CyberBabble
Site-Seeing on the Internet

FTP, PDF, and Me

Duff MacDonald
Mirror contributing writer

   The Open Source movement is changing the orbits of what used to be the insular planets of personal computing: the tired old Windows vs. Macintosh Star Wars. The agent provocateur was Unix coming out of the geek closet instigated by Linux (www.linux.com) and made ready for prime time by Apple’s OS X (www.apple.com/macosx). 
   Jumping right into the Open Source jet stream, Apple’s new operating system’s “kernel” is based on the FreeBSD (Berkeley Standard Distribution) version of Unix (www.freebsd.org). 
   In the late 70’s, BSD was compiled and distributed in the D.I.Y. spirit of punk rock by many, including free thinker (and now Sun Chief Scientist) Bill Joy. Publicly, Microsoft’s still resisting and has claimed the Open Source movement (www.osdn.com) is un-American, although it’s rumored to be working on versions of Word and Office for Linux. 
   As these computing worlds collide, how it plays out back here on planet Earth is what my series of cross platform home networking columns have been trying to bridge. We last talked about making sure that your graphic files were able to make the trip across your home network from Mac to PC and back — and arrive looking none the worst for wear — by using graphic converters. But possibly the simplest solution of all is saving your files as PDFs, using Adobe’s Portable Document Format. 
   The beauty of PDFs are that they are truly, absolutely cross-platform. No matter what application a file was created in, no matter what fonts were used, and no matter how complex your layout, when viewed or printed using Adobe’s free Acrobat Reader, your original creative intent is retained. Download the recently updated version 5.0 Reader and make sure to check the box that includes searching and accessibility support as it is definitely worth the additional download time (www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/
readstep2.html). 
   The only criticism I have (and it’s hard to knock free software) is that Adobe changed the way its download and installers work with the Macintosh. Previously, when you downloaded Acrobat Reader and it was on your hard drive and decompressed, that was the full installation. You could install the program and keep the installer as a “safety” or backup copy and use it to install Reader on other Macs. Now it’s a two-part download and installation scheme — the same way Apple now downloads QuickTime to Mac and Windows computers which I also loathe (www.apple.com/quicktime/download). Apple’s updated QuickTime to version 5.0.2 recently, too. 
   First you have to download the “little” installer which installs itself and then launches another installer where you make your installation choices. This second “big” installer then downloads your selections, installs itself and poof! — it disappears. Sure, Adobe (or Apple) just gave you free software, but forget about a backup copy and you’ll have to suffer through the downloading process for each computer on your home network. 
   Thankfully, the Windows download of Acrobat Reader is done via the old school method, and if you’re not scared of venturing off of the World Wide Web, I’ll tell you how to find the full Mac installation program for the new 5.0 Reader. Don’t worry you don’t have to change your computer or browser’s settings to venture off the beaten path. Regardless of the popularity of the Web, it is just one part of what’s out there on the entire Internet. 
   Get ready. You’re going to enter into the world of FTP or File Transfer Protocol. It uses the same language of TCP/IP that gets us out into the Net, but it allows us to directly connect with another computer. This FTP connection lets us literally go through the files that a particular computer or “Network Server” have decided to allow the public to have access to. If you’re an experienced Windows user and understand how you navigate your own hard drive using directory paths, it is exactly the same concept of hierarchical nesting folders or files. 
   In the “Address” or “Location” bar of your browser, where you normally type something like (http://www.smmirror.com), you’ll type instead (ftp://ftp.adobe.com/pub) which will get you into the “pub” or public file area. Files and Folders will appear as highlighted links just as on the Web, but remember if a file or link ends in “.bin,” “.zip,” or “.exe,” clicking on it will download it, so make sure not only you want it, but that it’s the right version for the right platform. Often, there will be “.txt” files and these are the instructions or “ReadMe’s” for a particular file. 
   If this is just too scary, like the name Adobe gives to the full Reader 5.0 installer for the Mac, “Monolithic,” here’s the entire address or “URL” to Adobe’s FTP site and the file (ftp://ftp.adobe.com/pub/adobe/acrobatreader/
mac/5.x/monolithic/rs500enu.bin). Just clicking should start the download. 
   Email CyberBabble: duffmacdonald@yahoo.com.