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BROWSER DOWNLOADS
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T E C H N I C A L  H E L P

If you are experiencing problems with the Secretary of State web site, below are a few suggestions that may assist you in resolving the problem.

If your questions are not answered here, please send an e-mail to the Secretary of State Webmaster detailing the problems you are encountering.

INTERNET BROWSER

Older Version of Browser
The Secretary of State website is best viewed using either Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE), version 5.0.5 or higher, or Netscape Navigator, version 7.0 or higher. If you're using an older version of either of these browsers, you may need to upgrade the version. To do so, please use the "browser download" links on the left (note: these downloads are FREE).

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ADOBE READER/PDF FILES

The Secretary of State standard for posting documents and forms online is Adobe's Portable Document Format (PDF). To open a PDF file, you should have the latest version of the free Adobe Reader. If after downloading the reader and reviewing the information below you still cannot open a PDF file, you can visit the Adobe Reader support page.

Verify Version of Adobe Reader
In order to view the PDF files on the Secretary of State's website, we recommend that you have Adobe Reader version 7.0 or higher installed on your computer. To determine the version you have, open Adobe Reader, click on "help," and then "About Adobe Reader." To download the latest version of Adobe Reader, use the link on the left (note: this download is FREE).

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Confirm Adobe Configuration
When accessing PDF files on the Web, you have two options:
  1. Open the PDF file within the browser window, or
  2. Open the PDF file in Adobe Reader as a separate application.
You may experience problems when opening the PDF file directly in the browser. To change the Adobe Reader setting to open the PDF file directly in Adobe Reader as a separate application rather than in your browser, follow the steps below: For Adobe Reader Version 7.0:
  1. Start Adobe Reader 7.0.
  2. Choose Edit > Preferences.
  3. Select Internet in the Categories box.
  4. Deselect "Display PDF in browser" in the Web Browser Options area.
  5. Click OK and exit from the Adobe Reader.
You may need to close and re-launch your browser for these changes to take effect. Once these changes are made you may be prompted with a message stating: "You have chosen to download a file from this location. What would you like to do?" You may either:
  1. Open the file from the current location, or
  2. Save the file to disk. Note, a message will display asking: "Always ask before opening this type of file?" Deselect the checkbox if you do not want to always be prompted with this message.
To continue to browse on the web you will need to return to your web browser.

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Save the PDF File to Your PC
Rather than modifying the Adobe settings as mentioned above, you may save the file to your local computer and open the PDF file directly in the reader. To save the file to your local PC:
  1. Right click on the title link.
  2. Select "Save Target As" (Internet Explorer) or "Save Link As" (Netscape) and save the file to your PC.
  3. Open Adobe Reader and open the file directly from the Reader.

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Blank Window
If you experience a blank window when downloading a PDF file within your web browser, you may need to upgrade to a newer version of Adobe Reader. Another solution may be to open the PDF file directly in Adobe Reader rather than in the browser (see "Save the PDF File to Your PC").

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Damaged Files
All of our PDF files are verified prior to posting to the web site. If you receive a message that the PDF file is damaged, most likely the download was not successful and you should attempt to download the file again.

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Completing "Fill-In" Forms
Occasionally, when using an older version of Adobe Reader and completing a "fill-in" form created in a newer version of the reader, the text you enter will be deleted as soon as you tab to the next field. If the text is entered a second time, the text will not be deleted. However, to avoid this problem, you should upgrade to a newer version of the Adobe Reader.

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Printing files
In some cases, when printing documents in PDF file format, some or all of the text may run together with no spaces between the words. However, the text displays properly on the screen. This problem can nearly always be resolved by installing the most recent printer driver available for your printer. You may be able to obtain a free printer driver update from your printer manufacturer's web site.

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