When PDF was introduced in 1993, one of the most persistent problems in
mainstream computing was that reliably publishing documents (either literally
via printing, or simply electronically distributing them for others to view) was
_hard_.
There were a lot of hurdles:
* Simply moving a document (whether an office document, Postscript file, or
something else) from one computer to another could result in an unreadable or
unpleasant display.
* Printers (from consumer models up to high-end
typesetters) each had their own proprietary formats and requirements.
* Many document formats were tied to a single vendor, or a
single operating system.
One of PDF's initial design criteria and fundamental promises was to address
this family of problems, so that one could distribute and use documents with any
display, any operating system, and any print device, with confidence that the
result would remain faithful to the author's intent. This was such a pressing,
unmet concern that it gave the file type its name: the _Portable_ Document
Format. Let's talk about how that portability is accomplished.

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