In the constantly evolving digital environment, where the effective sharing of information is vital, selecting the correct format for presenting your content is essential.
Two prominent contenders in this arena are HTML and PDF. It's essential to understand both the benefits and drawbacks that HTML and PDFs bring to the table.
In this blog post, I've pulled together some advantages and disadvantages of each format and organized them into concise, easy-to-read lists. My hope is that these lists will help you make informed choices that align with your content's subject matter and user preferences.
I tried to ensure those lists remained impartial, but I may have fallen short in a few instances. And that's because, drawing from my professional experience, I believe there's nothing as straightforward to update, as accessible and searchable, as adaptable to new technologies, and as accommodating of a variety of interactive elements like HTML. (Clearly, I'm a fan. )
With that said, indeed, PDF does have its place. Ultimately, the selection between HTML and PDF hinges on the precise needs of your content and the intended audience.
HTML
Benefits of publishing digital content in HTML
- Accessibility
- HTML provides a structured way to organize content using semantic elements (headings, paragraphs, lists, etc.). This structure helps screen readers and other assistive technologies understand and present content to users with disabilities accurately.
- Presentation
- HTML supports embedding various media types (images, videos, audio), enhancing the overall on-screen presentation of content.
- Mobile
- HTML enables responsive websites that adapt to different screen sizes and orientations, ensuring a consistent and user-friendly experience on mobile devices.
- Editing
- HTML content can be easily edited using simple text editors or more advanced web development tools, allowing quick updates and revisions
- HTML content can be easily edited using simple text editors or more advanced web development tools, allowing quick updates and revisions
Drawbacks of publishing digital content in HTML
- Accessibility
- "No ARIA is better than bad ARIA." Incorrect use of ARIA results in an experience that is far less accessible than if no ARIA was used at all.
- Presentation
- Different browsers may render HTML content differently, potentially causing inconsistencies in appearance.
- Mobile
- If not optimized, HTML content might lead to slower loading times on mobile devices, which can negatively impact user experience and search engine rankings.
- Editing
- Without a content management system (CMS), updating and maintaining a large HTML-based website can be challenging, requiring technical expertise.
Benefits of publishing digital content in PDF
- Accessibility
- PDF files can be made accessible by incorporating features like alt text for images, proper heading structure, bookmarks, and tags. But for best results, those features should be built into the source document (i.e., Word) before exporting to PDF.
- Presentation
- PDFs preserve the formatting and layout of the original document, ensuring that fonts, images, colors, and page structures remain intact. Keeping the format is especially important for music, languages, and math files.
- Mobile
- An optimized PDF can be stored on your phone and easily retrieved. This is especially useful for proof of car insurance, event tickets, proof of medical condition, etc.
- Editing
- While PDFs are not as inherently editable as HTML, you can make specific edits, including text editing, image replacement, and page reordering.
Drawbacks of publishing digital content in PDF
- Accessibility
- Even if the PDF has been tagged correctly, other elements in the document (images, links, tables, etc.) can create challenges for screen reader users and users of magnification software.
- Presentation
- While PDF is intended to be a cross-platform format, compatibility issues can still exist. Formatting might not appear as intended on specific devices or applications and may require magnification and scrolling.
- Mobile
- PDFs don't inherently adapt to different screen sizes or orientations, which can lead to a poor user experience on devices with varying screen dimensions.
- Editing
- If updates and changes are not made carefully, the layout of the document can be adversely affected. In addition, unlike web content, where updates are published without any interaction required by the users, distributing updated PDFs requires users to download the new version.
- If updates and changes are not made carefully, the layout of the document can be adversely affected. In addition, unlike web content, where updates are published without any interaction required by the users, distributing updated PDFs requires users to download the new version.
