How to download and read PDF files

Many of the documents available on this site are stored as Adobe Acrobat PDF files and the file sizes are usually indicated. PDF files are designed to look the same no matter what computer system they are viewed on.

To download an individual file, right click (or control-click with a Mac) on the link and select the "Save Target" option. To read the downloaded file you need a program called Adobe Reader which is available free for most computers by clicking on the icon below.

Once you have installed Adobe Reader, double-clicking on your downloaded file will cause it to open within Adobe Reader and you can read it on your screen. It is also possible to read a PDF file on screen without downloading it first. To do so, left click on the link (click with a Mac) and, in the dialogue box that opens, click on 'Open'. Depending upon what settings you have chosen, the file will either open within your browser or Adobe Reader will automatically launch with the file already open within it. If you are using the latest version of Adobe Reader (version 7) and a broadband connection this process is almost instant. (Previous versions were much slower to load.)