# computer question - adobe .pdf protected file - how can I copy it? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 6, 2009, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-question-adobe-pdf-protected-file-how-can-i-copy-it/488600 "2009-03-06T23:49:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2009, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-question-adobe-pdf-protected-file-how-can-i-copy-it/488600/21 "2009-03-08T01:38:22Z")
What’s the manual called? WAG, it almost sounds like that CD autoran some special DRM software when you put it in (which would be a really scary and unethical thing to do, but Sony did it…)… ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2009, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-question-adobe-pdf-protected-file-how-can-i-copy-it/488600/22 "2009-03-08T01:44:03Z")
Also, try this: [http://www.fileopen.com/removeplugin.html](http://www.fileopen.com/removeplugin.html) ---
**Author:** ![Number](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/number/32/242_2.png) [@Number](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Number)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2009, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-question-adobe-pdf-protected-file-how-can-i-copy-it/488600/23 "2009-03-08T18:26:36Z")
Version 0.5 of [SumatraPDF](http://blog.kowalczyk.info/software/sumatrapdf/download-prev.html) can print protected PDFs. You could try using it in conjunction with something like [PDFCreator](http://sourceforge.net/projects/pdfcreator/) to output to a new, unprotected file. ---
**Author:** ![crypto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b3f665/32.png) [@crypto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crypto)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2009, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-question-adobe-pdf-protected-file-how-can-i-copy-it/488600/24 "2009-03-08T21:30:40Z")
> [@Reply](#): > > What’s the manual called? > > WAG, it almost sounds like that CD autoran some special DRM software when you put it in (which would be a really scary and unethical thing to do, but Sony did it…)… The manual is a technical auto manual. I purchased it because I am restoring a car (something I can get into on another occasion. Talk about your fun! :rolleyes: ) Anyway, seeing as the people I talked to at the publishing house had no idea there was any security on it and had no problem with me trying to move it to my Mac, I wonder where this was installed. I can guess as to why, but I couldn’t be the first person to bring this up. Actually, if I would have read the damn description a little closer, I would have known this was for windows-based pc’s, so maybe I am. I’m so tired of this, I think I’m just going to buy the hard copy of the manual. Not what I wanted, but how much time can I spend on this? HA! It’s now become a quest. I’ll continue to do something and report back to you all until I can’t take it anymore. it’s my file, dammit! It’s my manual! If it was a hard copy, I could make notes in the margins, so why are they torturing me? I can’t believe I could possibly sell enough copies of this thing to make it worth while to steal. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-question-adobe-pdf-protected-file-how-can-i-copy-it/488600.md?page=1)