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The PDF Association celebrates its members’ public statements
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for ISO-standardized PDF technology.

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Twenty Years of Trust: Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of PDF/A-1

November 2025 by PDF Association staff

This month the PDF industry is celebrating the 20th anniversary of PDF/A-1 (ISO 19005-1:2005), the publication of which revolutionized digital preservation.

Before this standard, archiving suffered from dependency issues. PDF/A-1, based on a constrained subset of PDF 1.4, mandated self-contained, device-independent documents. These rules ensure that a PDF/A document’s appearance can be reliably maintained over centuries, regardless of viewing software.

Rapidly adopted globally, the principles established in PDF/A-1 persist in later standards like PDF/A-4, which is based on PDF 2.0, the latest ISO standard for PDF.

Happy 20th, PDF/A! We (ok, not us personally) fully expect to be celebrating your 200th anniversary in November 2225!

This month the PDF industry is celebrating the 20th anniversary of PDF/A-1 (ISO 19005-1:2005), the publication of which revolutionized digital preservation.

Before this standard, archiving suffered from dependency issues. PDF/A-1, based on a constrained subset of PDF 1.4, mandated self-contained, device-independent documents. These rules ensure that a PDF/A document’s appearance can be reliably maintained over centuries, regardless of viewing software.

Rapidly adopted globally, the principles established in PDF/A-1 persist in later standards like PDF/A-4, which is based on PDF 2.0, the latest ISO standard for PDF.

Happy 20th, PDF/A! We (ok, not us personally) fully expect to be celebrating your 200th anniversary in November 2225!

PDF Days Happening Now!

August 2022 by PDF Association staff
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Register now for your last chance this year for two days of immersion in PDF technology expertise and PDF industry networking!

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August 2022 by John Brinkman (Adobe)
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John Brinkman provides an update on the work of the PDF Association’s Forms TWG and its development of the next … Read more

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August 2022 by Akash Choudhary (callas software GmbH)
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Dietrich von Seggern and Akash Choudhary from callas software and David van Driessche from Four Pees are presenting at this … Read more

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August 2022 by Paul Rayius
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The new PDF/UA Processor LWG’s mission is to establish principles and a framework, and then develop requirements for PDF/UA processors … Read more

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August 2022 by Matthias Valvekens (Matthias Valvekens)
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Matthias Valvekens explains the difference and respective value of digital signatures vs. MAC-based technology for authenticating PDF files.

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August 2022 by Matthias Valvekens (Matthias Valvekens)
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Matthias Valvekens, the ISO project leader who led development of ISO 32004, has written a pair of blog posts to … Read more

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August 2022 by PDF Association staff
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This year’s keynote addresses at PDF Days will be delivered by PDF Association CTO Peter Wyatt and Boeing’s Kenny Swope.

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July 2022 by PDF Association staff
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5 reasons your boss should want you to attend PDF Days Europe 2022 in September!

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July 2022 by PDF Association staff
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The new PDF/UA Processor LWG will work to formalize common understandings on processing PDF/UA-conforming PDF files.

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June 2022 by PDF Association staff
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Visiting the No. 1 PDF event – the PDF Days Europe 2022 – in Berlin? Great! Conference hotel – Novotel … Read more

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May 2022 by PDF Association
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33 educational sessions plus 2 keynotes in 2 days of networking opportunities at PDF Days Europe 2022, live in Berlin … Read more

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