Saving Your Notation Files in PDF format
No matter what notation software you use, Finale, Sibelius, Notion, Overture, or others, you can save your scores in PDF format and share them with others who do not own the software. PDF stands for Portable Document Format and was created by Adobe. It is the standard print format for all applications. A PDF file has the file extension that you would expect: .pdf.
FREE Options…
Mac OSX
If you are using Mac OSX, you can create PDFs from any application. It is built into the operating system. Simply select File > Print and click the PDF button at the bottom of the Print window and select “Save as PDF.” I often save in PDF format to post on web pages and to share with others.
Check out this PDF file I created in Sibelius. It is snare drum exercises my brother John Rudolph created. John plays in the Toronto Symphony.
Windows
Windows does not come with a built-in PDF converter but you can download free programs such as PDF Creator, or PDF995. With your notation software launched and your file of choice open, choose Print from the File menu. Then, select the PDF option you downloaded. I have PDF Creator installed on Windows. It works great.
The option that will cost you money….
The other option is to purchase Acrobat (not Acrobat Reader which is free). The current version is Acrobat Standard 8 which lists for $299.00. It does a lot more than save PDF files. You can open and edit PDF files and more. But, it does have a pretty high price tag.
