Adobe Acrobat ~ The original method, and the one with the most features. $300, for Windows and Mac. You can get more information at http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/main.html
ps2pdf ~ This command comes with most Linux distributions, so it's free. After you've printed a PostScript (ps) file from any Linux program, just run the following command:
ps2pdf original_file.ps new_file.pdf
Works like a charm!
By the way, you can convert PDFs to PostScript by running pdf2ps.
Win2PDF ~ Win2PDF installs as a printer under Windows NT, Windows 2000, or Windows XP. It's only $35. You can also get Batch2PDF, which converts entire directories of .doc, .html, .txt and .rtf files using Win2PDF and Microsoft Word. Get 'em while they're hot at http://www.win2pdf.com/
DocuCom PDF Driver ~ DocuCom's solution for Windows also installs as a printer (pretty much all PDF programs do). This particular program supports a lot of features, including compression, watermarks, font embedding, customizing document info, security, destination, and more. It costs $50. You can see it (and other neat PDF programs) for yourself at http://www.zeon.com.tw/zeoncom/
Ghostscript ~ Ghostscript is a set of free programs for Unix and Windows that will convert PostScript and other files to PDF. You can do a lot with Ghostscript, so be prepared to read all of the extensive documentation. Download and read everything at http://www.cs.wisc.edu/~ghost/index.htm
pdf995 ~ A reader emailed me and said "It is far and away the best of the free tools I have been able to find, especially for setup. I have been using the software for a couple of months now, and find it works very well." Get it yourself at http://www.pdf995.com.
Here's some solutions:
HTMLDoc ~ Available at http://www.easysw.com/htmldoc/ , HTMLDOC converts HTML files to PDF or PostScript on-the-fly, from the command- line for batch jobs, or from a GUI for interactive work.
goBCL ~ GoHTM provides a service that allows you to upload any file to their server, where they convert it on the fly. They now offer a product you can put on your own Intranet server. Check it out at http://www.gohtm.com/.
Adobe ~ Adobe offers a service on their Web site at http://createpdf.adobe.com/ that lets you create PDF files online from Web sites or from a variety of documents. Your first 10 file conversions are free.
Create a PDF Service with Samba ~ "... this article will show you how to use Linux, Samba, and GhostScript to provide a PDF-creation service to both Windows and Linux users. Of course, all of this can be obtained for free." For more details, see http://www.planetpdf.com/mainpage.asp?webpageid=1736.
ClibPDF ~ A solution implemented using PHP, ClibPDF takes input from a Web-based form and pours it into a PDF document. See http://www.php.net/manual/en/ref.cpdf.php.
Two excellent resources with lots of information about PDFs:
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