PDF Rendering library

Question

I working on a Metro Style application that need to render PDF documents (only viewing). I am looking for a library to render a .pdf document on the screen, preferably one I can include in my "commercial" app (pdf viewing is only a side functionality). Unfortunately, Windows 8 (atleast in the Dev Preview) does not have native PDF support :( Any suggestions for a library? I am writing my app in C++/Cx.

Minor addition: Third-party options shall not use APIs that are not allowed in Metro Style apps. :-/

Alternatively, I need a PDF parser and I will try to create my own Direct2D renderer (might work ok for simple PDFs).

Answer 1

Windows 8.1 (Blue) will include PDF viwer and editor APIs (WinRT based). Therefore, this seems to be the easiest solution for my scenario.

Answer 2

You could use Ghostscript, or MuPDF, I'm sure there are others. Both will require programming on your part. Both are available under commercial licences as well as GPL.

Answer 3

Here's a list of development libraries on wikipedia that lists the different license types and languages alongside. Quite useful, though probably not exhaustive.

At the time of writing, ones that much your requirements of C++, Windows with a commercial license are:

• Adobe PDF Library
• LEADTOOLS
• PDFTron