Nitro PDF has updated its free PDF reading and creation tool with a selection of new features, plus performance improvements and bug fixes. Nitro PDF Reader 2.2 builds on previous releases with minor additions including a new Print option for PDFs in the context menu, automatic keyboard language detection in text insertion tools and support for rich text in both annotation and form fields.

Nitro PDF Reader stands out from other free PDF viewers with its creation and editing tools, which include the ability to convert documents from over 300 file types into PDF without having to invoke the built-in virtual PDF print driver.

Version 2.2, also available as a standalone 64-bit build, adds a a number of new features. When set as the default PDF viewing application, Nitro 2.2 now adds a Print option to the context menu that appears when right-clicking PDF files.

Also added are keyboard language detection to Nitro’s text insertion tools, which include Type Text and Form Fields. This ensures all characters available as part of the user’s preferred input language will be available when adding or editing text. There is also support for rendering both annotations and form fields with rich text – including bold and italics – when it’s used.

Fixes and improvements include keyboard shortcuts no longer being overwritten, allowing customised shortcuts to be used across multiple sessions of the program. JPEG2000 image rendering is also vastly improved, while unspecified improvements to PDF rendering, printing and “general application quality” have also been cited in the release notes.

Nitro PDF Reader 2.2 32-bit and Nitro PDF Reader 2.2 64-bit are both freeware downloads for PCs running Windows XP or later.