Creating form fields

Using form creation tools, you can not only create different types of form fields, but also set a variety of attributes and actions for each field type through the field properties dialog box.

To add a form field

1. Open the PDF in which you want form fields to appear.

2. Choose Form > Form, select a form type to add.

3. On the page, drag a rectangle to define the size of the field and then release the mouse button to finish field creation. You can edit its attributes in the pop-up Properties dialog box.

To copy a form field

You can copy a form field by simply copy-and-paste, but there are two additional ways to do it—Create Multiple Copies and Duplicate Across Pages. Before you proceed, bear in mind the following rules: (A) form fields cannot be dragged from one page to another, (B) changes made to the properties of a form field will not affect others, (C) all form fields with the same basic name share the same user data and hover text, meaning if you change one you change all.

Copy a form Field

1. Provided you are not in the form editing mode, choose Basic > Select.

2. Select a form field and do one of the following:

   • Press Ctrl + C and Ctrl +V to copy it to the center of the current view.

   • Press and hold Ctrl and drag it to copy the form field to the location you release the mouse button. (You can press and hold shift to limit the dragging direction to only vertical or horizontal)

3. If you also wish to copy the data the user enters into the original field, don’t change the name; otherwise, rename the field. 

Create Multiple Copies

1. Right-click a form field and select Create Multiple Copies… from the menu.

2. In the Create Multiple Copies of Fields dialog box, first make sure Preview is checked, and then move the dialog box around so that the original form field and its copies become visible.

3. You can do the following changes:

• • Use Copy selected fields down and Copy selected fields across in the Number of Fields section to determine how many copies will be created.

  • Adjust the values in Change Width and Change Height field in the Overall Size section to modify the distances between the original field and its copies.

  • Click Up, Down, Left and Right buttons to move the original field and all its copies.

Duplicate Across Pages

This feature creates replicas of the original form field and adds them to the same spot on other pages.

1. Right-click a form field and select Duplicate Across Pages… from the menu. This option isn’t available in single-page documents.

2. You can do the following in Duplicate Field dialog box:

• • Select All to duplicate the form field on all pages. Click OK.

  • Select From and enter the start and ending pages on which you want the duplicate to appear. Click OK.

3. If you also wish to copy the data the user enters into the original field to all fields, don’t change their name; otherwise, rename them.

To edit a form field

You can edit a form field through the settings in their respective properties dialog box. Do either of the following to enter the properties dialog box:

• The field properties dialog box appears as soon as you release the mouse button to finish field creation.

• Double-click the field you want to edit using Select .

To move the fields

You are able to move the fields anywhere on the page in the document pane:

• After the form creation is over, hover the cursor over the newly-created form field to show the four-headed Move pointer . Click-drag to move it anywhere on the page.

• On the Sidebar Navigation pane or through Basic > Basic Tools, click Select. Then click-drag to move it using the Select

• To constrain the horizontal or vertical movement as you drag, press and hold the Shift key while dragging the field.

• To move fields in small increments either horizontally or vertically, press the arrow keys on your keyboard to move the selected form field to the position you want.