PDF Files. PDF stands for Portable Document Format; this file type was developed to allow organizations to distribute information in the format and layout in which they were created, without requiring the user to have a copy of the originating program. All you need is the free Adobe Acrobat Reader in order to read and print PDF files.

If you do not have the Reader, or have a version earlier than 6.0, you can download it from Adobe's Web site for free (find out which version you have by opening the Reader and clicking Help, About Acrobat Reader).

Here is the procedure for downloading and installing the Reader. You may want to print out this page.

1. Click on the link or icon above to connect to Adobe's download page

2. Answer the questions to download the Reader file appropriate for your operating system (EVMS' connection speed is broadband)

3. Make a note of the location on your hard drive where the file was saved

After the download is complete:

1. double-click the newly downloaded file

2. follow the instructions on your screen to install the Reader

3. use your browser's Back button to return to the page you were on to download and read or print the forms

Compressed or Zipped files. Sometimes a group of files are compressed into one file, a Zip file. To use a compressed file, you will need a program to extract the individual files from it. For versions of Windows earlier than Windows XP, Winzip is a good choice (handling zipped files is built in to Windows XP); for other platforms, please search for compression software at your favorite software site. Again, you will need to download and install the compression software, using the same procedure as above, in order to use compressed files.