Post/Author/DateTime	Post
sandrat 06-01-07, 12:36 PM	Not sure what's going on, but I can't view the new LGCS on my Mac. I am able to view other documents like the Dieties doc, but the LGCS is just 34 blank pages. It's very strange.
Eric Anondson 06-01-07, 12:38 PM	Known issue. There have been past threads on this. You need to get the latest Acrobat Reader. Apple may update Preview someday, or you may need to wait until 10.5, until then you need Reader 8.0. Specifically, the issue is that the RPGA folks who are putting out the .pdfs deciced to go to the latest Acrobat. That's all I'll say on it. :) I'm also a mac user.
sandrat 06-01-07, 12:43 PM	What in the new LGCS could possibly demand the use of the newest version of adobe acrobat. It's a freaking text file. That's some silliness right there. Unless you HAVE to use the most up-to-date version, the document should be backwards compatible. Sounds like laziness to me. "I don't want to resave it as version 7."
Mistimp 06-03-07, 02:42 AM	What in the new LGCS could possibly demand the use of the newest version of adobe acrobat. It's a freaking text file. That's some silliness right there. Unless you HAVE to use the most up-to-date version, the document should be backwards compatible. Sounds like laziness to me. "I don't want to resave it as version 7." Not a darn thing, and the reasons (excuses) I read on another thread were simply ridiculous. But if we don't protest, and loudly, in another year it will be readable only on a PC running Vista. Something that will NEVER set foot in my house! Mac users unite. We want "readable" PDFs
_metz_ 06-03-07, 05:04 AM	PDF is an excellent format. Issue is that MAC is behind the ball on contemporary programs and updates. Its not the PC's fault. And the reason its on PDF instead of a text file is because of issues with intellectual property, distribution, consistency of file format and what they want to have represented in the document. Soon you will be asking for ARs not in PDFs, which means it will be easy to get your hands on them before playing a game.
Haro 06-03-07, 05:43 AM	PDF is an excellent format. Issue is that MAC is behind the ball on contemporary programs and updates. Its not the PC's fault. And the reason its on PDF instead of a text file is because of issues with intellectual property, distribution, consistency of file format and what they want to have represented in the document. Soon you will be asking for ARs not in PDFs, which means it will be easy to get your hands on them before playing a game. I agree with you Metz. The word 'we' was thrown around somewhat casually methinks. I too am a Mac user with absolutely no problems with the format of the LGCS...
KarmaInferno 06-04-07, 12:13 AM	Also note, installing the Reader can cause problems on Windows machines that already have Acrobat Full or Professional installed. My machine stopped recognizing that I had Acrobat Pro installed at all once I installed Reader. According to Windows file associations, Acrobat Pro was still the preferred program to open PDF fies, yet if I double-clicked on one it opened the Reader. Heck, if I clicked on the 'Acrobat.exe' file in the Pro program folder it opened the Reader. I had to get my Acrobat Pro install disk and do a repair installation to get it to work right again. I found out later from the Adobe Support forums that this is a known issue, and Adobe does NOT recommend installing both. It does not always cause problems, but it can. Ironically, a main reason for the use of Acrobat 8 was apparently the newer file compression features. Yet when someone re-saved the file in a backwards-compatible format that can be opened by earlier versions of Acrobat, it was a SMALLER file size than the 'official' version. As for PDF security, it's pretty laughable unless you are using the password protected encrypted type. Which you can't use on publicly distributed documents like the LGCS. The "no copy/alter/whatever" security can be bypassed easily. -karma
paigeoliver 06-04-07, 06:51 AM	There is absolutely no reason for the public files like the LGCS to require the latest acrobat. For that reason there is no reason for the modules to either. The old versions still had the password security and if someone REALLY wanted to modify modules or adventure records then they could still do so. It wouldn't even be difficult. Also, to all people who write, edit or approve modules. Almost every word processor has this feature called spell check. It usually looks like a little ABC with a check mark on it. This feature should be run on every module before it is sent out to the public. The fact that the spell check feature doesn't know most D&D words is not an excuse for not using it since you can always teach new words to it. I don't even write RPG material that gets seen by anyone other than myself and my spellchecker knows all the D&D words. I mention this because apparently all the security features are very important, much more important than having a spell check run on the module. Those same security features also happen to remove the ability of GMs to fix the spelling mistakes in the module themselves. Also, for the life of me I cannot figure out why the file format of the adventure record would make it more or less easy to "get ahold of". Could you perhaps explain that?
Haro 06-04-07, 07:38 AM	There is absolutely no reason for the public files like the LGCS to require the latest acrobat. For that reason there is no reason for the modules to either. Ah, I was wondering how long it would take until the 'Circle are just out to get us innocent gamers' theory got an airing. :rolleyes: Obviously there is a reason for doing so, otherwise the effort wouldn't be made. To say there is "absolutely no reason" is, I am afraid, just ignorant.
pedr 06-04-07, 08:43 AM	I think, though I'm not sure, that the reasons are threefold: 1) Simplicity: the latest version of Acrobat, possibly provided to LG Circle members by WotC, outputs the latest type of pdf as a default. Changing the default settings takes time, and possibly requires checking the file to make sure that not using the latest version hasn't altered/degraded the file. This is an additional time requirement for volunteers. It is more sensible for them to simply click a 'create pdf' button and post the result. Less time spent on technical things means more time spent on editing/administrating the campaign/creating new LG material (or earning money, studying or spending time with family etc! Remember: volunteers). 2) The latest version of Acrobat apparently has better compression capabilities. Smaller files make for faster downloads - actually a boon for people who are using older computers or don't have access to broadband connections. 3) The latest version of Acrobat has better security capabilities. This is only a minor factor, but the integrity of the LGCS is important. I've suggested earlier or elsewhere that there wouldn't be a downside to producing a text-only version of the LGCS (or an html version) though this would be additional work and is not going to be seen as a priority. Anyway, as FoxIt will open the new LGCS, and as the Pale webmaster has put a backwards-compatible version of the new LGCS on the Pale website, this shouldn't really be an issue any more!
KarmaInferno 06-04-07, 10:16 AM	2) The latest version of Acrobat apparently has better compression capabilities. Smaller files make for faster downloads - actually a boon for people who are using older computers or don't have access to broadband connections. [...] Anyway, as FoxIt will open the new LGCS, and as the Pale webmaster has put a backwards-compatible version of the new LGCS on the Pale website, this shouldn't really be an issue any more! The irony is that the Pale website version is the SAME SIZE file as the HQ-official one. Possibly even a kilobyte or two smaller. I see no graphic difference between the two versions. Time? Click "Save As" instead of "Save", click the drop-down menu for the earlier version of Acrobat. Done. Even in checking a file, you're not doing it over and over. You're doing it once. It's not like the Circle is outputting an LGCS every day. And really, you should be checking over any PDF you just made ANYWAY, regardless of Acrobat version, to make sure there's no errors. As for security, the "no copy/modify" settings in Acrobat still amount to just a tag embedded in the file. Any program that can read PDFs and can ignore the tag can allow copying and modification. It's not much different than putting a yellow sticky note on a pile of papers with "Please don't copy me" written on it. -karma
paigeoliver 06-04-07, 11:13 PM	No conspiracy theory here. I think it is one of those things that wasn't even really given much or any thought by the person making the decision. I do know that I now cannot read the latest LG stuff on the tablet computer that I bought especially for living greyhawk, which I spent several hundred dollars on.[ QUOTE=Haro;12601907]Ah, I was wondering how long it would take until the 'Circle are just out to get us innocent gamers' theory got an airing. :rolleyes: Obviously there is a reason for doing so, otherwise the effort wouldn't be made. To say there is "absolutely no reason" is, I am afraid, just ignorant.[/QUOTE]