Smile’s (www.smilesoftware.com) released PDFpenPro 7, the latest version of its all-purpose PDF editing tool for Mac OS X, features the ability to proofread and edit the OCR text layer and export to Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, and PDF Archive (PDF/A) formats, all with an interface updated for OS X Yosemite.What’s more, PDFpenPro and PDFpen 7 support document sharing via iCloud Drive.
With the apps, users can sign PDF forms containing interactive signature fields, though this isn’t cryptographic “digital” signing. PDFpenPro allows users to create PDF forms which include interactive signature fields. Its various tools, such as the text box and comment tools, remember their color preferences, and context-sensitive popup-menus allow for quick edits. Freeform highlighting enables smooth highlighting over diagrams, drawings, and unrecognized text.
PDFpen shares all but the most advanced features with PDFpenPro. It can view, but not edit, the OCR text layer; export to Microsoft Word, but not Excel, PowerPoint, or PDF Archive (PDF/A) formats. And it gives the ability to sign using interactive signature fields, but not to create those fields.
The PDF-to-Excel, PDF-to-PowerPoint, and PDF-to-PDF/A export functions use the Nuance OmniPage Cloud Service for document conversion. PDFs are securely uploaded to the service and returned as Excel documents in either .xlsx or .xls format, PowerPoint documents in .pptx or .ppt format, and PDF Archive documents in PDF/A format. PDF Archive format is an internationally-accepted format for archival storage and long term use of PDFs.
PDFpenPro and PDFpen 7 work with PDFpen for iPad and iPhone version 2, allowings editing across devices when used with Dropbox storage or iCloud Drive. iCloud storage is available when PDFpen is purchased via the Mac App Store.
PDFpen retails for US $74.95, PDFpenPro for $124.95. Family Pack licenses, which cover up to five computers in one household, are $94.95 for PDFpen and $149.95 for PDFpenPro. Office Pack licenses start at $224.95 for PDFpen (5 users) and $349.95 for PDFpenPro (5 users).
Upgrades from earlier single user versions of either application are $30, and free to users who purchased on or after Aug. 1, 2014. Upgrades from previous versions of PDFpen to PDFpenPro 7 are $50. Upgrade pricing for Family Packs and Office Packs is found at the Smile website.
PDFpen 7 and PDFpenPro 7 require OS X Yosemite or later. iCloud storage and sync requires the Mac App Store version; use of iCloud Drive doesn’t.
