Adobe LiveCycle Reader Extensions

Adobe LiveCycle Reader Extensions Server (ARES) is not a PDF creation tool. Rather, the product is used to add more functionality when working with PDFs in Adobe Reader. Adobe LiveCycle Reader Extensions is not the kind of product you as an end user of Adobe Reader would purchase. The cost is prohibitive for single users. However, for enterprises, government offices, educational institutions, and large businesses, the features the server software provides are very cost-effective.

The Adobe LiveCycle Reader Extensions allows large enterprises and other such entities to create and share dynamic PDF documents among co-workers, constituents, and clients. LiveCycle Reader Extensions enables organizations to extend PDFs on a document-by-document basis for Reader users to comment on and annotate files, fill-in and save forms, and add digital signatures to forms. Prices for the Adobe LiveCycle Reader Extensions Server start in the tens of thousands of dollars, so end users wouldn't purchase the software. But it does make sense for large companies with many workers or clients who need to add more functionality to the Reader program. The organization will find it worth the cost in cases where the server software costs less than a site license for the commercial Acrobat products or when it's not practical to ask clients and constituents to purchase one of the commercial products. As an Adobe Reader user, your interest will be in receiving documents enabled with usage rights by the LiveCycle server.

One of the first users of LiveCycle Reader Extensions Server was the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS). As of October 25, 2004, all IRS tax forms were enabled with Adobe LiveCycle Reader Extensions so that any user of Adobe Reader can fill in a tax form and save the populated form on their computer.

If you work in an environment where PDFs need to be extended in your organization or with your clients, you may want to explore more information on Adobe LiveCycle Reader Extensions. Log on to Adobe's Web site at www.adobe.com/products/server/readerextensions to see how this product can save you money. To work with a file enabled with Adobe LiveCycle Reader Extensions, see Chapter 17, "Using Digital Signatures and Security."