| The
PDF world has many heroes, most unsung. While by no means definitive, we've attempted
to list those organizations and individuals who make a substantial contribution
to this industry.
A
listing is not considered an endorsement, but depending on your needs, any of
these organizations are more than worthy of serious consideration. If you know
of an organization or person whom you believe is a strong candidate for this list,
please email Duff Johnson
to explain why they should be added. Organizations
are listed under the following headings: Software
Companies and ResellersOut
of Russia, ABBYY is a world leader in development of document recognition and
data capture technologies. Their FineReader OCR software is among the very best
desktop OCR packages available. ABBYY also provides excellent form-recognition
tool and document recognition SDKs. www.abbyy.com
activePDF
is a leading provider of PDF converter, PDF creator, and PDF manipulation software
and development tools. www.activepdf.com The
originators and core developers of the PDF format, Adobe Systems is the world's
leading provider of software solutions to create, manage and deliver high-impact,
reliable digital content. Adobe's products for PDF include Adobe Reader, Acrobat
and LiveCycle, www.adobe.com Apago
provides software solutions for the manipulation of PDF, PostScript, and common
graphics formats. Their products range from desktop utilities to server applications
and custom workflow systems for large enterprise applications. www.apagoinc.com Appligent
is a leading provider of server-based software components for the on-demand creation,
customization, manipulation and delivery of dynamically generated electronic documents
in PDF format. www.appligent.com ARTS
PDF has been developing software and custom solutions focusing on PDF since 1997.
Apart from their Acrobat plugins, ARTS PDF now also sells Nitro PDF, a 3rd party
challenge to Adobe's Acrobat. www.artspdf.com
For
years, callas software has focused on PDF analysis and
manipulation. The creators of Preflight in Acrobat Professional,
callas software also offers numerous plugins directly
(largely) at the prepress world. www.callassoftware.com
Citation
Software Inc. provides services and products related to electronic-publishing
technology, particularly PDF-based workflow systems, on-demand and variable-data
publishing technologies. www.CitationSoftware.com Cvision
focuses on enabling faster access to high-resolution, multipurpose digital images
and multimedia content with compression and image-processing software. www.cvisiontech.com FormRouter
offers solutions for routing and data collection of electronic forms, including
PDF forms. They are an Application Service Provider (ASP) facilitating between
individuals filling in forms and those wanting to process the captured data. www.formrouter.com
Nuance is a leading provider of imaging and OCR solutions, including OmniPage,
PaperPort and PDF Converter. www.nuance.com PDF
Store is an online storefront with the most extensive range of PDF software available
in one place. www.pdfstore.com
Texthelp
develops software products for individuals and organizations
to use in overcoming accessibility difficulties such
as dyslexia or simply as language learning aids. www.texthelp.com
Consultants
Joe
knows a lot about a lot of things that have to do with
technical and accessibility aspects of content. You
can support Joe's work on The
Open and Closed Project through his micropatronage
program.
Karen
McCall provides customized on-site workshops on universal
instructional design and creating more accessible and
usable PDF documents. www.karlencommunications.com
Prodok
provides consultation, development and training services to customers wishing
to achieve intelligent low-paper/electronic workflow solutions. Prodok principal
Max Wyss is a leading expert in "Smart PDF" - enhanced PDF solutions
utilizing client-side and server-side programming. Max is a well known figure
in the Acrobat/PDF community as a guru of PDF scripting - and of course for his
famous Swiss wit. Besides consulting, Max speaks frequently at conferences and
highly regarded intensive workshops in Switzerland, Germany and the United States.
www.prodok.com
Led
by PDF master Thom Parker, Windjack Solutions offers
a line of software products intended to assist PDF document
designers and developers get the most out of PDF. www.windjack.com
Specializing
in process analysis, and strategic development of firms in the fields of electronic
publishing, design, prepress, and printing. www.zwang.com Government,
Education, Non-Profit & Standards
AIIM's
PDF/Universal Accessibility Committee is tasked with
creating an ISO-candidate specification for accessible
PDF files. www.aiim.org
A
unit of the California Community Colleges, the ATPC is the first publicly funded,
system-wide resource dedicated to serving the alternate media needs of the largest
post-secondary educational system in the world. There are 109 community colleges
in California and each of them has equal access to the media services provided
by the ATPC. www.atpcnet.net The
Information Technology Technical Assistance and Training Center, or ITTATC, strives
to increase the availability of accessible technology in the United States. In
particular, ITTATC focuses on improving the accessibility and usability of information
and telecommunication technology, such as computers, websites, and telephones,
and on office technology, such as copiers and fax machines. www.ittatc.org A
state of the art training and support facility for community college faculty and
staff wishing to acquire or improve teaching skills, methodologies, and pedagogy
in Assistive Computer Technology, Alternate Media and Web Accessibility. The HTCTU
supports High Tech Center programs at one-hundred and fourteen community colleges
and satellite centers. www.htctu.fhda.edu The
NIMAS guides the production and electronic distribution of digital versions of
textbooks and other instructional materials so they can be more easily converted
to accessible formats, including braille and text-to-speech. nimas.cast.org Section
508 requires that Federal agencies' electronic and information technology is accessible
to people with disabilities. The Center for Information Technology Accommodation
(CITA), in the GSA's Office of Governmentwide Policy, has been charged with the
task of educating Federal employees and building the infrastructure necessary
to support Section 508 implementation. Using this web site, Federal employees
and the public can access resources for understanding and implementing the requirements
of Section 508. www.section508.gov The
WAI develops: - Guidelines
widely regarded as the international standard for Web accessibility
- Support
materials to help understand and implement Web accessibility
- Resources,
through international collaboration
www.w3.org/WAI Media Accessible
Content is devoted entirely to accessibility issues.
The publication delivers how-to articles, skill building exercises, product profiles
and accessibility community news to the professionals who create and maintain
accessible content. www.accessiblecontent.com
The Acrobat User Community is an Adobe Systems marketing
program intended to provide professional users of Adobe's
Acrobat and PDF technology with access to community
resources for information, questions and assistance.
A variety of PDF industry notables (including DSI CEO
Duff Johnson) are bloggers on the Community website.
www.acrobatusers.com
Axistive Assistive Technology News Portal
offers free news, articles, product reviews and all
product and vendor information of assistive technology
devices. www.axistive.com
Electronic
Publishing covers technologies and methods from design
to print. ep.pennnet.com Published
by Allen Press, Inc., Journal Publishing is designed to meet the needs
of journal editors and society directors and staff. JP addresses such issues as
electronic publishing, journal production and distribution, editorial, marketing,
advertising, meeting management, and more. www.allenpress.com The
PDF Zone is a collection of online resources dedicated to all things PDF. Operated
by Ziff-Davis, the Zone includes a number of articles, tips and listservs. www.pdfzone.com Planet
PDF caters to all PDF users from professional Web or print publishers seeking
appropriate tools to beginners wondering what "PDF" stands for. Since
1998, Planet PDF has offered a comprehensive, popular Web site exclusively focused
on PDF users and uses. Planet PDF is a division of BinaryThing, which also owns
ARTS PDF and PDF
Store. www.planetpdf.com | 
