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Simple PDF reader for WinXP


wimc

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Does anyone know where I could get a simple PDF reader for WinXP?

Did search, may have entered wrong search parameters, or missed something. Just need something to view and print, no editing or such.

Thank you

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I use SumatraPDF v1.5.1. No installer, exe is about 3mb.

I haven't tried their newer versions. Edit: They appear to have dropped XP support @ v3.2

Edited by MikeyV
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Thanks MikeyV and ED_Sln. Grabbed both portable versions and work great.

Edit: no one else needs to reply with anything, all good.

Edit 2: reworded

Edited by wimc
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For completeness: Foxit PDF Reader v4.1 of 2010 is really simple as well. One can just put the single executable somewhere and run it. I use it together with Sumatra. This foxit seems to be faster with some pdf ebooks, compared to Sumatra.

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Just now, gerwin said:

Jaclaz: I just tried the Altarsoft one, but it causes an out of memory error, even for quite simple pdf files? It is AltarsoftPdfReader.exe v1.2. On Windows XP

Cannot say, I have it usually working here on XP (SP2, and yes, I know). (but of course it depends on the .pdf).

The one I normally use is Foxit PDF reader (version 2.3), that rarely fails, but sometimes it also has issues.

Can you point me to a downloadable .pdf for which the Altairsoft one crashes, so that I can test it?

jaclaz

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35 minutes ago, gerwin said:

The Altarsoft out of memory error seems to occur with pretty much any PDF file. Like even this one causes it http://www.pdf995.com/samples/pdf.pdf  when you browse through it for like 20 seconds. Using Windows XP SP3 with all POSready updates. The system has 4GB RAM.

That file works just fine here, though I made a few tests and can trigger it (it is seemingly not an error, but rather a warning, i.e. it doesn't crash the application) if I use a zoom level higher that 200%.

If you open a file at 200% and use the central mouse wheel to scroll down, if the zoom level field gets focus you are not scrolling down, but increasing zoom level, maybe this is what is happening when you "browse" it?

jaclaz

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1 hour ago, gerwin said:

I can trigger errors of this kind with just doing page-up / page-down on very simple multi-page pdf files.

How (exactly) are you going pageup/pagedown?

Using the mouse wheel?

jaclaz

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3 hours ago, jaclaz said:

How (exactly) are you going pageup/pagedown?

Using the mouse wheel?

jaclaz

Did you somehow get a working version of the damn thing?

I just downloaded to try it - the mouse buttons/wheel do absolutely nothing in the content area. The only ways to "scroll" (actually just switch pages) is to either use PgUP/PgDown keys, or select the page field in the toolbar and change it with keys/mouse.

I can't even select text to copy in this.

Full of bugs too. Besides the out of memory error...

Open a .pdf, enable the preview panel, now close the document - the preview panel stays marked in the menu, but its status is reversed now.

Also, try to enable the preview panel without a document opened - you get access violation error.

When it bugs, it hogs my CPU making the whole OS almost freeze - this even with Process Lasso auto-lowering its priority to "below normal".

I think that's enough issues for a 2 minute test.

Feels like a crippled demo version. Sorry, but this recommendation sucks.

 

@wimc

I haven't tried the other suggestions, might have started FoxIt couple times while working on a client system, but no memories of it.

SumatraPDF does the job for me. I even have it reopen last documents and it still starts fast.

For ebooks FBReader works fine here - i actually used its Android version for a long time before trying the PC one. I've seen Calibre often suggested, but it doesn't support my PC... I keep CoolReader as an (unused) backup.

Edited by RainyShadow
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@RainyShadow

I don't know.

It works here, the only way I can get that error is by increasing the zoom level more than 200%.

There are (besides PageUp/PageDown keys on the keyboard)  arrow buttons in the toolbar and the page field is a drop down list, and if you select it you can use wheel mouse to go page up/page down.

It is very possible that it is a SP2->SP3 issue, cannot really say.

 You cannot select text to copy, but you can extract the text (all the text from the whole .pdf), and this feature is actually useful in some cases.

Would I use it as a "primary" PDF viewer?

No (and this is why I use normally Foxit on my XP machine).

IMHO Foxit is a good software, but depending on the version it can be nagging and also bloated, SumatraPDF is very good, but as well it may depend on the version. and it is growing, 2.5.2 around 5 MB, 3.1.2 (last with XP supported ) around 6.5 MB, current 3.2 around 14 MB ...

On newer (windows 7-10) machines I also use SumatraPDF, though. 

jaclaz

 

 

  

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