I am having trouble maintaining my hyperlinks when I merge PDF's. I create indices in Word first, and then I create hyperlinks to my attachments after I have converted the index to a PDF in Acrobat. When I merge two different PDF's with the indices of hyperlinks, only the links in the first PDF (the first bookmark) appear correctly. All the links from the second PDF are incorrectly directed to attachments from the first PDF. What should I do?
There are two ways to fix the situation you are facing. The simplest is to combine all the content first, and then add bookmarks. The problem you are noticing relates to the way bookmarks work. That is, a bookmark pointing to the second page of a document remains pointing to the second page of a document, regardless of whether or not it is merged with another file.
The best way to handle bookmarks across a number of files is to use destinations. These are named file locations rather than a simple link to a page view, like a regular bookmark. If you are familiar with web page structure, a bookmark is akin to a link to another page, while a destination works like a named anchor.
Adding a destination is done in two parts - first, you specify the locations in the target (or linked) document, then you add the action to the source (index) file.
Follow these steps to set up a destination:
1. Choose View > Navigation Panels > Destinations to open the Destination panel.2. Display the content you want to use for the destination, such as a chapter opening page.
3. Click Create new destination in the Destination Panel to display a text entry field. Type the name for the destination; the page number is shown automatically.
4. Continue adding destinations as desired for the document.
5. Save the file, but leave it open.
Now to make the connections. I am assuming you are using the pre-existing set of bookmarks, and making new connections. Open your indexing file, and follow these steps:
1. Select the bookmark you want to connect to the destination, and choose Properties from the shortcut or panel's menu to open the Bookmark Properties dialog box.
2. Click the Actions tab and choose Go to a Page view from the Select Action dropdown list -- so far the process is the same as with setting a simple bookmark.
3. Activate your target document.
4. Double-click the destination in the Destinations panel you want to display. Acrobat automatically returns you to the Bookmark Properties dialog box. Click OK to close the dialog box.
5. Test your destination bookmark.
It takes more time to set up destinations, but the advantage is that regardless of whether you add or remove content or additional files, the link to the specific named destination remains.
A prolific author and writer of many Acrobat books, as well as books on graphic and Web design software.
Donna lives on a lakeshore in central Canada, where all manner of wildlife from muskrats to coyotes come to call.