PDF for image handling (was: Re: New images)

[Marco Pauck <pauck@xxxxxx>]

Symon wrote:
> 
>  >Why does the site require Adobe Acrobat? Why not simply use the browser to
>  >display the images? This is a problem for me, as I have never been able to
>  >integrate Acrobat with my browser. This means that I can't see your pictures.
> 
> Acrobat PDF documents (here the images) have several advantages over common
> graphics files, to name just a few :
> - security (printing/changing can be prohibited)

Very easy to circumvent: just make a screen copy and you got it.

> and fingerprinting
> (digital sigature can be added)

Signatures can also be used for other common image formats.

> - bookmark and general info (author/title/subject) can be inclueded

This kind of meta-data can also be incorporated in other
common image formats (e.g. JPEG/JFIF).

> - the initial viewing size can be set

Of course all image formats have an "initial viewing size"
- simply 100%.

> - images displayed on a web page can be rotated and zoomed.

Rotating an image that's part of a prepared presentation usually
makes very little sense. And zooming based on a single set of non-
scaleable data (and not on multiple optimized versions) implies
either excessive data (when zoomed out with <100%) or insufficient
resolution (when zoomed in with >100%).

I think you missed the point that PDF is primarily a *compound*
document format, enabling 'digital hardcopies' of newsletters,
books, etc. For this application domain, all the features you
mentioned play a very important role. I use PDF a lot for this,
even on my web site. But for single images, especially targeted
at web presentation, it is simply a totally inappropriate choice.

	Marco
--
Marco Pauck -- marco@xxxxxxxx -- http://www.pauck.de/marco/
For every complex problem, there is a solution that is simple,
neat, and wrong.  -- H. L. Mencken
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