I am trying to have two different .pdf forms, and when I check a box in one it will show in the other, then when all the boxes are checked it will check another box in the second .pdf.
How would I do this?
I believe you will have to write some javascript code inside your pdf files. This will do the job for the first case, but I am not sure if Acrobat Reader will allow you to do modifications on an external file from javascript... If it does allow you, I would consider it a security hole.
Related
So that the link can be used in some external applications, and users in that application can click the link and navigate to that specific location (text or area) in the pdf.
Is this possible?
There are several different URL # (fragment) constructs that were introduced by Adobe for use with their web browser PDf viewer plug-in. The current accessible list is at https://pdfobject.com/pdf/pdf_open_parameters_acro8.pdf
Many newer competing PDF enabled browsers may use similar, but there is no guarantee one URL.pdf#Fits all. Most will respect #page=number&zoom view or fit but it is very variable, thus you need to check each feature across browsers.
Important to switch off any PDF remember my view settings
For your previous request using Bookmarks can be unreliable (as can the comments ID) unless you are using Acrobat and can check the bookmark function. By far the more reliable may be the use of zoom at a scroll location so here using MS Edge:-
"C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\Edge\Application\msedge.exe" file:///C:/Users/.../Desktop/CEI-PID-Sample-Rev4annotsC.pdf#zoom=300,200,200
I support SumatraPDF however its browser plug-in whilst still functional is way past EOL thus unsupported, it had a limited support for those fragments even though the CLI was recently extended for some Acrobat /Action commands.
However related to your desire the one single portable EXE can jump to well formed text blocks. Here I call "V 4508" in a fairly similar fashion
"C:\Program Files\SumatraPDF\SumatraPDF.exe" "C:\Users\WDAGUtilityAccount\Desktop\SandBox\apps\Graphics\CEI-PID-Sample-Rev4annotsC.pdf" -zoom 300 -search "V 4508"
And if I press A then the text will be highlighted for comments
I would like to ask the following if possible. We have a client that wants a separate pdf document, embedded in a main pdf document and opens when you click it. Like the function in MS Word where you can attach another Word document inside a Word document (Word-ception, lol) and you can still open it.
I've tried it in Acrobat Pro with the Attachment and Link tools. Another option was to put the link document in an ftp server for accessibility. but our client really wants this functionality. Is this possible in Indesign?
Thank you!
Using Word as your example vehicle there are several ways to link 2 documents.
One is an appendix to the other, in PDF terms is a merge or binding but its one flowing document with separate sequential sections/chapters.
Another way is to link to an external file, in PDF terms a hyperlink to a relative second file, which can be locally folder relative or a web absolute reference. You have tried that.
In Word we can add objects internally with icons, in PDF that can be an annotation comment attachment to save externally and action accordingly. You also seem to discount that approach.
Finally PDF offers an Adobe Specific Structure where multiple PDFs attachments can be imbedded in an overall PDF wrapper. These are called Portfolios and not! to be confused with their portfolio service
They are unpopular since in a browser without Adobe Reader they should only offer the cover page.
Whilst in securer offline readers the files may well be shown as attachments that you need to save or independently open to view them.
Only some non Acrobat viewers may view them as a collection. And in the past that required runing insecure SWFlash, But I understand that has changed ?
Here is how the 3 internal PDF files seen above were shown in older Acrobat 9.
Possibly the best experience is using Foxit Reader
I am creating a Smart/Fillable PDF using Acrobat Pro DC.
I created a word file with 250+ fields(in a tabular manner), exported to PDF and then in "Prepare form" options I added checkboxes, dropdowns and a couple of buttons and the form is ready. Now I want to add 50+ more fields into that PDF but if i follow the same procedure export to PDF and then "Prepare form" then i shall loose all the old validations and scripts I have written initially.
To overcome this scenario I tried a couple of things that didn't work for me:
Go to "Edit PDF" option and try editing PDF but that did not work as that option helps editing text and images but I have fields in a tabular format so in case if I want to add a table with N x N fields not possible
Tried to copy all elements including textbox,checkbox,dropdowns buttons etc but cannot copy all at once, tried then in a small group like 15-15 and that worked but still I had to reposition so not a feasible way
Tried to export the elements including textbox,checkbox,dropdowns buttons etc but Acrobat Pro DC doesn't help
Many other manipulative things but didn't help.
Please help me to overcome this problem.
Thanks in advance.
If you change the background of the form, you would first open the old version, and then replace the pages with the ones from the new version. This does not affect any form fields, so, only some repositioning may be necessary.
Then you go to the form edit mode (or use the Select Object Tool (single key accelerator R)) and you can select the fields you want to copy and either drag-copy if you are on the same page, copy/paste them, or duplicate them on other pages (via Context menu of the selected field in edit mode).
Another potentially important hint: deactivate Save as… optimizes for fast web view when working with forms.
I have built an application that automates the filling out of form fields inside a pdf. It then takes various assets and combines them together to generate a "print ready" product. All of this is accomplished using the magic of iTextSharp. When form fields are populated, they are then flattened to text. The problem is that even with the fonts embedded they aren't really attached to the form fields in a meaningful way (like straight text elements are) and the printers are complaining that the pdf is generating licensing errors due to this. I researched this a bit and it just seems to be the nature of how form fields are.
The artists we are working with requested that we research a way to "outline" the text that is created from flattening the form fields. I found that running the PDF Optimizer with a custom preset allows for Text Outlining in Acrobat, and even better I can generate an Acrobat Sequence that runs this command on the pdf. The problem is that Sequences can not be automated, at all.
I found a plug-in called AutoBatch that allows for the execution of Sequences on the command line through a batch file. The downside is that this would require installing Acrobat Pro and the Plug-in on the server this application will be running on. Further it seems like an overkill solution just to outline the text in the pdf. For all I know at this point iTextSharp may allow me to do this programmatic, but searching for such a thing on google returns little results and nothing relevant.
So the question: Is there a better way to outline text in a pdf than the current solution I have implemented or am I kind of stuck?
TLDR; PDF is generated w/ non-standard fonts. I need to "outline" this text to send it to the printer. Currently using AutoBatch Acrobat Plug-In to execute Acrobat Sequence from the Command Line. Seems excessive, wondering if anyone knows a better way to automate font outlining.
I am also in a printing environment and have used forms for "Box Covers" plenty of times to shorten the code used to produce box covers.
I simple us "pdfStamper.FormFlattening = true;" and the printers (Xerox DP180 and DC5000) has no problems in using the PDF.
The moment I leave out FormFlattening the printer gives a lot of errors regarding the PDF.
If you are using FormFlattening then check if the printer has the font locally installed in order for it to reference the font from the print engine instead of the PDF resources.
I've got a form that I downloaded, I'd like to prefill some content on the form (this is easy using cfpdfform).
Where it gets tricky is I would like to allow the user to modify the contents of that form, and then somehow have those modified contents accessible to me. I didnt build the source PDF so I dont know how to allow the user to "save" the new contents so they can be read.
Any ideas on where I might start on this one?
You can also use the cfpdfform tag to read/write data to a PDF file which has a form. The important thing is that the PDF document already have the form fields available, or that you add them.
I just recently completed a task where I had to have a user fill out a normal web form, and then create a filled version of an existing PDF document. It worked like a breeze!
I think that depending on what you are trying to accomplish, having the user fill out the data in a web form is less confusing than serving up a PDF and expecting them to save that to update a file on a remote server. Just my opinion, though.
http://www.cfquickdocs.com/cf8/?getDoc=cfpdfform#cfpdfform
It's possible for users to complete most PDF forms in Adobe Reader, but when user's try to save the changes they get a popup prompting them that the PDF cannot be saved and would need to upgrade to Adobe Acrobat to have this functionality.
Since Acrobat 7 (or possibly) 8 it's possible to create a form so that it can be completed and saved in reader. In Acrobat open your PDF, and select Advanced -> Enable usage right in reader from the menu. This will prompt you to save the form and then anyone using Adobe reader can complete it.
Once that's done you can open the form in ColdFusion, populate some of the fields and serve it up to the user. Once they fill it in, save it and get it back in ColdFusion you can read the contents using the PDF related tags.
Please note: It's currently not possible to set the "enable usage rights in reader" flag from ColdFusion, you need a copy of Adobe Acrobat or access to Adobe LifeCycle server to do this.
This document may help you:
http://www.adobe.com/education/instruction/teach/coldfusion/CF8-2_advanced_cf8_development_unit8.pdf