Interactive vs. PDF: What's the Difference?
I want to know about ...
Summary of differences
Interactive manual features and limitations
Adobe PDF file features and limitations
Summary
Since not everyone uses the Manuals in exactly the same way, AIPSO offers them in two
different electronic formats, each of which has its own set of unique characteristics.
Both formats contain the same information; for instance the language of the rules, the
structure of the manuals, and the rate tables are identical. What is different is the way
this information appears on your computer, and how you are able to use it. For most
purposes, the Interactive Manuals are probably the best option to use, but if you need to
save or print an offline copy, or it’s important that you see the exact appearance
of the paper manuals, then you should use the PDFs. Read on for more specific information
about the differences between the two formats.
Interactive
Manuals
The Interactive Manuals use technology called Trove from Ringwood Software to organize,
index, and present the entire contents of the Plan Manuals. This software makes it easier
to retrieve only the information you want, or to research a particular subject. We refer
to them as "interactive" because they can only be used while you are online,
connected to our server over the Internet. Here are a few of the features and limitations
of the Interactive Manuals:
You do not need anything other than your browser to view the
Interactive Manuals.
You cannot download the Interactive Manual and use it offline.
The Interactive Manual displays only the section of the manuals that
you are reading at the moment. You do not need to wait while the entire manual is
transmitted to your PC.
The Interactive Manuals are always up to date. When changes to rules
or rates go into effect, they are immediately incorporated into the appropriate sections
of the Interactive Manuals. No user action is required.
The text and tables contained in the Interactive Manuals look quite
different from the paper versions: they have been formatted for use on your computer
screen. Some changes you will notice include: the font size and type are different
(usually larger), the text is not divided into columns, there are no page numbers, and
resizing the display window will cause lines of text to "wrap" in different
places in much the same way that different margins affect text in a word processor.
If you print what you see while using the Interactive Manuals, the
results will vary depending on which browser you use, and which print options you select.
In any case, the output will always be quite different from paper manuals obtained from
AIPSO.
The Interactive Manuals provide an indexed "Table of
Contents" which you can use to jump directly to any section of the manual which
interests you.
AIPSO has defined links between related sections, allowing users to
move quickly and directly between related sections.
Every word in the Interactive Manuals is indexed, and these manuals
provide powerful search capabilities. Among these are wildcard searching; the ability to
combine search terms with AND and OR operators; the ability to easily identify only the
"hits" contained within a particular section of the manual; and information on
the number of occurrences of your search phrase (by section).
The Interactive Manuals provide access to both current and prior
versions, for those interested in researching the status of Plan rules as of a particular
past date.
For more information on using our Interactive Manuals, see the article
"Interactive Manual tutorial". If you are
interested in learning more about the Trove software product, see http://www.ringwood.com.
Adobe PDF Files
The PDF section provides electronic files which are identical in format to the paper
manuals. Their primary purpose is to give users a way to print a copy which will match the
paper manuals distributed by AIPSO. Here are a few of the features and limitations of the
PDF files:
You must have the Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your system in
order to view these files.
You may download any of the PDF files and save them for use at a
later time, when you may not have access to the Internet.
The PDF versions of rules and rates manuals are generally pretty
large files, and you typically must wait until the whole file has downloaded before you
can use it.
A copy of a PDF manual which you have saved on your system will not
be automatically updated when manual changes go into effect. In order to update your copy,
you will need to download it all over again.
The PDF files always display exactly the same appearance as the
printed paper manuals. Fonts, page numbering, columns, etc. will display identically
regardless of the fonts, software, or operating system installed on your system.
The PDF files will always print with the same format as paper manuals
obtained from AIPSO.
PDF files provide no indexed "Table of Contents" for
navigation within the document. Users must either page through the manual or use the
"Find" feature to jump directly to a particular section.
There are no direct hyperlinks between related sections of the PDF
files.
The PDF "Find" feature is slower and more limited than that
found in the Interactive Manuals: it functions more or less the same way that the
"Find" feature of a word processor would work.
PDF files are usually only available for rules and rates currently in
effect. Obsolete versions are deleted.
For more information on the PDF file format check the Adobe Systems website at http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/adobepdf.html.
|
