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Known Participant
August 22, 2017
Question

Can I add a print button to an interactive pdf that prints out a different document?

  • August 22, 2017
  • 1 reply
  • 9312 views

I have created an interactive PDF in InDesign, and the client wants to be able to print it out using a "Print" button within the interactive pdf. Due to the nature of the design, with interactive items overlapping each other, I need to create a separate layout with the elements that the client want to be visible when printed. Is there a way to add a button in either InDesign or Acrobat that will print out a completely separate document?

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1 reply

try67
Community Expert
August 22, 2017

You can use printing and non-printing layers to achieve that.

BMurr2Author
Known Participant
August 22, 2017

How do I use those?

John Mensinger
Community Expert
August 30, 2017

Here is a simple way to put it. How do I make pages not visible when viewing a pdf digitally, but then print out when I print the pdf?

Second Simple question, How do I set a page as a none printable page?


I've done something like this by using an attachment. In the on-screen document, I set a link to "Open a Printer Friendly Version". Here's how:

  1. With your for-print document saved as a PDF (with a Print button visible on page 1, or all pages if desired), open the on-screen document in Acrobat and choose View > Show/Hide > Navigation Panes > Attachments.
  2. In the Attachments pane, click the Add a New Attachment button, navigate to your for-print document, select it, and click Open to attach it.
  3. Back in the on-screen document, swipe-select the text you'll set as the link to open the attachment, right-click and choose Create Link.
  4. In the [Create Link] dialog, set your appearance preferences, under Link Action select Go to a Page View and click Next.
  5. In the Attachments pane, double-click your for-print document attachment, and it will open to page 1 in a new tab.
  6. In the [Create Go To View] dialog, click Set Link.

By default, the link will open the for-print attachment and close the on-screen document. If that's the behavior you want, there's no more to do. If you'd prefer it opens in a new tab, go back to the on-screen document and enter form-edit mode.

  1. Double-click the link field created above to launch the [Go to a page in another document] dialog.
  2. Choose New Window from the Open in: menu.
  3. Change any other desired settings under Options and click OK.

Although it requires the user opens the on-screen document in Reader (not a browser plugin), this is the best way I've found to have 2 separate documents deploy together without them getting bound up in each other's functions.