Field notes.
How a document learns to run code, how to make one yourself, and how to turn the PDFs you already have into something you'll actually revise from.
Under the hood · 9 min
How PDF Games Work: JavaScript, Form Fields and a Lot of Nerve
A PDF can carry JavaScript, and form fields can be shown, hidden and rewritten by that script. Put the two together and you have a tiny, very strange game console.
Read the guideTutorial · 11 min
Make Your Own PDF Game: A Guess-the-Number Game in Pure Python
We'll write a real, playable PDF game from scratch with nothing but Python's standard library — and learn exactly what's inside a PDF along the way.
Study smarter · 8 min
How to Turn a PDF into a Study Game (Quiz, Flashcards, Word Search & More)
Reading notes twice feels productive but rarely sticks. Turning the same PDF into a game makes you retrieve the material — which is what actually builds memory.
Mobile · 6 min
Can You Play PDF Games on a Phone? What Works on iPhone and Android
Short answer: interactive PDF games need a viewer that runs PDF JavaScript, and phone viewers don't. Here's why, and what you can do instead.
History · 8 min
A Short History of PDF Games: From Form Scripts to Doom and Linux
PDF scripting was built for tax forms. It took about twenty years for people to notice it could run arcade games — and then only a few more to get Doom and Linux running.