PDF solution.
PDF has been widely embraced by design and pre-press professionals, who value the format for its ability to enable digital workflows within print shops and publishing houses. The format has also become a standard for placing same-as-paper documents and forms on the Web, resulting in over 500 million downloads of Adobe Reader to date, according to Adobe Systems,Inc.
However the deployment of PDF creation capabilities within business environments has been slowed due to the high cost, complexity and limitations found within current solutions. The new releases from ScanSoft overcome these historical barriers by delivering the price,
Performance and features specifically designed for business users, enabling organizations to deploy PDF solutions to every business desktop.
"PDF has moved into the professional office, but through applications
that make trade-offs as they try to be all things to all people," said Harvey Spencer, principal, Harvey Spencer Associates. "This approach results in products that have lost their performance and usability edge, and worse, fail to address unique features needed by business professionals. ScanSoft is clearly addressing this gap, providing fast and affordable PDF creation combined with the ability to turn PDF back into Microsoft Word documents - an uncommon need in design shops but invaluable within office environments."
PDF Create! is significant because it delivers 'better PDF for business,' enabling PDF creation at up to five times faster than alternatives and pricing that starts at just 39.99 before volume discounts. PDF Create! removes the complexities associated with creating PDF, providing users with an easy-to-use application that has tight integration with Microsoft Office and Windows. While fast and affordable, the product delivers the rich set of features needed by business users, including compatibility with Adobe Acrobat and Reader, password and encryption, font embedding and more.
ScanSoft PDF Converter 2.0, developed through collaboration between ScanSoft and Microsoft, delivers significant enhancements and features for turning PDF into fully-formatted Microsoft Word documents. Already the world's number one-selling PDF-to-Word solution, PDF Converter has been extended to not only converter documents, but also can turn PDF forms into the Microsoft Word format. The product is also unique in delivering a built-in PDF viewer, which enables converting specific pages of a PDF, even if Adobe Reader is not installed on the system. Also priced at 39.99, PDF Converter provides business users with capabilities not available at all within other more expensive PDF applications.
"It is amazing how much time you can save by being able to accurately turn PDF into Microsoft Word," said Harold Nichols, Human Resources Administrator for Industrial Relations Eaton Aerospace Corporation, a leading aviation component supplier with 51,000 employees worldwide. "In the past I would get a PDF I needed to edit, and have to send a request for the original document. With PDF Converter Professional I don't waste time waiting for the original or resorting to re-keying the document. This product lets me work more efficiently and easily pays for itself the first time you use it."
ScanSoft's PDF solutions family includes:
PDF Converter Professional 2.0 - ScanSoft has delivered the first product and only product that combines PDF creation with PDF conversion. A bundle of PDF Create! and PDF Converter 2.0, PDF Converter Professional significantly improves productivity by providing business professionals with the ability to more seamlessly move between the two dominant electronic document formats - Microsoft Word and PDF. With PDF Converter Professional organizations now have access to an industry-leading PDF solution that has the price, performance and features that can put the power of PDF on every business desktop.
PDF Create! 2.0 - ScanSoft's new PDF Create! enables PDF creation from any Microsoft Windows application through the "print" option, and provides toolbar and mouse shortcuts within Microsoft Office and Windows Explorer. Also included is PDF Create! Assistant, an easy-to-use desktop application that enables the batch conversion of multiple files into PDF, as well as merging multiple file formats into a single PDF document. This is especially valuable for sharing specialised documents, such as drawing (Microsoft Visio), photo editing (JASC PaintShop Pro), layout (Microsoft Publisher), CAD (Autodesk AutoCAD), accounting (Intuit QuickBooks), and contact management (ACT!) applications.
PDF Converter 2.0 - With PDF Converter 2.0, ScanSoft has added or improved upon the features that matter most to make converting PDF-to-Word easier and more effective than ever before. PDF Converter Assistant enables the batch conversion of multiple files from PDF-to-Word - without needing to open Microsoft Word. In addition, ScanSoft has added logical form recognition (LFR) to PDF Converter, enabling users to turn PDF forms into Microsoft Word forms that can be edited or filled. Improved format retention ensures that even complex PDFs with a blend of text, graphics and bullets are formatted accurately, while added support for image-only PDFs and security encryption ensures that all types of PDF documents are quickly and easily converted.
"It isn't a coincidence that there are an estimated 400 million users of Microsoft Word and 500 million downloads of Adobe Reader," said John Shagoury, president, ScanSoft Productivity Applications Division. The equal distribution of Microsoft Word and PDF is simply a reflection of the fact that each format delivers features that make each uniquely suited for different parts of a business document lifecycle. ScanSoft's PDF solutions are significant because they enable more efficient document authoring, editing and distribution, no matter the format."
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