TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Interactive PDFs from Word -- best solution to a painful process?
Subject:Interactive PDFs from Word -- best solution to a painful process? From:ryan -dot- minaker -at- ca -dot- pwc -dot- com To:techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com Date:Thu, 8 Jan 2015 13:30:58 -0500
Hi everyone,
I have a project where I need to create interactive PDFs from Word
documents. Very basic stuff -- text boxes and check boxes -- not linked to
any sort of actions/database or anything. Just enter text and save the
document for reference.
Last year, on this same project, we were very tight for time so we we
used the 'brute force method' to get this done:
1. Save the Word document as PDF.
2. Run the Acrobat form recognition on that PDF.
3. Manually fix all the stuff that Acrobat got wrong/missed (fields that
weren't recognized, fields that showed up in weird places etc.)
This turned out to be a real hassle and really time consuming.
This year, I have more time to figure out a better process. The main issue
is that Acrobat doesn't recognize all the static fields and convert them
to form fields. There's lots of manual work involved once you create a
PDF. I've tried creating brand new Word documents from scratch and still
get the same issue (some fields show up and others don't...).
Does anyone know of any software/processes/methods that I can use to
actually get Word documents to convert to PDF forms without having to
tweak them after the fact? Even if I have to convert the Word documents to
some other format...
On the same topic -- has anyone ever created PDF forms from DITA (this
would be an idea solution eventually)?
Thanks!
R.
______________________________________________________________________
This e-mail is intended only for the person to whom it is addressed (the "addressee") and may contain confidential and/or privileged material. Any review, retransmission, dissemination or other use that a person other than the addressee makes of this communication is prohibited and any reliance or decisions made based on it, are the responsibility of such person. We accept no responsibility for any loss or damages suffered by any person other than the addressee as a result of decisions made or actions taken based on this communication or otherwise. If you received this in error, please contact the sender and destroy all copies of this e-mail.
Ce courriel est strictement rÃservà à l'usage de la personne à qui il est adressà (le destinataire). Il peut contenir de l'information privilÃgiÃe et confidentielle. L'examen, la rÃexpÃdition et la diffusion de ce message par une personne autre que son destinataire sont interdits. Nous dÃclinons toute responsabilità à l'Ãgard des pertes ou des dommages subis par une personne autre que le destinataire par suite de dÃcisions ou de mesures fondÃes sur le contenu de cette communication ou autrement. Si vous avez reÃu ce courriel par erreur, veuillez communiquer avec son expÃditeur et en dÃtruire toutes les copies.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Doc-To-Help: The Quickest Way to Author and Publish Online Help, Policy & Procedure Guides, eBooks, and more using Microsoft Word | http://bit.ly/doctohelp2015
