Why should not you display the site in PDF?

A PDF format that can be reproduced in its original state when displaying paper materials on the web is convenient, but it is prone to be avoided from users browsing materials on the Web. The administrator of the administrative service information site explains "Why should web page authors not display in PDF format?"

Why GOV.UK content should be published in HTML and not PDF - Government Digital Service
https://gds.blog.gov.uk/2018/07/16/why-gov-uk-content-should-be-published-in-html-and-not-pdf/

Neil Williams' representative of the British administrative service information site " GOV.UK " thinks that page display in PDF format on the web is "undesirable", GOV.UK eliminates information display in PDF form as much as possible It is said that it is.

Williams thinks, the bad thing about PDF is as follows.

· 1: Do not resize
Websites such as GOV.UK are designed to flexibly change content and page elements depending on the user's terminal and browser type. However, there is no change depending on the display environment in the PDF format. That's why the advantages of PDF that can display as it is a disadvantage. It is inappropriate to have a PDF layout that is small in font size and requires zoom in, zoom out, and scroll in both vertical and horizontal directions when displaying on a mobile terminal such as a smartphone.

· 2: The purpose is different in the first place Williams pointed out that the PDF of paper-based information display form is supposed to be browsed offline in the first place. PDF assuming offline does not conform to online web context, and it is said that displaying PDF on the website may lead to a decline in user experience.

by Kate Ter Haar

· 3: It is difficult to reuse
In the case of PDF format, the user (viewer) is hard to do the act of "copying and pasting text and images". This is because the PDF format consists of multiple columns, and if you are using incompatible fonts you can have unexpected problems.

Furthermore, from the point of view of the publisher, there are also drawbacks that various tools developed to extend the web contents, such as new content APIs and content evaluation tools, can not be used in PDF format. There are difficulties in PDF in terms of reuse.

· 4: lack of consideration for some users <br> Many browsers have PDF viewer function, and many terminals incorporate PDF viewer application, which can be downloaded for free. But for some users Williams says that downloading a free download application itself should not overlook the fact that it is difficult.

Also, some users with visual problems have to change the size and color of the text to make it easier to read the web content. In PDF format which is difficult to customize like this, it will restrict access by some users.

According to Williams, "It is the responsibility of the publisher to make the information accessible to the user". It seems to be said that Williams' unique idea is to provide information services assuming that everyone, administrative information, is accessed.

· 5: Withdraw from web page
Depending on the settings of the terminal and the browser, depending on the settings of the terminal and the browser, when trying to display the page in PDF format, various actions such as opening a new window, opening a new tab, starting PDF viewer, downloading the file automatically happen. However, Williams points out, "Any of these actions will deprive the context of the original web page." By displaying the PDF, the user experience is reduced in that it is difficult to return to the original page.

· 6: Difficulty in updating
Compared to HTML, PDF has the disadvantage that it is technically difficult to update information after publication. The fact that it can not be updated makes it difficult to replace the link or to modify the information after the incident, and if the document is published in multiple formats, it is a problem because the information will be inconsistent. Also, in the case of PDF that is downloaded and used offline often, it is difficult to deliver the latest information to users.

· 7: I can not pursue · For the convenience of the publisher side, not the user side, PDF format is convenient because it is not possible to get information on how users are using PDF from Analytics It is bad. Even if we could get data on how many times the PDF file was downloaded, we do not know the number of viewing offline. Also, Williams says it is difficult to identify page problems and find ways to improve, as it is not possible to get data on how the user interacted with the PDF, such as what link they are following .

by Aaron Parecki

As mentioned above, Williams says that it is a PDF format unsuitable for use on the Web assuming offline, but why the publisher uses it is "to create it quickly and easily". It takes time to rework the contents for HTML, but in the case of PDF, there are merits that it can easily create from popular software. Easy PDF is particularly handy when incorporating complex diagrams such as tables and graphs.

However, it is said that PDF which is easy to create itself is difficult to change / modify layout and design. For this reason, Mr. Williams thinks that it is disadvantageous in terms of branding by unifying the site design and disadvantages not only for users but also for publishers.

The information released by the government is still based on paper media, and PDF that assumes a paper medium to provide administrative information has awareness that it is "reliable standard" compared to HTML. Nonetheless, GOV.CUK, which thinks HTML is superior to PDF in terms of accessibility as a website, is planning to reduce the use of PDF as much as possible while leaving the road of being able to download in PDF format when necessary That's right.