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Patrick202111
Participant
Dec 3, 2021 7:57 AM UTC
Answered

Dynamic PDF with LiveCycle Designer ES4 on iPad

Hello everyone,
I hope you can help me with my problem.

I created a dynamic PDF with the LCD_ES4. The PDF has to be dynamic 
because a lot of calculations have to be carried out in the background.

How can I edit and fill in this PDF on an iPad? Apparently there is no app for iPad 
in which you can fill out dynamic PDFs.
Test Screen NameCorrect answer
Legend
Dec 3, 2021 10:09 AM UTC

XFA (dynamic PDF) is essentially obsolete. I suggest you make an Acrobat form instead, or use Adobe's server product for live conversion to an HTML forms. Acrobat forms are not dynamic layout, but I have no idea what you mean by "a lot of calculations have to be carried out in the background"; this is not normally given as an advantage of XFA. Anyway, whatever your reasons to use it, you won't be able to use it in iPad, Android, in browsers, or in the default PDF viewers used by >90% of people.

 

If you start again, I strongly suggest HTML forms. PDF forms, of all kinds, are unkind to users and land you with a lot of support tasks.

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6 replies

Harsh Vardhan Pareek
Harsh Vardhan Pareek
Participating Frequently
Dec 3, 2021 10:09 AM UTC

Hi @Patrick202111,

Adobe Acrobat Reader mobile app for iOS and Android do not support static or dynamic XFA forms that are authored with Adobe LiveCycle Designer.

Please use the desktop version of Adobe Reader on a Windows or Mac computer to view and fill out dynamic XFA forms. Sorry for the inconvenience.

 

Thanks,

Harsh

 

 

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Patrick202111Author
Participant
Dec 3, 2021 11:17 AM UTC
Using a desktop version is not a solution. Our technicians in the field use iPads. 
We don't want to buy notebooks because a PDF doesn't work.

The machine data and the actual values ​​are to be recorded in the service log (dynamic PDF).
A comparison runs in the background. If the target values ​​deviate, suggestions for further
processing should be displayed.

This works great on the desktop. However, we are looking for a solution to get this function
(whether PDF or something else) on the iPad.
I cannot imagine that we are the first and only ones who have this question.
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    try67
    Community Expert
    try67Community Expert
    Community Expert
    Dec 3, 2021 11:36 AM UTC
    > I cannot imagine that we are the first and only ones who have this question.

     

    You are not, but the reply to all that ask is the same as the one you got. The thing is that XFA-forms are not really PDF files, despite their name, which makes it very difficult to write software that can read and edit them. Adobe could have done so, but decided not to, so we're all stuck in the same boat as you, basically. You need to come up with an alternate solution to XFA-forms if you want to be able to use them on a mobile device, unless it runs Windows or MacOS (not iOS).

    Translate
      Test Screen NameCorrect answer
      Legend
      Dec 3, 2021 10:09 AM UTC

      XFA (dynamic PDF) is essentially obsolete. I suggest you make an Acrobat form instead, or use Adobe's server product for live conversion to an HTML forms. Acrobat forms are not dynamic layout, but I have no idea what you mean by "a lot of calculations have to be carried out in the background"; this is not normally given as an advantage of XFA. Anyway, whatever your reasons to use it, you won't be able to use it in iPad, Android, in browsers, or in the default PDF viewers used by >90% of people.

       

      If you start again, I strongly suggest HTML forms. PDF forms, of all kinds, are unkind to users and land you with a lot of support tasks.

      Translate
      try67
      Community Expert
      try67Community Expert
      Community Expert
      Dec 3, 2021 9:21 AM UTC
      How can I edit and fill in this PDF on an iPad? Apparently there is no app for iPad 
      in which you can fill out dynamic PDFs.

       

      You can't.

      Translate
      JR Boulay
      Community Expert
      JR BoulayCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      Dec 3, 2021 9:16 AM UTC

      MOVED TO THE ACROBAT READER MOBILE FORUM

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