--- title: "This 20-year-old open-source Adobe alternative makes modern PDF readers feel bloated" url: https://daily.dev/posts/this-20-year-old-open-source-adobe-alternative-makes-modern-pdf-readers-feel-bloated-6xy0gllib source_url: https://www.xda-developers.com/old-open-source-adobe-alternative-makes-modern-pdf-readers-feel-bloated type: article source: "XDA Developers" published: 2026-08-26T20:04:23.352Z updated: 2026-08-26T20:11:23.503Z tags: ["open-source", "windows"] reading_time: 3 upvotes: 0 comments: 0 language: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # This 20-year-old open-source Adobe alternative makes modern PDF readers feel bloated **[XDA Developers](https://daily.dev/sources/xda-developers)** · 3 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary An open-source, 20-year-old PDF reader called SumatraPDF is praised as a lightweight alternative to Adobe Acrobat Reader. It focuses purely on fast, distraction-free document viewing rather than a full editing suite, supports additional formats like EPUB, MOBI, XPS, DjVu, CHM, CBZ, and CBR, and offers a config file for power-user customization of zoom, navigation, and shortcuts. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### What file formats does SumatraPDF support besides PDF? SumatraPDF supports several document and ebook formats beyond PDF, including EPUB, MOBI, XPS, DjVu, CHM, CBZ, and CBR. It can open these directly from Windows without installing extra plugins or software, and the interface and reading controls stay consistent across all supported formats. _For anyone comparing lightweight readers across formats, daily.dev surfaces tool comparisons like this one._ ### How can I customize SumatraPDF beyond its built-in settings menu? SumatraPDF, being open source, includes a configuration file that lets users edit settings directly rather than relying only on the interface. This allows changes to default zoom levels, navigation behavior, and keyboard shortcuts that aren't otherwise exposed in the app's menus. _Developers tuning their toolchain configs can find similar customization tips on daily.dev._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [I replaced Adobe Acrobat with a 10x faster, browser-based open-source PDF toolkit](https://daily.dev/posts/i-replaced-adobe-acrobat-with-a-10x-faster-browser-based-open-source-pdf-toolkit-v83jta7z7) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [I used this free Adobe Acrobat alternative to edit all my PDF files and it blew my mind](https://daily.dev/posts/i-used-this-free-adobe-acrobat-alternative-to-edit-all-my-pdf-files-and-it-blew-my-mind-yk25lmg5w) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [I ditched Adobe Acrobat for a self-hosted PDF editor that uses less memory than my browser](https://daily.dev/posts/i-ditched-adobe-acrobat-for-a-self-hosted-pdf-editor-that-uses-less-memory-than-my-browser-5gyrtqjes) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Are there any decent programs for pdf viewing and editing for Linux that replace Adobe Acrobat?](https://daily.dev/posts/are-there-any-decent-programs-for-pdf-viewing-and-editing-for-linux-that-replace-adobe-acrobat--2xoydeizx) · Lobsters · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [I replaced Adobe Acrobat with Stirling PDF, but the real cost wasn't what I expected](https://daily.dev/posts/i-replaced-adobe-acrobat-with-stirling-pdf-but-the-real-cost-wasn-t-what-i-expected-irt4utbhu) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#open-source](https://daily.dev/tags/open-source), [#windows](https://daily.dev/tags/windows) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/this-20-year-old-open-source-adobe-alternative-makes-modern-pdf-readers-feel-bloated-6xy0gllib)