Oops.. sorry for my earlier comment about Bullzip and Ask Toolbar. I must have mixed that up with another software. I don't remember whether there's Ask Toolbar with Bullzip. Don't want to make Bullzip look bad because I think it's the best PDF printer other than Adobe Distiller.

activation didn't happen ( OS win 7 Ent.)

@22, @29 WinOptimizer 6 has a nice "Context Menu manager" feature which allows you to change the right click menu with just a click. Just unselect Foxonic and you're good to go. Simple...

For those looking to create PDF like Adobe Distiller, I use BullZip. It's freeware (well... adware but you can opt out from installing Ask Toolbar). And it's the least intrusive I've used so far: you can disable it from asking file name, output location, settings, etc. For editing a PDF, there's the great PDF-Xchange. Freeware but you will need to pay a bit to get some of the tools (like typewriter - great for filling out non-PDFform forms.

As for Foxonic, I don't need most of the tools it provides. If I got to pay, the price is a bit high for something that can't edit PDF text. There's a limit on editing PDFs with any tool but sometimes when you need to make small changes (some typo and you don't have the original document), it's required. Foxonic can't do that. However, for most other things, it's good.

BTW, for extensive editing of a PDF file, there's Foxit PDF Editor. It's a bit complex but powerful.

I've set new page margin for all my pdf files (100+ PDF files with total 1000+ pages) with foxonic pro, is that so easy, several minutes, I've finished this task, save me lots of time, grab today's giveaway already!
thanks Caisdata and GOTD.

@41, Bryan, @53, Doug, GaOTD software is supposed to be personal, non-commercial usage.

Question / Clarification request:

I often need to delete/remove pages from PDF files.
I looked at the Foxonic instructions, and it seems very ancient design, as you must first open and read the doc and make a note of pages to delete, using some other app. Then you open it in Foxonic and specify pages to delete by page number.
Then save doc. Then open doc in your PDF reader to check and see if you got it right.
Then back to Foxonic if not and try again.

WTF - what happened to graphic-user-interface where I could just open and see and delete without making complicated multi-steps.

Can anyone confirm if delete pages is only possible through the Foxonic published cumbersome instructions.
Published instructions do not look encouraging. Looks more like a 1980s or 1990s developer editor style of working with pages and pens and notepads...
Thx.

Posts like that at #58 are as alarmist as they're ignorant.

Of course you can decide not to have the toolbar.

And where IE is concerned (probably the same with other browsers, but I only use IE so can't speak for them) even the most novice computer user surely knows how to go into IE Tools / Toolbars and then uncheck anything there they don't want.

Or is that too darn complicated? (Bit like the other poster screaming earlier about 'unwanted' Quick Launch icons -- lordy, now that's one hell of a problem to have to solve. . .)

Re today's offering. It's image, not doc, oriented. But it usefully puts together a lot of features into one package -- the spltter and optimizer work quite well.

Finally, re #50. The only adobe you know of is the one you've seen in spaghetti westerns. This post of yours today is the latest in a series of drivel you've dumped on GOTD and its users. As you've now achieved your desire of posting the most stupid "advice" ever to appear here, perhaps you'll go away now and resume your medication.

PS: on the subject of pdf creators (i.e, virtual printers) Bullzip should be on everyone's list: excellent quality output from this freeware.

I can't activate the program. I get the following message: "Failed to connect. Please try again later." I've been trying all day and get the same message each time. (WinXP)

I'm using Windows XP3. The software installed quickly and without issues. However,every time that I tried to open the program I got the "Foxonic (Professional Edition) has encountered a problem and needs to close." dialogue box (so, it didn't run). I'd love to see a response from the Caisdata Software Support Team if there is a workaround.

the Data Execution Prevention should not be disabled for a program you know little about.
I dont think I would do that for this program.
DEP is there to protect your computer.

@ Hemingway AND Charles thanks for your comments.
I can open the pdf files I just cant convert them to word without password. it was a fanfiction on pdf and for some reason it had the password protection to prevent conversion and maybe editing.

Editing PDFs can be done with the PDF import plugin for OpenOffice. If I just want to view or grab stuff like a bit of text or a picture, I use PDF-XChange Viewer which plugs into Firefox.

Extracted one page from a huge PDF file as a test. Perfect.

I know you can print single pages from any PDF file, but to extract one and email it normally requires a screen capture. I have an excellent one of these, but this program just makes it easier, and everything else you ever want to do with a PDF, and some I hadn't even thought of.

Don't miss it.

For those wondering about the connection to Google Analytics, I use them all the time to monitor who goes to my sites, what they look at, how they got there. It doesn't reveal your IP, simply allows the site owner to see how their traffic is arriving. This is how I caught the US House of Reps having employees on the public dime google their names. Very useful, little issue. It will tell who your provider is, the location of your connection (which doesn't mean it's necessarily your town, depending on who your provider is) & you can get info like version of Java being used, operating system, monitor info/resolution. The US House provides for itself but, if you monitor closely, you can also tell who provides our reps in their off-time at our expense. You may not like it but you'd be amazed at all the sites you visit that use it.

As for icons, that's what the little trash can in the corner is for. Simply remove what you don't want as it's just a shortcut & doesn't affect the program.

Passwords: Recover PDF Password, which was a giveaway here some time back. I expired the limit, contacted the company & they sent a patch; now I can remove restrictions as I please.

Hope this helps someone else.

Very limited. Why would the developers limit their product to working with images only? Very strange. Even free programs such as PrimoPDF handle documents and images alike. I suppose they want to sell other programs to convert Word documents, and Excel files, and e-mail messages, etc. etc..

No thanks. It makes no sense at all to me.

#56 Thanks that I was looking for and works great

similar to #49 excellent tip, Nuance PDF Reader with some editing/converting capabilities:

http://www.softpedia.com/get/Office-tools/PDF/Nuance-PDF-Reader.shtml

and, of course, Foxit PDF Reader

http://www.softpedia.com/get/Office-tools/PDF/Foxit-PDF-Reader.shtml

followed instruction as per # 56 and still vista will not allow installation. I hate vista

#58:
"I read the installer TOS and they are scary to say the least. Installing PDFCreator installs the pdfforge Toolbar — there is NO way to opt out"

Yes, the bundled toolbar is bad news. HOWEVER, you DO NOT have to install it. It is possible to opt-out during the install procedure -- you just need to read and follow the instructions carefully.

Normally I would blacklist a tool for opt-out behavior like this but PDF Creator is such a good tool that I am willing to overlook this aspect of it. I admit that I might not be so forgiving if I hadn't already been using it for years.
.

#58 roy

Thanks for posting all that. It is totally unacceptable that it does that.

for John Connor, @27, PDF password encryption is pretty secure. PDF Password Remover for $29.99 will sort owner passwords that limit or prohibit operations on open files. User passwords that prevent PDFs from opening are another matter. PDF Password Cracker Ent 3.0 at $59.95 will attempt brute force cracking, but this could take a very long time as in days/ weeks or more, especially if the password is more than 5 or 6 characters and non-dictionary based. Good Luck!

For functions similar to today's Giveaway have a look at free Quick PDF Tools

http://www.softpedia.com/get/Office-tools/PDF/Quick-PDF-Tools.shtml

#27, you can find some advice at

http://techblissonline.com/pdf-password-remover-free/

hopefuly it will satsfy your needs.

This is a nice app. But are there any PDF printer driver options other than PDFCreator?

I read the installer TOS and they are scary to say the least. Installing PDFCreator installs the pdfforge Toolbar -- there is NO way to opt out -- and this is what you agree to if you install PDFCreator:

The pdfforge Toolbar Terms of Use applies to the pdfforge Toolbar ("Toolbar"), which is built and maintained by GreenTree Applications, Inc. ("Spigot"). The Toolbar allows you a convenient way to help find search results online by collecting your requests for information and processing them through our search engine partners. Our partners may compensate us for making this information available to you. Use of the Toolbar is free of charge to you. Use of the Toolbar and its features as described below requires that you agree to the following Terms of Use. You agree to be legally bound by these Terms of Use by clicking the "Next", "Run", "Install" or "Yes" button provided.
1.1 Rights You Grant to Spigot.
By installing the Toolbar on your computer, you expressly authorize and request Spigot to:
a) act as your search agent to conduct inquiries on your behalf using Spigot's search engine and technologies and partners' sites, and collect relevant information and display it to you;
b) take actions Spigot deems appropriate to provide the Toolbar to you and to act on your behalf in obtaining information from partners and displaying that to you;
c) read and interpret your search requests and results on certain sites and use this information to conduct searches on your behalf, offer alternative results and to personalize The Toolbar for you;
d) collect information in accordance with our privacy policy;
e) start the Toolbar automatically when you start your computer, and to appear as a toolbar in your Microsoft Internet Explorer and/or Mozilla Firefox browser. You may change how the Toolbar starts and appears using the respective application options;
f) modify your Microsoft Internet Explorer and/or Mozilla Firefox browser settings for the default search engine, address bar search, "DNS error" page, "404 error" page, and new tab page to facilitate more informative responses as determined by The Toolbar;
g)communicate with Spigot servers from time to time to check for available software updates such as bug fixes, patches, enhanced functions and new versions (collectively, "Updates"). By installing The Toolbar, you agree to automatically request and receive Updates.

@ #36 Removing icons is so easy that this is a non issue. Just right click on the icon and choose delete if you don't want it on the desktop.
I keep a folder on the desktop labeled "tools" and just drag any icons I don't want cluttering up the desktop in to it. Made an icon of some wrenches and stuff to replace the ugly folder icon.

Hello everybody,

For all XP/Vista/Windows 7 users (especially #47 Trevor and #42 consuella) who has DEP (Data Execution Prevention) permission enabled, after the installation and activation process finished, before loading Foxonic Pro.exe, please following these steps to turn off DEP for Foxonic Pro.exe:

How to turn off DEP for "Foxonic Pro.exe" In Windows Vista/7,
1. Log in as administrator
2. Open the Start menu and right-click “Computer”
3. Choose “Properties” from the context menu.
4. Choose “Advanced system settings” from under “Tasks” in the left pane.
5. Approve the User Account Control query (You will have to be an administrator to do it).
6. Click the button “Settings” in the Performance section.
7. Click the tab “Data Execution Prevention”
8. choose either “Turn on DEP for all programs and services except those I select:” or “Turn on DEP for essential Windows programs and services only to select the OptIn policy”
9. If you choose “Turn on DEP for all programs and services except those I select:”, click "Add" to add the programs (here you should add "Foxonic Pro.exe") that you do not want to use the DEP feature.
10. Click "OK" twice
11. Restart the computer for the changes to take effect


How to turn off DEP for "Foxonic Pro.exe" In Windows XP:
1. Log in as administrator
2. Open the Start menu, right-click on My Computer and Choose “Properties” from the context menu.
3. On the “System Properties” window, click the “Advanced” tab .
4. click settings button under Performance
5. click the “Data Execution Prevention” tab
6. choose either “Turn on DEP for all programs and services except those I select:” or “Turn on DEP for essential Windows programs and services only to select the OptIn policy”
7. If you choose “Turn on DEP for all programs and services except those I select:“, click "Add" to add the programs (here you should add "Foxonic Pro.exe") that you do not want to use the DEP feature.
8. Click "OK" twice
9. Restart the computer for the changes to take effect

Best regards,
Caisdata Software Support Team

For any users having issues with DEP (Data Execution Prevention)

You can, if you like, turn off DEP completely.

•Right click on My Computer
•Click on Properties
•Click on the Advanced tab
•Click on the Settings button in the Performance section
•Click on the Data Execution Prevention tab
•Click on Add button at bottom
•Browse to the program you want to add: C:\Program Files\Foxonic Professional/Foxonic Pro.exe

If you are using a 64-bit version of Windows Vista/7 the path may be in C:\Program Files (x86) directory.

Also there is much that this software does not do (typeable Forms, Edit PDFs, Touch-up (edit) images and more) for a quality program for this without the high cost of Adobe Acrobat Pro, I suggest Nuance PDF Creator Pro (still pricey($99) but far cheaper than Acrobat Pro and easier to use IMHO).

#52
Johnnie,

just try a different font and set a small font size for the page footer (u can select font from "Text font:" dropdown list ).

Thank You! I was looking to be able to use pdf for a page of multiple pictures on my site

thanks again gaotd!

I can't get the header/footer to work correctly. I set the footer to show the file name (centered) but it prints it top to bottom like:

f
i
l
e
3
.
p
d
f

I can't find an option to control this rotation. Any thoughts?

Thanks very much. works well... activation easy when following giveaway instructions.

Simple but will be very useful.

I used to think that Adobe was the best pdf software around. Clearly, I was wrong. Foxonic Professional 4.0 is the greatest pdf program in the history of the internet. If I could teleport 127 years into the future, I am sure it would still be better than any program available. If you accomplish only one thing today, download this incredibly awesome software!

Hopefully, I have helped someone make an informed decision today.
Thank you,
Boingo

You can edit PDFs using PDF-XChange Viewer 2.042.10. Just Google it or ixquick.com it. It lets you do just about ANYTHING! AND, IT'S FREE.

Thank you GAOTD and Caisdata, installed without a problem on XP-Pro-SP3.
Eldad

I use Windows Server 2008 64 bit on my workstation, and the program installed and activated successfully, but when I try to run it I get a Data Execution Prevention error and the program is halted.

C'mon guys, activate.exe writes reg.data to the registry.
There are 3 phases: installation, operation, registration.

For installation purposes registration is not needed.
For operation purposes registration is needed.

To start operations the program checks its registration-status while starting up and goes into trial mode when registration is not there (valid).
When registration was succesfull the program goes in full operational mode.

This has nothing to do with activation before or after setup, you can do it both ways, doesn't matter at all.
Either the reg.data are there at program-start (full-mode) or they are not there at program-start (trial-mode).

There is only one thing to remember: only activate while the program is not running at all.

This makes it possible te startup the program once or twenty times.
Then activate (while program is not running) and program start two or twentyone respectively will be in full registered mode. Also activating before first programstart will do.

Comment #1 and the readme-file are both allright.
Writing "FIRST" in stead of "first" is only making the thing a bit more mysterious, to hide the registration-secret a bit more.

In the many years I follow GAotD now, it only happened perhaps twice that "before" or "after" was an issue (so it is possible, but very very rare).

I also have version 3.2, from 4/21/09. According to Caisdata Software's Homepage, here's "What's new":

Foxonic Professional 4.0 (build 0077)
What's new in this release:

* Support drag & drop files from Windows Explorer

* Support converting image to PDF from "File Browser" and "Drag & Drop File List"
* Support converting image to PDF from Windows Explorer or Desktop (Context Menu)

Is there anything it can't do ? Yeah - EDIT PDFS. This is just another merge/clip/convert tool that are a dime a dozen as freeware. What we really need is a way to edit the text in a .PDF, manipulate layouts etc a la Acrobat Pro or Nuance PDF, etc

I am sorry I forgot to add that I am running Vista Home Premium 32.

Something is amiss. When I try to run this program, I can’t open it and I am getting the following message:

“To help protect your computer, Data Execution Prevention has closed Foxonic”.

I am concerned about this issue. I think I am going to remove Foxonic from my computer.

Installed and activated just fine on Win7 Professional. The program sounded very useful for a few of our employees. However, it lost us when I found out we couldn't open .PDF files from a mapped network drive.

It might be great software for standalone use if you manage all of your files locally, but we're network and fileserver driven. If you're looking to edit files stored on a network, pass this one by.

Too many privacy issues for me. It tries to covertly connect to the internet and to google.
I see that someone else noticed this and as yet, no explanation from the company.
GOTD loses all credibility when this is allowed to happen.

@22 Martin

I agree there should have been an option not to ad the Foxonic right click options.

1)Exit Foxonic.
2)To delete these entries you either have to dig into the registry or..use Glarys Utilities (Free) - right click menu editor.
3)Restart your computer.
4)Next delete the "FoxonicExt.dll" in the Foxonic program folder before launching the program.
That's it.

SC

WARNING: PDFCreator, recomended in comment #5, bundles browser-hijacking spyware.

@ #27 - Do a Google search for PDFPassword Remover. It works very well... for me 100% so far... and I handle literally dozens of PDF files a day. There is also a utility called PDFRestrictions Remover which will remove all restrictions so you can edit/print/and otherwise change the PDF content.

#8 (Is there anything Foxonic can’t do?)
Well, it can't do things, I'd expect/need most
(and I suppose I'm not the only one):

You can't modify/edit PDF document at text/object level:
- can't insert, change, modify, delete text (paragraph)
- can't insert/modify image or other graphical object

it works only at page/document level:
- insert/delete page/document
- split document to more documents
- merge several document to one document
- work with document password/permissions

And, yes, programs, that can really edit PDF documents are rare
and very expensive
:-(((

Thank you for verifying the 'activate' first information; I wish I had tried that sooner, because over the weekend while doing some clean up on my computer I found that there were programs that I downloaded from here recently that did not register. I have been visiting this site daily for a long time so I assumed that following registration instructions in the 'read me' file would suffice, therefore I didn't back check; i.e. close the program, reopen it, and check the 'about' feature on the menu. Now I find that quite a few programs are lost due the registration being incomplete or invalid; I really prefer a software key so if you reformat or experience any difficulties you can retrieve the software. I guess that validating the registration every time is the way to go under the current packaging 'key wrapper'.
Thank you as always GAOD for your great offers.
Good Day All!!

Antivirus [Comodo] wouldn't allow Activate.exe to run so had to temporarily disable. Closed Foxonic and ran Activate.exe again and worked like a champ. Thanks GOTD!

I used an older version of this giveaway before (version 3.2 if I'm not mistaken), to batch convert my comics and mangas to a single pdf. When

I used freewares to do the batch conversion, they forced the images to fit into a single layout. Some images are either stretched (portrait > landscape) or contorted (landscape > portrait). It's all because of the different layout of the images.

Otherwise, Foxonic did not have such a problem as it preserves the image's layout in the pdf. I think this giveaway is a nice upgrade to mine.