How to View and Download Documents

The District forms available for downloading are in three different file formats: Adobe Acrobat PDF, Microsoft Word for Windows, or WordPerfect for DOS. Most of the forms are available in Adobe Acrobat PDF, described below.

Adobe Acrobat PDF Format

The Adobe Acrobat PDF format allows you to view the document and to save it so you can print it locally. In order to view and print these files you must first download Adobe's Acrobat reader and install it on your computer. The reader is absolutely free and may be obtained by pointing your web browser to Adobe' s Homepage at http://www.adobe.com.

Or, download your operating system's version of the Acrobat reader now at http://www.adobe.com/prodindex/acrobat/readstep.html

Setting up the Acrobat reader is an easy task as it does all the work for you. The following steps are typical of an installation:

Download the self-extracting acrobat reader (the reader is available for most operating systems). You may need to use "Save Next Link As..." or "Save to Disk" functions of your Web browser. Approx. 7 minutes
Save the file to a temporary directory.
From "File Manager" or "Explorer" run the self-extracting acrobat reader program and follow the instructions of the setup program.
The program will be automatically installed and set up for your browser. If your browser does not read the PDF files, you may need to set up the program in your browser's "Options" menu. For example, with Netscape use Options | General Preferences | Helpers to set up a new PDF type.

New Interactive Adobe Acrobat Files

Recently updated and new permit application forms will be available online as interactive Adobe Acrobat (pdf) files. These files allow the user to type information directly into the form, and then print the form and save a hard copy for personal records. If the the user has the full suite of Adobe Acrobat programs (i.e. not just Acrobat Reader) these files can also be saved on the computer system, for instructions on saving an interactive pdf see the following document: Interactive Adobe Files.

Microsoft Word and WordPerfect Files

Some documents are available in Microsoft Word (for Windows) and/or WordPerfect (for DOS) format. These files have been prepared for downloading using Pkware's PKZIP compression software. The downloadable ZIP file contains whichever format is available, or both, as noted on the table below. To decompress the files, you will need a copy of the PKUNZIP utility from PKWARE. You may obtain this shareware utility at http://www.pkware.com.

Or, download PKUNZIP now.

Setting up the PKUNZIP is a relatively easy task. The following steps are typical of an installation:

The file downloaded, PKZ204G.EXE, is self-extracting utility that should be placed in its own directory (e.g., c:\utility\zip).
From "File Manager" or "Explorer" use the RUN command to extract the program files.
Using the "pkunzip.exe" program can be made easy by one of three methods:
1. From the Windows operating system "associate" the file extension ZIP with the program "pkunzip.exe". The process differs between Windows 3.1 and Windows 95, but the concept is the same.
2. Utilize a shareware program such as WINZIP. You may obtain a copy of WINZIP at http://www.winzip.com.
3. Modify the AUTOEXEC.BAT file to to add the directory location to the PATH command. This will make running the utility easier when done from the DOS prompt.
The typical command to unzip a file is: pkunzip filename.zip

Downloading a ZIPed file requires the user to SAVE the FILE to DISK. Your browser should already be set up to to prompt you to save any file with a ZIP extension, however you may need to set up your browser to do this in the "Options" menu. For example, with Netscape use Options | General Preferences | Helpers to indicate that ZIP files should be SAVED to DISK.

If you can't read the Word Files...

If you have downloaded Word files as instructed above, unzipped them, and cannot read them, you can try to obtain a viewer or converter from Microsoft.

For more information or assistance, call the District at (805) 961-8800 or e-mail us at apcd@sbcapcd.org. For Permit and Engineering downloads, email engr@sbcapcd. For Rules downloads, email rules@sbcapcd.org

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