how can I install my adobe pdf printer on my i Mac with IOS El Capitan ?

Forum|Forum|9 years ago
November 19, 2016
3 replies
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Correct answer Dov Isaacs

To be very clear, Apple removed the capability in MacOS for Adobe to have the Adobe PDF printer a few MacOS releases ago. As such, for older Acrobat releases, the installation of that feature fails with recent MacOS releases and for newer Acrobat releases, the feature was removed since it couldn't be installed and work anyway.

Although PDF creation via distillation of PostScript is generally not a recommended method for PDF creation on MacOS and especially with applications such as InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, etc., you still can manually print PostScript to files and manually create PDF via using such PostScript files as input to the Acrobat Distiller.

- Dov

PS: Exactly why do you need to create PDF via distillation of PostScript?

Dov IsaacsCorrect answer

Legend

To be very clear, Apple removed the capability in MacOS for Adobe to have the Adobe PDF printer a few MacOS releases ago. As such, for older Acrobat releases, the installation of that feature fails with recent MacOS releases and for newer Acrobat releases, the feature was removed since it couldn't be installed and work anyway.

Although PDF creation via distillation of PostScript is generally not a recommended method for PDF creation on MacOS and especially with applications such as InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, etc., you still can manually print PostScript to files and manually create PDF via using such PostScript files as input to the Acrobat Distiller.

- Dov

PS: Exactly why do you need to create PDF via distillation of PostScript?

- Dov Isaacs, former Adobe Principal Scientist (April 30, 1990 - May 30, 2021)

S

senortim

Inspiring

Curiously, however, as I write this in early 2020, Acrobat DC is showing me a dialog that says "This form is interactive and has special features. To save a copy of it that you can treat as any other PDF file, choose File > Print and then choose the Adobe PDF printer. This creates a PDF file that does not have special features, so you can add comments to it or send it out for review." -- which is, according to your answer, impossible. (The file I was using was a secured tax form from the US IRS and it refused to be saved as any other kind of PDF, forcing me to print, manually sign, and scan it! Bleh!)

T

Test Screen Name

Legend

Yes, it is curious, sloppy even, that Acrobat continues to put that message out when it is impossible to follow the instructions. The instructions are still correct and valid for Windows, and nobody at Adobe has disabled the message for the Mac version. There is indeed at least one IRS form which is intended (by the IRS) to be printed on paper, signed, and delivered or rescanned. The IRS must know this.

T

Test Screen Name

Legend

Note: it's not iOS. That's for phones. What you have on a Mac is Mac OS. That's important if googling for tips. But either way, and on either one, you indeed cannot do that.