Hi All,
so I got an email today saying acrobat X was released.. My main quesiton is have they finally got it right!
Currently we're dynamically filling form fields using an ASP.NET application we generated for a client.
My biggest issue is that with the tools we currently have available. There isn't one tool or workflow that actually "get's it right"
An ad agency sends us indesign files with text in different colours for text replacement (alas no forms in indesign)
we then manually export a pdf with that coloured text missing and open acrobat pro and try and line up form fields with that text (alignment tools in acrobat really leave a bit to be desired).. from there we then substitute text in asp.net into those form fields or position an image based on the position of a text box (as there's no image form field in acrobat, only live cycle)
I just wonder if there is any vision for the future of these kind of processes whereby web applications can actually seemlessly interact with pdfs.. or even just an improvement in workflow where print designers can specify a text box or image box IN Indesign and then when the indd is exported have forms in place..
I thought this would be a much desired feature for print ready dynamic pdf's but it has been hard to find an elegant solution with the tools provided. The asp.net side has been really quite ok it's just the form generation process in the beginning using 3 different tools that all have the potential but have such differentiation between them..
ie why use 3 tools to TRY and achieve one thing when surely indesign and acrobat should just suffice.
Acrobat X - Automated PDF Generation In Web Apps
2010-10-18 17:11:17
2010-10-19 00:14:45
#2
The Acrobat X Family was announced yesterday but has not yet been "released" - as indicated on the product website, customers can pre-order and copies will ship before the end of the year, but it's not available to the public yet.Exporting PDFs from InDesign does not involve Acrobat - the Export>PDF dialog makes PDFs using InDesign's own code, so any changes to Acrobat and Distiller in the new version won't affect that workflow. The ideas posted above by George will still work, and if you're performing this task repeatedly are probably the best option.
2010-10-19 14:47:43
#3
Hi Guys,
thanks for the replies.. Unfortunately I do understand that indesign's export doesn't use the Acrobat Distiller..
George's comments while interesting unfortunately do not solve the majority of problems I have.. It would take just as much time to create a button in indesign as it would a textbox in acrobat..
My main pet peve is the process... designers LOVE indesign.. they rely on it to deliver the print results to the letter including things such as kerning, leading etc.. In creating this web-based forms completition system it really highlighted how difficult it is to even begin replicating an indesign based text layout in pdf format..
I just thought as the final output of an indesign project is generally a pdf there would surely be some development work going on that would allow better integration for projects such as text substitution and mail merge programattically because as it stands it's just not done right yet..
I guess I can't really accept either answer as neither is a solution to the problem..
I'd suppose UVSAR yours is probably the most correct as you have shown it isn't possible to get that kind of control over text formatting & layout and i wonder if that would be on the cards..
thanks for the replies.. Unfortunately I do understand that indesign's export doesn't use the Acrobat Distiller..
George's comments while interesting unfortunately do not solve the majority of problems I have.. It would take just as much time to create a button in indesign as it would a textbox in acrobat..
My main pet peve is the process... designers LOVE indesign.. they rely on it to deliver the print results to the letter including things such as kerning, leading etc.. In creating this web-based forms completition system it really highlighted how difficult it is to even begin replicating an indesign based text layout in pdf format..
I just thought as the final output of an indesign project is generally a pdf there would surely be some development work going on that would allow better integration for projects such as text substitution and mail merge programattically because as it stands it's just not done right yet..
I guess I can't really accept either answer as neither is a solution to the problem..
I'd suppose UVSAR yours is probably the most correct as you have shown it isn't possible to get that kind of control over text formatting & layout and i wonder if that would be on the cards..
Regarding alignment tools, are you aware of the ability to manually drag alignment guides from the rulers?
Back to the interactive buttons you can create with InDesign. If you use a creative and rigid naming convention for the button names, you can use JavaScript in Acrobat (perhaps a batch process) to in effect convert the buttons created in InDesign to other field types in Acrobat. For example, if the button name starts with "txt", the button will be replaced with a text field with the same boundaries. Other field properties can be encoded in the button name as well, such as font, font size, background color, etc.