HTML controls in PDF

Question

Hi Guys,

I ran into an interesting problem at work today. I got a request to provide a link to a certain PDF file from my company's homepage. Now, this PDF is to contain some testimonials etc. and is to be followed by a feedback page which has HTML like controls - radio buttons, textboxes and a submit button - We are still talking about the PDF here :)

Further, the PDF must open in the browser and if a user hits 'submit', the form data must be sent to a server script.

I must admit, I am a little stumped. I mean, is it even possible to put HTML controls in a PDF and, is it possible to submit a form from a PDF?

Any other thoughts on this problem?

Answer 1

Never heard of having a usable form in a PDF. The only forms in PDF's I've seen are the ones you need to print and fill out.

Answer 2

Yes you can create forms in PDF. Following might be useful to you.

Adobe Acrobat Professional gives you the ability to turn your previously designed, standard PDF file into an interactive form that clients can download, easily fill out, print or effortlessly return to you by email. All they need is the free Adobe Acrobat Reade

http://www.thedesigncubicle.com/2008/12/how-to-create-interactive-pdf-forms-to-impress-your-clients/

All PDF forms can be distributed via email but can also be distributed to web sites using FormArtist itself.

Data can be submitted straight from forms back to your web server. It can then be retrieved automatically and stored in a database on your PC for export or analysis.

http://www.quask.com/survey/applications%5Fpdfforms.asp

Answer 3

PDF forms can be submitted to a server. When the form data is submitted to the server, you'll need the services of the Adobe FDF (Form Data File) toolkit to parse the FDF file received at the server side. In order to create PDF Forms that submit FDF data to the server, one would require Adobe Acrobat or other similar software (for instance Nitro PDF Professional and PDF Converter Professional 6, thanks to Rowan for the links).

You also have the option of submitting a XFDF file to the server, that can be processed by any XML parser. Unless I'm mistaken, this requires you to have a license of Adobe Lifecyle Designer (or equivalent software) to create an XFDF file.

Answer 4

You can't put HTML controls in a PDF, but you can add form fields to a PDF which support buttons, radio buttons, check boxes, text fields, etc. Form fields support the use of JavaScript, so it's possible to create some fairly interactive PDF forms.

You can create a PDF form with a submit button that when clicked will submit form data to a server. This requires the use of a file format called FDF. These PDF forms can be created by any number of different PDF development libraries or off the shelf products including Adobe Acrobat, Nitro PDF Professional, PDF Converter Professional and more.

Here are some articles that will help orientate you on PDF forms and FDF:

• How to populate a PDF file's form with data from a web server
• Web Hosting PDFs
• Linking Up with FDF
• Developing with PDF Forms
• Where Should I use Acrobat JavaScript?

There are quite a number of different products from a variety of different companies. The Planet PDF Forum is a very useful resource too.