Both Adobe Acrobat and
Reader
implement several standard features as modular application
plug-ins. These
plug-ins are loaded when Acrobat starts up. You can speed up Acrobat
startup and clean up its menus by telling Acrobat to load only the
features you desire.
One simple technique is to hold
down
the Shift key when launching Acrobat; this
prevents all
plug-ins from loading. A longer-term
solution is to move unwanted plug-ins to another, inert directory
where the startup loader won't find them. Another
solution
is to create plug-in profiles
that are switched using a batch file gateway. This latter solution
becomes really useful when combined with context menu hacks .
WARNING
Keep in mind that omitting plug-ins will alter how some PDFs interact
with you. If a PDF seems to be malfunctioning, try viewing it with
the full complement of Adobe's stock plug-ins
installed.
Unplugging Plug-Ins
Acrobat (or Reader) loads its
plug-ins
only once, when the application starts. On Windows, it scans a
specific directory and tries to interface with specific files,
recursing into subdirectories as it goes. This directory is named
plug_ins and it usually lives someplace such as:
C:\Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat 6.0\Acrobat\plug_ins\
or:
C:\Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat 6.0\Reader\plug_ins\
On Windows, plug-in files are named
*.api, but they are really DLLs .
On the Macintosh, plug-ins are stored inside the Acrobat
package. Control-click (or right-click, if you have a two-button
mouse) the icon for Acrobat, and choose Show Package Contents from
the menu. A window with a folder named Contents
will appear. Inside that folder is another folder called
Plug-ins, which contains the Macintosh version
of the same plug-ins. These have names like
Checkers.acroplugin.
Create a directory called plug_ins.unplugged in
the same directory or folder where plug_ins (or
Plug-ins) lives so that they are siblings. To
prevent a plug-in from being loaded, simply move it from
plug_ins to
plug_ins.unplugged. When a plug-in is located in
a subdirectory, such as preflight, move the
entire subdirectory.
"But how can I tell which plug-in files do
what?" Read on, friend.
Which Plug-Ins Do What?
Acrobat and Reader Versions 5 and 6 describe your installed Adobe
plug-ins
in the Help → About Adobe Plug-Ins
dialog (Acrobat → About Adobe Plug-Ins on the Mac).
Human-readable plug-in names are on the left side, as shown in . Click one of these and the right side gives
you the plug-in filename, a basic description, and the
plug-in's dependencies. It is a good read, as it
provides a straightforward laundry list of Acrobat's
features.
Figure 1. About Adobe Plug-Ins explaining Acrobat's stock plug-ins
Go through this list and write down the filenames of plug-ins you
don't need. Close Acrobat and use your file manager
to move these files (or directories) from
plug_ins into
plug_ins.unplugged. Open Acrobat and test the
new configuration.
Examples of Acrobat 5 plug-ins that I rarely use include
Accessibility Checker, Catalog, Database Connectivity, Highlight
Server, Infusium, Movie Player, MSAA, Reflow, SaveAsRTF, Spelling,
and Web-Hosted Service. Plug-ins I would never omit include Comments,
Forms, ECMAScript (a.k.a. JavaScript), and Weblink.
