Prepare form is missing a lot of fields from a word document

[Guðmundur Jón27237084d4l1]

I created a few pages of a fillout forms in M.Word .docx format which includes a tables. When I convert to pdf using the Prepare Form Tool the wizard leaves out a lot of table cells. It is a lot of work to add hundreds of Fields in the pdf file and what is even worse is when I need to do any minor changes on the original .docx file, it looks like there is no way to update/validate the pdf file so the work starts all over again to add fields where it is missing all over the document, adjust the size and position etcl. I know it is possible to make minor changes in the pdf file it self but then it is not so easy to keep all layout settings and the pdf tends to randomly groub previously separate text boxes into larger boxes. This makes any modification in the pdf practically useless. Is there any way to know how to prepare the .docx file in such a way that the Acrobat will recognize where there needs to be fields?

[Bernd Alheit]

With replace pages you can use a updated PDF file.

[try67]

It's a two-part question:

> it looks like there is no way to update/validate the pdf file so the work starts all over again

That's not true. You can do that by using the Replace Pages command on the file with the fields.

That will insert the new pages over the old ones, while keeping all of the pre-existing fields in tact.

Of course, you'll need to adjust their locations if the layout changed, but you won't need to start all over.

> Is there any way to know how to prepare the .docx file in such a way that the Acrobat will recognize where there needs to be fields?

Not really, since we don't know the internal workings of this wizard. It's pretty much trial-and-error.

The best way to do something like that is to use a script to identify and create the fields, but that's only possible if you use textual characters to specify where they should be located.

For example, I've developed two (paid-for) tools that convert underscores to text fields and various Wingdings characters to check-boxes or radio-buttons, and they work with 100% accuracy and consistency.

You can find them here:

https://www.try67.com/tool/acrobat-reader-convert-underscores-to-text-fields

https://www.try67.com/tool/acrobat-reader-convert-wingdings-characters-to-check-boxes-or-radio-butto...

[JR Boulay]

You should see episodes 52 and 53 of this podcast, it's about InDesign but layout rules are the same:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-indesigner/id96779509