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Firefox introduces PDF viewer

blog.mozilla.org

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Re: Firefox introduces PDF viewer

#61

Post by omaranto »

___1___ wrote: post #30
Watabou wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On the mac, Firefox Nightly loads the PDF in a second while Google Chrome Dev loads in about three seconds. I can enter text in the pdf in Chrome while Firefox gives an annoying little "The pdf might not be rendered perfectly" error bar at the top. Let's try Safari: Loads in under a second maybe even faster, super quick scrolling, ability to enter text and the option to download the pdf on the bottom. This is the way…

I don't have firefox and a pdf view won't change that. Your description of Safari matches that of Chromium on Arch Linux.

I don't think that's right: I use Chromium on Arch Linux and it does not seem to have a PDF viewer. It always offers to download PDFs and open them with a separate program, often warning me first that PDFs from unknown sources can be dangerous.

Re: Firefox introduces PDF viewer

#62

Post by dhconnelly »

hosay123 wrote: post #9

It's worth pointing out this is done in pure Javascript , and works by compiling PDF functions to equivalent Javascript functions which are then visible to Firefox's JIT. Despite being only around a year old, it still manages to render the majority of PDFs thrown at it (it's been my primary paper reader for the past 6 months or so). As for missing features like some complex gradients, I can't say I've missed them, ex…

Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google Docs are huge JavaScript web apps that run in all modern browsers and have enormous user bases. They form a huge part of Google's business. Additionally, Google develops, maintains, and promotes popular JavaScript developer tools like Closure Compiler, AngularJS, and the Chrome dev tools.

Are you implying that everyone should just shut down all R&D in web technologies that compete with or don't use JavaScript?

Re: Firefox introduces PDF viewer

#63

Post by meaty »

opinali wrote: post #13
hosay123 wrote: post #9

It's worth pointing out this is done in pure Javascript , and works by compiling PDF functions to equivalent Javascript functions which are then visible to Firefox's JIT. Despite being only around a year old, it still manages to render the majority of PDFs thrown at it (it's been my primary paper reader for the past 6 months or so). As for missing features like some complex gradients, I can't say I've missed them, ex…

Please take your time machine and go release PDF.js in early 2010. With good performance on the hardware and Javascript VMs of early 2010. Then I'll grant you the criticism of Chrome's PDF viewer. Otherwise, trolling... fact is, Chrome is the browser that liberated the world from Acrobat Reader. PDF.js is awesome and it may be the way to go, but as of today Chrome's viewer is still much better -- please try http://ww…

Bollocks. Chrome's PDF implementation absolutely sucks. I have numerous PDF documents which it can't handle at all. I've just opened them in Firefox 19 and they are absolutely spot on.

I'm uninstalling Acrobat reader for a week to see how it goes now. Chrome never gave me that.

Re: Firefox introduces PDF viewer

#64

Post by meaty »

DASD wrote: post #31
hosay123 wrote: post #9

It's worth pointing out this is done in pure Javascript , and works by compiling PDF functions to equivalent Javascript functions which are then visible to Firefox's JIT. Despite being only around a year old, it still manages to render the majority of PDFs thrown at it (it's been my primary paper reader for the past 6 months or so). As for missing features like some complex gradients, I can't say I've missed them, ex…

I thought one of the safety features of some pdf readers was the ability to disable javascript. How does that work here if this is entirely implemented in javascript? Disregard if I'm not understanding this correctly.

Different layers of abstraction. JavaScript embedded in a PDF probably turns up as a string after being parsed. It doesn't necessarily get eval'ed. It's turtles all the way down, until you say no.

Re: Firefox introduces PDF viewer

#65

Post by natex »

Watabou wrote: post #32
___1___ wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't have firefox and a pdf view won't change that. Your description of Safari matches that of Chromium on Arch Linux.

Does Chromium have a built in PDF reader? I thought google adds that in for Chrome along with Flash?

It is not included, but can be installed. (libpdf)

https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Chromium#Open_PDF_files...

Re: Firefox introduces PDF viewer

#66

Post by opinali »

Scriptor wrote: post #18
opinali wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Please take your time machine and go release PDF.js in early 2010. With good performance on the hardware and Javascript VMs of early 2010. Then I'll grant you the criticism of Chrome's PDF viewer. Otherwise, trolling... fact is, Chrome is the browser that liberated the world from Acrobat Reader. PDF.js is awesome and it may be the way to go, but as of today Chrome's viewer is still much better -- please try http://ww…

On average, I might need to fill out a PDF once or twice a year. Otherwise rendering for either one is perfectly fine for me.

This was just a random example. I'm sure if you take a statistically-significant variety of PDFs and benchmark rendering quality, speed and features in all PDF viewers out there, PDF.js won't be any closer to the top; Chrome's viewer will certainly not be the very best but not one of the worst either.

Re: Firefox introduces PDF viewer

#67

Post by opinali »

jareds wrote: post #58
opinali wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Please take your time machine and go release PDF.js in early 2010. With good performance on the hardware and Javascript VMs of early 2010. Then I'll grant you the criticism of Chrome's PDF viewer. Otherwise, trolling... fact is, Chrome is the browser that liberated the world from Acrobat Reader. PDF.js is awesome and it may be the way to go, but as of today Chrome's viewer is still much better -- please try http://ww…

Since I'm blind Firefox wins every time over Google Chrome. I tried out the link you had in your comment and I can at least read some of the text in Firefox with my screen reading software. I assume this is because Firefox turns it into some form of HTML that is then accessible through the normal function of assistive technology. Google Chrome uses some kind of plugin that doesn’t provide any accessibility support so…

This is a good point, but a separate issue (and kudos to PDF.js if accessibility was a purposeful design point of their implementation, not just a happy coincidence... they could certainly have chosen other avenues, such as generating a WebGL scene that would be opaque to screen readers). And Chrome's viewer should indeed be accessible, I'll raise this question internally.

Re: Firefox introduces PDF viewer

#68

Post by lclarkmichalek »

efdee wrote: post #60
snotrockets wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Chrome's PDF plugin is closed source, and written in C. It is very useful, but not free as in FOSS.

And... ?

Something being closed source matters to some people. You might not be one of them, but other people might have different perspectives that cause them to value an open source option above a closed source equivalent.

Re: Firefox introduces PDF viewer

#69

Post by jlongster »

dhconnelly wrote: post #62
hosay123 wrote: post #9

It's worth pointing out this is done in pure Javascript , and works by compiling PDF functions to equivalent Javascript functions which are then visible to Firefox's JIT. Despite being only around a year old, it still manages to render the majority of PDFs thrown at it (it's been my primary paper reader for the past 6 months or so). As for missing features like some complex gradients, I can't say I've missed them, ex…

Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google Docs are huge JavaScript web apps that run in all modern browsers and have enormous user bases. They form a huge part of Google's business. Additionally, Google develops, maintains, and promotes popular JavaScript developer tools like Closure Compiler, AngularJS, and the Chrome dev tools. Are you implying that everyone should just shut down all R&D in web technologies that compete w…

Your last statement is way overstating the original remark about NaCL. Google has definitely been pushing PNaCL as the solution for running large, complex apps that are usually native (like 3d games, and things that require lots of computation) on the web. And there's no way PNaCL is going to be viable in the next decade, it takes way too long for everyone to agree & implement.

Gmail, docs, etc are complex, but don't require tons of computation. They just require good web technologies. Google's work in this area is awesome, but that doesn't mean we can't call out PNaCL as a bad technology to push.

Re: Firefox introduces PDF viewer

#70

Post by gcb0 »

dhconnelly wrote: post #62
hosay123 wrote: post #9

It's worth pointing out this is done in pure Javascript , and works by compiling PDF functions to equivalent Javascript functions which are then visible to Firefox's JIT. Despite being only around a year old, it still manages to render the majority of PDFs thrown at it (it's been my primary paper reader for the past 6 months or so). As for missing features like some complex gradients, I can't say I've missed them, ex…

Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google Docs are huge JavaScript web apps that run in all modern browsers and have enormous user bases. They form a huge part of Google's business. Additionally, Google develops, maintains, and promotes popular JavaScript developer tools like Closure Compiler, AngularJS, and the Chrome dev tools. Are you implying that everyone should just shut down all R&D in web technologies that compete w…

i think his gripe was more with proprietary solutions and not really !javascript, as you imply.

what you did would be the same as if i replied to you:

Are you implying that everyone should just shut down all R&D in web technologies and just choose between NaCl or ActiveX?

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