PDF collaboration: How to collaborate on PDF documents.
Discover PDF collaboration. Learn how to collaborate on PDF documents to save time with editing requests and enhance teamwork.
Whether you’re a working professional or a student, chances are you regularly work with PDFs. Doing that is easy enough when you’re completing tasks on your own — but when you need to work with others on a single file, you might face some obstacles.
Luckily, where there’s a problem, there’s a solution. With Adobe Acrobat, you can easily collaborate on any PDF file.
Why easy PDF collaboration matters.
PDFs are one of the most universally viewable and shareable document types you can use. From iPhones and Androids to PCs or Macs, they look the same on any device.
Unlike other documents, formatting will look the same on any device, so everyone is on the same page and able to view the same content. PDFs are easily searchable, so you can find relevant keywords to focus on certain content.
PDFs are also one of the most secure document types, as they are more difficult to alter and come with a variety of protection features. You can keep personal information and important documents only available to the right people.
How to collaborate on PDF documents.
There are multiple ways to collaborate on PDF documents. You’ll first need to define your PDF collaboration needs, and then you can choose a collaboration tool that covers those needs. Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Acrobat online services are great solutions you can use to collaborate with your teams on PDFs.
Define your PDF collaboration needs.
What tools does your team need to efficiently collaborate on a PDF? Will your PDF need minimal edits with just a comment here and there, or is your PDF getting a complete makeover? See what tools would best suit the needs of your upcoming project.
Choose a PDF collaboration tool that covers your needs.
Research and compare PDF platforms and look at the tools each one offers. If one checks off most if not all of the boxes for your document needs, you’ve found a good fit.
Managing PDF collaboration using Adobe Acrobat.
The first step is to share your PDF from Acrobat. Here’s how it works:
- Open your PDF in Acrobat on a PC or a Mac.
- Select the Share With Others button in the top toolbar.
- Add the email addresses of your recipients.
- Select Allow Comments and add a deadline, if necessary.
- Select Send.
From there, your PDF will be shared with everyone you specified. They can then review and comment on your file from any computer, even if they don’t have Acrobat.
Meanwhile, you can track any comments or changes by selecting Shared > Shared By You in the Acrobat Home screen.
How to handle PDF collaboration online.
You can also do PDF collaboration online with Acrobat online services.
Simply follow these steps to learn how to collaborate on PDF documents online:
- Navigate to the Edit PDF tool with any web browser.
- Upload your file.
- Add your comments, notes, or drawings.
When you’re finished, you can download your annotated PDF and share it through email or a file-sharing service.
What is collaborative PDF annotation?
Collaborative PDF annotation is when multiple people can annotate within the same document and share the annotations. The methods mentioned above highlight ways to collaborate separately at different times but on the same PDF document. Collaborative annotation means that multiple people can edit, comment on, mark up, or review the same file.
How do I secure the PDF after the PDF collaboration is finished?
Once you have finished collaborating on your PDF, you can secure it to ensure only the people you want to share it with have access. You can set a password or certificate to make it less generally available and maintain the integrity of your document.
You can use Acrobat to implement a password or certificate into your document. All you need to do is select Tools > Protect, then set your protection settings. You can also use the Protect PDF tool in Acrobat online services to secure your PDF.
More resources to work with your PDFs.
After learning about PDF collaboration, here are more resources on PDFs and collaboration to consider:
- Discover how to collaborate on documents.
- Learn how to transfer secure files.
- Discover how to share files between computers.
- Learn how to redline documents.
- Discover how to convert PDF to QR code.
- Learn about team collaboration tools.
Find out about other ways to work with PDFs online. Discover what more you can do with Acrobat to convert, edit, and share PDFs.
