Can I create a fillable form that has links to another fillable form? How?

[donnalorenz]

I would like to create a "main form" and on the main form have buttons that link to additional forms. So far my efforts haven't worked.

[try67]

What have you tried? What were the results?

[donnalorenz]

I created a sample "main" form - and three supplementary forms - in Illustrator, saved as a PDF. In Adobe Acrobat DC I opened the main form, turned it into a fillable form, and added the three required links. Then I sent it to myself and a friend to test and it didn't work.

[try67]

Can you share the file with us?

How did you create the links?

Where did you open the file when you tested it?

What does "it didn't work" mean, exactly?

[donnalorenz]

I created the links by using the Adobe Acrobat tool "Edit PDF" - I used the Link tool to "add/edit web or document link". I opened the file on my computer, and when I clicked on the link it didn't take me to the supplementary form.

[try67]

I don't know what you did, exactly, but there are no links in this file. You need to use the Add Link tool.

[Bernd Alheit]

When share the form you must also share the linked forms.

[donnalorenz]

Right. Of course, that makes sense. Here are the forms. 

[try67]

First, you should use a button field, not a text field.

Second, the links you created are absolute, not relative. Where the files located in different drives when you created the links?

[donnalorenz]

Okay, awesome - I will definitely change those to button fields when I prepare the actual form. The "supplementary" files were located either on my desktop or in my downloads folder. 

I'm thinking that when my client houses them on their website, she can provide me with a link and then I can add those links to the main form. It's a ton of work - especially if this theory doesn't pan out - but at least my client will have professional, fillable forms, something she didn't have before.

[Bernd Alheit]

The links are working with your old form. It uses relative links.

[donnalorenz]

So by "relative" links - this means they don't have to "live" anywhere? As in on a website?

[try67]

It just means that the path is to a local file, but it's not a complete file path (like C:\Temp\FormA.pdf"), but one that's relative to the current location of the main file (like "../FormA.pdf"). That means that as long as the two files are in the same relative location to each other, the link will work, no matter where they are placed.

[Bernd Alheit]

The links are working when all files are in the same folder.

[donnalorenz]

Okay - this is good news - I'm forging ahead as planned then! The main form is done - attached. I will create the supplementary forms to be visually similar and use the BUTTON fields when I link them.

[elbert_zues1106]

You can create a main form with buttons that open additional forms using a programming language like C# or Python with Tkinter. In C#, you can use Button.Click event handlers to open new forms with Form.Show(). In Python, use Tkinter to create buttons that trigger the opening of new windows. If you're facing specific issues, let me know!

[Bernd Alheit]

This will not work in a PDF form.