# Good solution to sending a .pdf back to someone after signing it? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 16, 2009, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670 "2009-03-16T21:39:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2009, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/1 "2009-03-16T21:39:11Z")
I have to send a couple pages in a pdf file after signing them. I’ll probably end up printing them and then faxing them or scanning and emailing them. Anybody have a better way? I have a scanned-in signature that might be put to use somehow. Of course, I’m looking for a free solution, if I have to pay I might as well fax/scan. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![fluiddruid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fluiddruid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fluiddruid)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/2 "2009-03-17T19:45:05Z")
Per request, I’m bumping this to GQ, which seems to be a good fit. ---
**Author:** ![THespos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8c91f0/32.png) [@THespos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/THespos)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/3 "2009-03-17T20:27:58Z")
eFax? You can make your signature a stamp. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/4 "2009-03-17T21:10:19Z")
> [@THespos](#): > > You can make your signature a stamp. If you have Adobe Acrobat (full version, not the free Reader). ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/5 "2009-03-17T21:45:57Z")
> [@THespos](#): > > eFax? > > You can make your signature a stamp. eFax does not appear to be free. ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/6 "2009-03-17T22:54:50Z")
You can use a [Genius MousePen](http://www.amazon.com/Genius-MousePen-6-Inch-Graphic-Tablet/dp/B000LEI95I) it’s got a program to let you do exaclty that. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/7 "2009-03-17T23:09:57Z")
> [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](#): > > You can use a [Genius MousePen](http://www.amazon.com/Genius-MousePen-6-Inch-Graphic-Tablet/dp/B000LEI95I) it’s got a program to let you do exaclty that. Thanks, but to reiterate, I’m looking for a free solution. ---
**Author:** ![Twoflower](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/twoflower/32/22_2.png) [@Twoflower](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Twoflower)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/8 "2009-03-17T23:15:31Z")
The party sending you the PDF has the option of making the file electronically signable by you, even if you only have acrobat reader. Otherwise, print-sign-scan-email is pretty much the way to go. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/9 "2009-03-17T23:18:23Z")
> [@Twoflower](#): > > The party sending you the PDF has the option of making the file electronically signable by you, even if you only have acrobat reader. How does that work? If someone sends me a pdf with that enabled, what do I do to sign it? ---
**Author:** ![Twoflower](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/twoflower/32/22_2.png) [@Twoflower](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Twoflower)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2009, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/10 "2009-03-22T00:19:46Z")
The sender uses form-making tools to place a signature box on the document, then enables the document for Acrobat reader. When you open the document, it will have the necessary tool bar and instructions. Basically, you create a digital ID for yourself, then click on the signature field and enter your password. ---
**Author:** ![Casserole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b77776/32.png) [@Casserole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casserole)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2009, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/11 "2009-03-22T03:46:19Z")
Use PDFCreator. It’s free, just give it a google. Installing it will install a “PDF Printer” to your printers list. You can use it to print your signed document to a pdf file, and send it right back. ---
**Author:** ![Crowbar\_of\_Irony\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f08c70/32.png) [@Crowbar\_of\_Irony\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crowbar_of_Irony_3)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2009, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/12 "2009-03-22T04:18:47Z")
As an aside: I find it strange to have such arrangement, especially when it is not done supervised. Suppose I generate a PNG of my own signature - anyone who gets their hand on it basically can sign all sort of things in your name. (I done it before - as in giving an electronic signature. I just take the pen tool in MS Word and try my best to get the shape right). For such cases isn’t it better to use email encryption or some other form of electronic authentication? Sorry if this is derailing the thread; maybe I should start a new one. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/13 "2011-03-09T14:04:54Z")
FYI, I just found a possibly very nice solution: [http://www.hellofax.com](http://www.hellofax.com) ---
**Author:** ![yoyodyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a9a28c/32.png) [@yoyodyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yoyodyne)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/14 "2011-03-09T15:46:11Z")
> [@Crowbar\_of\_Irony\_3](#): > > As an aside: I find it strange to have such arrangement, especially when it is not done supervised. Suppose I generate a PNG of my own signature - anyone who gets their hand on it basically can sign all sort of things in your name. > > (I done it before - as in giving an electronic signature. I just take the pen tool in MS Word and try my best to get the shape right). > > For such cases isn’t it better to use email encryption or some other form of electronic authentication? > > Sorry if this is derailing the thread; maybe I should start a new one. Electronic authentication is best but still a pain to set up on both ends. Anybody that has your signature on a piece of paper can create a PNG as well so if you have to sign you may as well use an image. ---
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/15 "2011-03-09T17:58:10Z")
There’s no need to pay for Adobe Acrobat; there’s plenty of free software which will allow you to overlay an image of your signature onto a PDF. If you’re comfortable with LaTeX, the pdfpages package should let you do this. A non-LaTeX solution is [pdftk](http://www.pdflabs.com/tools/pdftk-the-pdf-toolkit/), whose “stamp” command lets you overlay one PDF page onto another. Pdftk is a command-line utility but I seem to recall there being third-party graphical interfaces for it. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/16 "2011-03-09T21:37:30Z")
Are these legal documents? If so, you should probably discuss the signatory process with your attorney. Especially if these are being used in various jurisdictions, where there may be specific laws regarding electronic signatures. If it’s just for internal approval, etc. discuss it with the owner of the process. ---
**Author:** ![GilaB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8e7dd6/32.png) [@GilaB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GilaB)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/17 "2011-03-09T21:39:20Z")
> [@Revtim](#): > > FYI, I just found a possibly very nice solution: [http://www.hellofax.com](http://www.hellofax.com) Slate just had [an article](http://www.slate.com/id/2287346/) praising them earlier this week. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/18 "2011-03-09T21:43:55Z")
> [@Omar\_Little](#): > > Are these legal documents? If so, you should probably discuss the signatory process with your attorney. Especially if these are being used in various jurisdictions, where there may be specific laws regarding electronic signatures. > > If it’s just for internal approval, etc. discuss it with the owner of the process. Well, it was two years ago, but IIRC it was just some standard job application stuff. > [@GilaB](#): > > Slate just had [an article](http://www.slate.com/id/2287346/) praising them earlier this week. That’s actually where I discovered it from. ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Downtown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Mr\_Downtown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Downtown)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2011, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/19 "2011-03-10T05:19:58Z")
I sometimes open the PDF in Photoshop (if it’s a raster scan) or in Illustrator and add my scanned signature, and then save it as a new PDF that I can email back. I often have to send a W-9 to new clients, so it was worth the time it took. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2011, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670/20 "2011-03-10T15:08:34Z")
Just to clarify some terminology … In the law, “electronic signature” means some magic with encryption & public keys to validate the identity of someone who handled a document. Sort of the cryptographic equivalent of having a unique & universally recognized wax seal applied to a paper document. Despite having been a legally blessed concept for 10+ years now (at least in the US) there has not been much progress on popularizing universally recognized signing methods. “Electronic signature” does NOT refer to applying a graphic equivalent of your pen and ink cursively-written name into an electronic document. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-solution-to-sending-a-pdf-back-to-someone-after-signing-it/489670.md?page=2)