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Selling Adobe PDF forms to the resistant

Forum Index > Forms: LiveCycle Designer > Selling Adobe PDF forms to the resistant
2007-12-13 04:35:10
R_Boyd
Registered: Nov 1 2007
Posts: 151

I am currently working on the conversion of forms suitable for being completed online and then printed and signed.

I need your help in compiling a list of strong advantages and reasons to shift from Word based forms to Adobe PDF forms.

So far,

Cleaner, more modern design and presentation
Consistency of format
Smaller file size
Better accessibility

One stumbling block is that there are a number of significant forms that need to be saved and then sent to a countersigning officer.

At present without Reader Extensions it will not be possible to offer this option using PDF forms. This is something that will be addressed in the near future but I don't want this to prevent the conversion of forms that do not need to be saved prior to completion.

Bearing this in mind I'm looking to convince the business owners that the PDF form is a better option than the traditional Word (or even JetForm!) form.

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2007-12-13 08:41:35
#1
lkassuba
ExpertTeam
Registered: Jun 28 2007
Posts: 3636
One key advantage is that the Reader is free, which means it can be used for all your form projects -- even those that require input from people outside the company. If you need to save the form data, you can Reader-enable your forms with Acrobat Pro. 8. Plus as you migrate beyond just online, print, and sign you can also take advantage of other functionality such as digital signatures, security, and document policies.

Lori Kassuba is an AUC Expert and Community Manager for AcrobatUsers.com.

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2007-12-14 02:32:15
#2
R_Boyd
Registered: Nov 1 2007
Posts: 151
lkassuba wrote:
One key advantage is that the Reader is free, which means it can be used for all your form projects -- even those that require input from people outside the company. If you need to save the form data, you can Reader-enable your forms with Acrobat Pro. 8. Plus as you migrate beyond just online, print, and sign you can also take advantage of other functionality such as digital signatures, security, and document policies.
Thanks for responding!

These are all excellent arguments and strengthen my case for an upgrade to Adobe 8 across the department so we can take advantage of the enhanced functionality and get round the Reader Extension issues.

If I reader enable a form created in Designer 7.0 with Acrobat Pro 8 will people using Adobe Reader 7.0 be able to save the file or is this only possible with Reader 8.0?
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2007-12-14 04:38:50
#3
R_Boyd
Registered: Nov 1 2007
Posts: 151
Happily we now have access to Adobe Professional 8 so even though the users only have Reader 7.0 they can still save separate files.

Thank you very much for your assistance. You have helped to remove a major stumbling block from this conversion project.
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2007-12-14 06:23:19
#4
lkassuba
ExpertTeam
Registered: Jun 28 2007
Posts: 3636
R_Boyd wrote:
If I reader enable a form created in Designer 7.0 with Acrobat Pro 8 will people using Adobe Reader 7.0 be able to save the file or is this only possible with Reader 8.0?
Yes, people using Reader 7.05 should be able to save the file -- just be sure to review the Designer Help for details on what elements of the form are compatible with earlier versions of Reader. There is a chart in the Help under Learning the Basics --> Understanding Forms --> Interactive Forms --> Differences between filling forms in Acrobat and Adobe Reader that is very helpful.

Lori Kassuba is an AUC Expert and Community Manager for AcrobatUsers.com.

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2008-01-11 23:05:40
#5
cfinley
Registered: Jan 9 2008
Posts: 70
My company is switching from word to pdf for our product labels, and besides the support of CMYK colors in pdf for more accurate color printing, using LiveCycle dropdown boxes I have managed to combine entire product families of parts into a single master label file (rather then 20-100 different MS .docs for each part number variation in a product family)

so not only will they look better when printed, but by using an artwork pdf as a background and simply choosing replace artwork, I can update all labels simultaneously when my boss asks for minor changes (which he does frequently)

and the best part is being that product details are populated into read only text boxes and duplicated into each of the 6 labels per page, its practically idiot proof - no accidentally moving or changing artwork or logos, no mistyping product size & quantity!next project is to streamline Certificates of Conformance and make them available on the web so our customers can simply choose a lot number for their part and print the signed document with correct testing and production details instead of request lot/fill in/print/sign/scan/email process we do now for each individual certificate

less than 2 weeks ago I had no clue about LiveCycle and thanks to all the wonderful people on this forum I think it will forever change the efficiency around our office!
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