1.  First open the .PDF file in Acrobat Standard.  Then head to the Export Drop-Down and select Word Document.  

Because Acrobat will use the same name for the Word file as it has for the .PDF file, I like to add a “-w” suffix or some other identifier so that later on you can tell the difference between the two files. If the original file is “myfile.pdf”, you could make the Word document “myfile-w.doc”

1. Open HP Protect Tools Security Manager from the Start Menu (Vista is shown here).

2.  Then head to the left side of the screen (the left menu) and select Settings.

3. In the menu that appears on the right side, select the Single Sign On tab, and then uncheck the Enable automatic detection of logon dialogs and web pages.

That should now make the pesky Credential Manager box stop popping up.

Because .PDF files are so lightweight, flexible, easy to send via email and therefore easy for everyone to read, it is sometimes important that a password is added to a .PDF file in order to provide some level of basic security on the document.

In order to add a password to a .PDF file, you must have a copy of Adobe Acrobat Standard or Professional . When I use the term “Acrobat” in the instructions below, I am referring to either Acrobat Standard or Acrobat Professional. Recall that Acrobat Reader is the free version of Adobe Acrobat, and is only for reading .PDF files. For a list of differences among the versions of Adobe Acrobat (Reader, Standard, Professional) see this post.

Note that while this tutorial only covers Adobe Acrobat Standard and rofessional, there are some third-party (e.g. non-Adobe) applications that can manipulate .PDF files. For a video tutorial about how to create .PDF files for free, see this video post.

1. Open the .PDF file in Acrobat. Under the Advanced menu bar heading select Security, and then Password Encrypt

2. You may then be prompted to acknowledge that you are changing the security settings on the document. This warning is so you don’t accidentally lock yourself out of a document. Go ahead and press Yes. Fee free to check the “Do not show this message again” box if you don’t want to be reminded each time you secure a document.

3. You will then be presented with the Password Security dialogue box. In the image below you will see the “Require a password to open the document” checkbox highlighted in red (the other colored boxes are for the additional security settings of restricting printing and editing of the document – please see this post for more information about these security settings).

4. Click this box and enter a password. You will then see a warning about third-party applications. This warning is Adobe’s way of saying that while all Adobe products support the password settings you have just made, Adobe cannot guarantee that ALL programs that can read .PDF files will honor your security settings. Click OK and once again feel free to click the Do not show this message again check box. Note that you may be prompted to re-enter the password you just selected to verify that the password is correct.

5. Click OK at the bottom of the Password Securitydialogue box. You will get a final prompt explaining that these settings will not be applied until you save the document again.

6. Go ahead and save the document. You should now see the words SECURED next to the file name in the title bar.

Your .PDF file is now password-protected.

Adobe Acrobat Reader – the Adobe Acrobat reader, often also called “Acrobat Reader” is a free program that allows you to open, or view, .PDF files. You can also print .PDF files from this free version.  Acrobat reader does not allow you to edit .PDF documents, and does not allow you to create .PDF documents.

Adobe Acrobat Standard – this software is not free, and it allows you to perform a multitude of tasks with .PDF files including creating .PDF files, editing .PDF files, and applying security such as password-protection and printing/editing restrictions to created files.  Acrobat standard will also add a button that will allow you to quickly create .PDF files from Microsoft Office, and allow you to merge multiple files into a package of individual .PDF files, or a single unified .PDF files.

Adobe Acrobat Professional/Professional Extended – these two versions add enterprise features to the existing feature set of Adobe Acrobat Standard, such as video features and the use of Adobe Live Cycle to create forms.

For most users who wish to create .PDF files and perform basic .PDF-file maintenance, Adobe Acrobat Standard is an appropriate choice.

The full list of feature comparisons for the Acrobat Software family is located on Adobe’s Web Site.

While Adobe Acrobat Standard is a great piece of software, it is expensive at around $200+ . Sometimes Acrobat Standard will come as packaged software with hardware such as higher-end scanners. For those of you who aren’t ready to make the leap to Acrobat Standard, but still want to create .PDF files, please see my post about creating .PDF files for free.