How do I disable the Adobe Acrobat plugin?

[lightner]

I don't like reading PDFs in my Web browsers tiny window. It never works the way I like...and is always way to slow. So, I tell MS Internet Exploder(tm) and Mozilla Firefox to not use a plugin, and like magic I get to manage any PDF documents I click on in my Web browser using Adobe Reader, but in it's own window. (True, sometimes I need to delete the plugin DLL in the browser's "secret place".)

How do I fix Google Chrome to not use the Acrobat Reader plugin?

The "tools" menu in Chrome looks very anemic...or am I missing the "expert" and/or "advanced" button?

[Ho0ber]

I know this isn't an ideal solution, but using Foxit Reader as your primary PDF viewer should work, as it doesn't have a browser plugin. I personally like it more than proper Acrobat Reader, but I know this isn't quite what you're looking for.

Bumpage- anyone have any other ideas? Does Chrome have an Acrobat plugin in it's plugins folder that can be removed? (I can't check myself, being at work and all)

[sanga282]

huge window in GC so i dont think it applies....

[lightner]

The issue of reading PDF documents outside of one's Web browser is a matter of personal preference. I can't stand waiting for the Acrobat plugin to jerk along, starting and stopping while it reads in parts of the document as I move forward through the document. I'm happy wait for the document to load in it's entirety, then I begin reading it in a separate PDF "reader" program. I can do this with every other Web browser program out there...except Google Chrome.

And, I want my whole display screen's pixels available to me to read the document. I agree that Chrome give back more of the pixels to content display, but the PDF plugin still takes up a lot of limited screen space with it's own "buttons".

What I can't figure out is where/how Chrome is finding the Adobe PDF reader "plugin". I guess I'll have to do what I've done in the past and "scrub" my hard drive of all copies of Adobe's @#&$!% plugin DLL (i.e., "nppdf32.dll"). If the DLL is not on the disk anywhere, Chrome won't be able to find it and run it! :-)

[Ho0ber]

What I can't figure out is where/how Chrome is finding the Adobe PDF reader "plugin". I guess I'll have to do what I've done in the past and "scrub" my hard drive of all copies of Adobe's @#&$!% plugin DLL (i.e., "nppdf32.dll"). If the DLL is not on the disk anywhere, Chrome won't be able to find it and run it! :-)

Yeah, that is all a bit of a mystery to me too. Google black magic.

[sanga282]

adobe store some stuff in your common files folder check there

[Aces]

I've always changed this setting inside Acrobat Reader. In version 7 it's in Edit-preferences-Internet, then uncheck "Display PDF in Browser". Or does this only work with MSIE?

[ljfrench]

I know this isn't an ideal solution, but using Foxit Reader as your primary PDF viewer should work, as it doesn't have a browser plugin. I personally like it more than proper Acrobat Reader, but I know this isn't quite what you're looking for.

Bumpage- anyone have any other ideas? Does Chrome have an Acrobat plugin in it's plugins folder that can be removed? (I can't check myself, being at work and all)

I, too, love FoxIt. But Chrome seems to use Adobe Reader even though FoxIt is set as my default PDF reader. A plug-in manager for Chrome would seem to be necessary. If I get FoxIt to work, I'll post what I find here.

-ljfrench

[Nishi]

Delete or rename the DLL file:
"c:\program files\adobe\reader 9.0\reader\browser\nppdf32.dll"
Also search for copies of nppdf32.dll in Firefox/other browsers folders.

To find which nppdf32.dll is actually used, you can run Process Explorer (link) (SysInternals/Microsoft).
Just open any DLL file in the browser and look through loaded DLL modules in the Lower Pane (DLL mode).

[matthawke]

I registered to report that Nishi's advice worked for me - using that method I discovered that Reader 8.0 was supplying its DLL to Chrome. Renamed the DLL (to disable it) and restarted Chrome, voila! Now using the Foxit Firefox plugin in Chrome.

Thanks Nishi!