What does PDF mean?

[VolvoGirl]

@jasctalmt why do you ask?  A PDF file is an image/picture of your return.  Any computer or mobile device should be able to open and view a pdf file.  The other file Turbo Tax saves is the actual tax data file.  It ends in .tax2018 and can only be opened in the 2018 Desktop program installed on a full Windows or Mac computer.  

[BMcCalpin · Accepted solution]

PDF means "Portable Document Format". Developed by Adobe, this data format allows someone to publish documents electronically (like for the Internet) with a high degree of portability - i.e., it will look the same on all platforms.

The IRS uses PDF on all the forms it has for download on its website, and TurboTax uses this format to create tax returns that can be viewed on a wide variety of PCs and Mac products.

[dakotasmommy07]

To state it simply, it is a type of file that cannot be edited, as opposed to a word document or spreadsheet. It looks like a picture of a document. This type of file is used often because the author and viewer know that it has not been changed. Adobe Acrobat is the program used to read or make this type of file. 

[terrysonline]

When you are about to print a copy of the completed forms for yourself, you can also save those forms on your computer, as a pdf file. Clicking "pdf" indicates you want to save a copy on your computer.