One of the most frequent upgrade questions we’re seeing out there is what’s new, what’s different, what’s changed between Adobe Acrobat X (Acrobat 10) and previous versions? Or more simply put, what are the major new features in Acrobat X (Pro or Standard), versus Acrobat 9, 8, or even 7? Adobe calls it “the most compelling release yet” and these kinds of answers can help decide about upgrading…
Acrobat X was only announced this week, but thus far the early reviews have been very positive… PC Magazine calls it “massively improved” and “faster and more powerful than ever,” with “finally a lucid, up-to-date interface” and “terrific corporate and automation features, including high-quality exports to Word and Excel documents.” Their review concludes that Acrobat X is “the most powerful, flexible, and best-designed PDF software ever written,” and “a giant step forward, and an essential upgrade for anyone who creates or manages PDFs.”
[ What’s the difference between Acrobat X Standard, Pro and Suite? ]
As to the specifics of what’s new, see our earlier release highlights overview, or a longer list (with details) at our product page here. For an itemized version-by-version feature comparison vs. previous releases, click to see either of the two full charts below… The top one is for Adobe Acrobat X Pro, and the bottom is for Acrobat X Standard:
[UPDATE (Oct. 2012) — Learn about the differences between the new Acrobat XI vs. earlier.]
See also the excellent FAQ, the video demos, or download a free trial of Acrobat X Pro!
Dear Sir,
I would like to know how to read an Acrobat X file with Acrobat 9?
Thank you
Sure liboum, a good question – and here is your answer.
Thanks for your comment and hope this helps!
We just installed Adobe X (10). The training company we use only offers courses on Adobe 9. Has much changed from 9 to 10? Would training on 9 still help staff to use and navigate through 10?
Hi Chris, thanks for your question. You can get a good overview from the comparison charts linked in the article above (click on the top image for Acrobat X Pro, the bottom of Acrobat X Standard).
One aspect that has changed a fair bit is the user interface – Adobe has substantially revamped it in an effort to simplify, reduce/consolidate menus, and overall make it easier to use.
So if you had training in Acrobat 9, the location and placement of the commands could differ a bit from what you see in Acrobat X.
For more, take a look at our companion piece:
What’s New in Adobe Acrobat X – What Are the Key New Features?
And for some nice tutorials to get started for free, see:
Over 3 Hours of Free Video Tutorials for New Adobe Acrobat X (10)
Hope this helps!
Are there any new features with form development in Acrobat X as compared to 9 Pro?
Hello Melissa, not too much is new in the area of forms development with this release – although scanning in paper documents and forms to convert to PDF is a whole lot better… See the top 15 highlights of what’s new in Acrobat X.
Is it possible for Acrobat 8 Pro to open and read an edited PDF file done in Acrobat X?
Welcome pk, that’s a great question… and here is your answer… (read the entire thread)
I read through the thread, but it doesn’t address specifically if “comments” are made in a PDF using Acrobat X, can those “comments” be read in Acrobat 8. We’re Mac-based if that makes a difference, and are running a PDF workflow.
Sure pk. Well, if you have specific needs with your setup that you want to confirm, your best bet is just to download and run the free trial of Acrobat X Pro in your shop… The tryouts are fully-functioning for 30 days, and can run side-by-side with earlier versions on the same machines without difficulty. This way you’ll be able run the new release through its paces, and verify everything you need to with respect to your workflow.
Which version would be able to merge layers of .DWG AutoCAD into one PDF file?
Thanks !!
Greetings Chris, you mean on how to convert AutoCAD files to PDF?
The Acrobat online documentation should be able to help on that.
I use the “compare documents” tool to compare various versions of PDF produced by a tool I test. The version 8 tool was much better than the version 10 tool unless there is some setting I do not know how to use in version 10. What I need to be able to do is create one compare document which contains a side by side view so I can easily and quickly scroll down while viewing the side by side view to verify the only changes to the PDFs are the expected changes. Currently in version 10 I’ve only found a way to create a side-by-side comparision with totally separate PDFs so I cannot quickly and easily scroll down to view the differences. Can version 10 be configured to do this?
Hey there Dave, it isn’t entirely clear to us what you’re trying to do that’s different, but then again this stuff can be complicated to describe…
To help, here’s the online documentation page for Compare Documents in Acrobat X, plus a 5-minute video on how it works:
I have an old Adobe Standard 9 on one machine that enables me to insert single pages from one PDF file into another PDF file. However, in my new version of Adobe Standard 10 (not Professional) it does not have this facility. Has this been stripped out of version 10?
Hi Brian, creating merged PDFs should work pretty much the same in Acrobat X vs. Acrobat 9 (Standard or Pro)…
Here are the manual pages for that feature in X, which are essentially identical to those from version 9.
Many thanks for information from manuals for merging information from one PDF file into another. However, using the option described in the manual to merge pages from one PDF into another, it does not appear to allow you to choose precisely where in the ‘mother’ document you can insert the additional pages. Could you please advise again.
Hello again Brian, I see from re-reading your previous comment that you meant inserting rather than merging – sorry about that…
But the Adobe documentation page linked above covers that as well, a bit further down. There has been no material change to those features between Acrobat 9 vs. Acrobat X, the functions and capabilities are the same. However, it is true that the placement and names of some of the commands have changed (restructuring for cosmetic & organizational reasons).
If that’s still not helping for some reason, please be very specific about exactly what it is you’re doing in Acrobat 9 (step-by-step actions) that you can’t yet figure out how to do in Acrobat X. Thanks!
After coming from Acrobat 9 std, I’m finding Acrobat X std extremely frustrating. Like Brian, I’m finding a number of features and functionalities that seem to be missing from v9 std.
Combining pdf’s – both open and not – is different, and actually more difficult, in my experience.
Saving pdf’s in which pdf’s have been combined is different – I’m often told that I can’t save the pdf because it’s already open, even if it’s not.
I used to be able to close a group of open pdf’s all at once with “close all windows”, but now I get stopped and asked if I want to save the “changes” in each one – when there have been no changes whatsoever.
And finally, the last straw – I just found that Acrobat X Standard does NOT generate portfolios, even when v 9 Standard DID. And it’s not a feature that’s listed as a difference between std and pro.
I’ve looked all over the preferences to see if there isn’t something I can change to make it work more like v9, but I can’t find anything. Usually I’m thrilled with the improvements between versions, but apparently all the improvements have been focused on features I don’t use.
Any ideas on how I can change settings or anything?
Hey there Bob, you’re right that Adobe did make some changes surrounding Portfolio capabilities in Acrobat X Standard, as compared to 9… Sorry that we missed that above.
On the other items you mention, we haven’t heard of those and tried here in the office here to reproduce some of them, but were not able to… And some of those functions (like with the saving and the closing) work pretty simply without problem for us.
Are you certain you’re using the latest version of Acrobat X? (try Help > Check for Updates)
In Adobe Professional 8, I was able to do retrieve data submitted via PDF form by doing the following:
Forms –> Manage Form Data –> Import Data
How do I do this in 9? Thanks!
Welcome Samantha, thanks for your question. For that, just check out this section of the Adobe Acrobat manual:
Collecting and managing form data
My department has a mix of Adobe Professional users, some have version 7, others have version 9. In order to export files to a PDF from a specific 3rd-party application, those using “7” must have the “Display PDF in web browser” box checked, and those with “9” must have it unchecked. However, with other applications, in order to export to a PDF, those using 9 must have that selection checked. Is there some other setting in Adobe 9 we should try to enable consistent experience for those users (without having to check or uncheck all the time), or does this appear to be an issue within the 3rd-party application? Thanks so much for any advice you can offer.
Greetings Dave, check out this lengthy Adobe FAQ for Acrobat displaying a PDF in a browser, and hopefully that will help figure it out.
How do you edit bookmarks in Adobe Acrobat 10? I was able to right click on a bookmark to edit it in version 9, but it doesn’t pull that up in 10?
Hi Lily, see this page in the online Adobe Acrobat X Manual:
Using Acrobat X Pro > Editing PDFs > Edit a bookmark
@ProDesignTools
Hi there, I think the question is clear however Lily did not put her question clearly. What she asked was how to combine files in one PDF file so that she could see the two files (created by Acro 10 and 9). This feature is available in Acro XI merging files into one as pages. Therefore, the question is which version has this feature (combining files)? I like to know the answer to the question.
Thanks
Hey there Zeg, don’t quite follow you… Lily asked about how to edit bookmarks. The comment you replied to above (from Dave) asked about comparing documents. But it sounds like you’re talking about combining or merging files?
Dear @ProDesignTools,
You are right on the first point concerning, Lily, wrong on the second point. I dragged Lily into this and you compounded my problem by dragging into the confusion a person called Dave, I do not know. I felt trapped because I did not know why I chose Lily over Bob!
I had similar experience like Bob. I have resolved my problem and I am okay now. I had an urgent project and decided it was not worth it. ProDesign, before I go I have to tell you that I learn a lot from the exchanges and your instructions. Some may be unrelated to the problem I have, but they prepared me to overcome problems that I run into other times! I hope Lily and also Bob are not unhappy that their problems were further confused.
Thanks buddy!
Sure, you bet Zeg – glad to help and thank you for the kind words.
Is the latest Acrobat Pro version (I believe now XI) compatible with version 9 in regards to command line arguments for postscript file creation? And if there are differences then by obtaining license for version XI can you downgrade back to version 9?
Hello Bob, thanks for your questions. Acrobat XI (version 11) is definitely the most recent release but Adobe doesn’t have a facility for downgrading software or using older versions except in the Creative Cloud…
As for your other query, not 100% sure about command line arguments so your best bet is to check the official documentation.
I have a Word template which contains user-created metadata fields. One of the fields is duplicated in the Word document, one of the duplicated fields is underlined the other is not.
If using Adobe 9, the document PDFs perfectly. When using Adobe X the duplicate field that is not underlined has the letter ‘U’ inserted into the field before the text.
Can anyone please advise what could be causing this?
Hey Kerrie, we’d suggest taking that up with Adobe Support… But first make sure your software has all of its updates available (via the Help menu > Updates).
However, as Acrobat X is nearly 5 years old now, did you see if the same thing happens with the free trials of Acrobat XI (from 2012) or the latest release, Acrobat DC?
i would like to combine several pdf files in one file.
how this could be done?
i have adobe reader 9.1
Adobe Reader does not edit or combine PDF files. For that, you would use Acrobat Standard or Acrobat Pro. The current release of this product is called Acrobat DC.
This is a full-featured PDF creation application, but it’s not free… However, you can download and run a 7-day fully-functional trial at no cost:
http://www.TryAcrobat.com/