Snapshots -vs- .pdfs

[BlueDolphin]

Hello all. I'm looking for some opinions on using snapshot files or
..pdf for some reports. We are in the initial stages of creating some
reports in access that will be pulled online through Cold Fusion. In
the past, I have simply created reporting tables with routines that
populated the tables overnight. I then use Cold Fusion to output the
info online as I wanted it to look.

I am in a shop now that wants to use either .pdfs or Snapshot files to
display their access reports online. I have put several pdfs online
in the past (...I didn't make them... just linked them up...), but
have never worked with snapshot files at all. I've heard of some
performance issues related to snapshot files, but don't know much
beyond that.

I'm interested in hearing from people who have been down this road
before. Which is the better approach with the best performance,
flexibility, ease of use, advantages, disadvantages etc... pdfs or
snapshot files?

Thanks tons for your input!

[Danny J. Lesandrini]

I love snapshot files ... hate pdf.

--
Danny J. Lesandrini
dl*********@hot mail.com
http://amazecreations.com/datafast
"BlueDolphi n" <bl************ *@hotmail.com> wrote in message news:fb******** *************** ***@posting.goo gle.com...

Hello all. I'm looking for some opinions on using snapshot files or
.pdf for some reports. We are in the initial stages of creating some
reports in access that will be pulled online through Cold Fusion. In
the past, I have simply created reporting tables with routines that
populated the tables overnight. I then use Cold Fusion to output the
info online as I wanted it to look.

I am in a shop now that wants to use either .pdfs or Snapshot files to
display their access reports online. I have put several pdfs online
in the past (...I didn't make them... just linked them up...), but
have never worked with snapshot files at all. I've heard of some
performance issues related to snapshot files, but don't know much
beyond that.

I'm interested in hearing from people who have been down this road
before. Which is the better approach with the best performance,
flexibility, ease of use, advantages, disadvantages etc... pdfs or
snapshot files?

Thanks tons for your input!

[Tony Toews]

"Danny J. Lesandrini" <dl*********@ho tmail.com> wrote:

I love snapshot files ... hate pdf.

Why? Some clients of clients refuse to install a snapshot viewer but happily will
accept PDFs.

Tony
--
Tony Toews, Microsoft Access MVP
Please respond only in the newsgroups so that others can
read the entire thread of messages.
Microsoft Access Links, Hints, Tips & Accounting Systems at
http://www.granite.ab.ca/accsmstr.htm

[MGFoster]

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Hash: SHA1

For Snapshot files to work on the user's web browser they have to have
the Snapshot viewer (executable/plug-in) installed on their PC, just
as to view a .pdf file requires Acrobat Reader. Do you know if your
projected user base will have the Snapshot viewer on their PC? We all
know that the Acrobat Reader can be downloaded for Adobe's website.
Do we all know where to get the Snapshot Viewer?

MGFoster:::mgf0 0 <at> earthlink <decimal-point> net
Oakland, CA (USA)

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BlueDolphin wrote:

Hello all. I'm looking for some opinions on using snapshot files or
.pdf for some reports. We are in the initial stages of creating some
reports in access that will be pulled online through Cold Fusion. In
the past, I have simply created reporting tables with routines that
populated the tables overnight. I then use Cold Fusion to output the
info online as I wanted it to look.

I am in a shop now that wants to use either .pdfs or Snapshot files to
display their access reports online. I have put several pdfs online
in the past (...I didn't make them... just linked them up...), but
have never worked with snapshot files at all. I've heard of some
performance issues related to snapshot files, but don't know much
beyond that.

I'm interested in hearing from people who have been down this road
before. Which is the better approach with the best performance,
flexibility, ease of use, advantages, disadvantages etc... pdfs or
snapshot files?

Thanks tons for your input!

[Danny J. Lesandrini]

I set up a web site that uses some snapshot files, and I put a link
to the viewer so it could be downloaded and installed. Otherwise
you're right, it's not obvious where to find it, though a quick search
of Microsoft downloads finds it in about 3 clicks.

As far as why I don't like Adobe pdfs, I'm not sure. There's nothing
convenient about them. It takes forever to load into a browser and
I have to watch the splash screen count up the addins, libraries, etc
only to be asked if I'd like to upgrade every time it loads. It's invasive.

Snapshot viewer doesn't have bells and whistles, but it does what it
says it does, without a great impact on my life. It just works.
--

Danny J. Lesandrini
dl*********@hot mail.com
http://amazecreations.com
"MGFoster" <[e-mail] > wrote in message news:cn******** *********@newsr ead1.news.pas.e arthlink.net...

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA1

For Snapshot files to work on the user's web browser they have to have
the Snapshot viewer (executable/plug-in) installed on their PC, just
as to view a .pdf file requires Acrobat Reader. Do you know if your
projected user base will have the Snapshot viewer on their PC? We all
know that the Acrobat Reader can be downloaded for Adobe's website.
Do we all know where to get the Snapshot Viewer?

MGFoster:::mgf0 0 <at> earthlink <decimal-point> net
Oakland, CA (USA)

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Version: PGP for Personal Privacy 5.0
Charset: noconv

iQA/AwUBP9eCR4echKq OuFEgEQJo4QCeKB wAWG/mA2bfVXbPHwbeS+ qTuHIAoMcZ
JtC1lRf6gbwQHL+ FLyffb1FP
=r/lq
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BlueDolphin wrote:

Hello all. I'm looking for some opinions on using snapshot files or
.pdf for some reports. We are in the initial stages of creating some
reports in access that will be pulled online through Cold Fusion. In
the past, I have simply created reporting tables with routines that
populated the tables overnight. I then use Cold Fusion to output the
info online as I wanted it to look.

I am in a shop now that wants to use either .pdfs or Snapshot files to
display their access reports online. I have put several pdfs online
in the past (...I didn't make them... just linked them up...), but
have never worked with snapshot files at all. I've heard of some
performance issues related to snapshot files, but don't know much
beyond that.

I'm interested in hearing from people who have been down this road
before. Which is the better approach with the best performance,
flexibility, ease of use, advantages, disadvantages etc... pdfs or
snapshot files?

Thanks tons for your input!

[Pavel Romashkin]

Not for online use, but I had my application send out reports as
snapshots. They were small files indeed (well, the reports were'n too
large either) but one must have a snapshot viewer on their PC to view
the file. If I were a user and had a choice, I would not want to
download anything just to be able to view a particular file.
Same goes with PDF, although it is far more widespread and most users
already have Acrobat or Reader, so that's less of an issue. PDF lends
itself to byte serving, so if your reports are lengthy, the user will
see the first page faster.

Cheers,
Pavel

BlueDolphin wrote:

Hello all. I'm looking for some opinions on using snapshot files or
.pdf for some reports. We are in the initial stages of creating some
reports in access that will be pulled online through Cold Fusion. In
the past, I have simply created reporting tables with routines that
populated the tables overnight. I then use Cold Fusion to output the
info online as I wanted it to look.

I am in a shop now that wants to use either .pdfs or Snapshot files to
display their access reports online. I have put several pdfs online
in the past (...I didn't make them... just linked them up...), but
have never worked with snapshot files at all. I've heard of some
performance issues related to snapshot files, but don't know much
beyond that.

I'm interested in hearing from people who have been down this road
before. Which is the better approach with the best performance,
flexibility, ease of use, advantages, disadvantages etc... pdfs or
snapshot files?

Thanks tons for your input!

[David W. Fenton]

tt****@teluspla net.net (Tony Toews) wrote in
<g8************ *************** *****@4ax.com>:

"Danny J. Lesandrini" <dl*********@ho tmail.com> wrote:

I love snapshot files ... hate pdf.

Why? Some clients of clients refuse to install a snapshot viewer
but happily will accept PDFs.

There was a major security hole discovered last fall in the
snapshot viewer, so it wouldn't surprise me that people would want
to avoid it.

--
David W. Fenton http://www.bway.net/~dfenton
dfenton at bway dot net http://www.bway.net/~dfassoc

[Danny J. Lesandrini]

I never understand these security holes. Does that mean that if
I use snapshot viewer, my credit card information is vulnerable?
<grin>

--

Danny J. Lesandrini
dl*********@hot mail.com
http://amazecreations.com
"David W. Fenton" <dX********@bwa y.net.invalid> wrote in message news:94******** *************** ****@24.168.128 .78...

tt****@teluspla net.net (Tony Toews) wrote in
<g8************ *************** *****@4ax.com>:

"Danny J. Lesandrini" <dl*********@ho tmail.com> wrote:

I love snapshot files ... hate pdf.

Why? Some clients of clients refuse to install a snapshot viewer
but happily will accept PDFs.

There was a major security hole discovered last fall in the
snapshot viewer, so it wouldn't surprise me that people would want
to avoid it.

--
David W. Fenton http://www.bway.net/~dfenton
dfenton at bway dot net http://www.bway.net/~dfassoc

[Larry Linson]

It may mean that everything on your and your clients computers is
vulnerable. Stealing credit card information isn't the primary target of
viruses and worms, Danny.

"Danny J. Lesandrini" <dl*********@ho tmail.com> wrote in message
news:br******** ***@ID-82595.news.uni-berlin.de...

I never understand these security holes. Does that mean that if
I use snapshot viewer, my credit card information is vulnerable?
<grin>

--

Danny J. Lesandrini
dl*********@hot mail.com
http://amazecreations.com
"David W. Fenton" <dX********@bwa y.net.invalid> wrote in message

news:94******** *************** ****@24.168.128 .78...

tt****@teluspla net.net (Tony Toews) wrote in
<g8************ *************** *****@4ax.com>:

"Danny J. Lesandrini" <dl*********@ho tmail.com> wrote:

>I love snapshot files ... hate pdf.

Why? Some clients of clients refuse to install a snapshot viewer
but happily will accept PDFs.

There was a major security hole discovered last fall in the
snapshot viewer, so it wouldn't surprise me that people would want
to avoid it.

--
David W. Fenton http://www.bway.net/~dfenton
dfenton at bway dot net http://www.bway.net/~dfassoc

[Danny J. Lesandrini]

I know that Larry. I was being facetious. We've actually had this
discussion before, as I recall. I'me very bad about security, as a
rule, in part because I don't understand how hackers use these holes.
I guess that was what I was getting at. Can you tell me how someone
exploits my Snapshot viewer to get at my private data?
--
Danny J. Lesandrini
dl*********@hot mail.com
http://amazecreations.com/datafast
"Larry Linson" <bo*****@localh ost.not> wrote in message news:xd******** ********@nwrddc 01.gnilink.net. ..

It may mean that everything on your and your clients computers is
vulnerable. Stealing credit card information isn't the primary target of
viruses and worms, Danny.

"Danny J. Lesandrini" <dl*********@ho tmail.com> wrote in message
news:br******** ***@ID-82595.news.uni-berlin.de...

I never understand these security holes. Does that mean that if
I use snapshot viewer, my credit card information is vulnerable?
<grin>

--

Danny J. Lesandrini
dl*********@hot mail.com
http://amazecreations.com
"David W. Fenton" <dX********@bwa y.net.invalid> wrote in message

news:94******** *************** ****@24.168.128 .78...

tt****@teluspla net.net (Tony Toews) wrote in
<g8************ *************** *****@4ax.com>:

>"Danny J. Lesandrini" <dl*********@ho tmail.com> wrote:
>
>>I love snapshot files ... hate pdf.
>
>Why? Some clients of clients refuse to install a snapshot viewer
>but happily will accept PDFs.

There was a major security hole discovered last fall in the
snapshot viewer, so it wouldn't surprise me that people would want
to avoid it.

--
David W. Fenton http://www.bway.net/~dfenton
dfenton at bway dot net http://www.bway.net/~dfassoc