Can a PDF file be opened and hidden from view?

[Jim_MacD1]

I want to open a pdf, read from it,  but keep it hidden from view. Can this be done?

[try67]

No.

[Jim_MacD1]

Can a pdf be hidden using "bHidden" command? The following is taken from

Adobe Acrobat 7.0.5

Acrobat JavaScript Scripting Reference

Manual

Example 3 (Acrobat 7.0)

Open a hidden PDF document, extract information from it, and close it.

oDoc = app.openDoc({

cPath:"/C/myDocs/myInfo.pdf",

bHidden: true

});

var v = oDoc.getField("myTextField").value;

this.getField("yourTextField").value = v;

oDoc.closeDoc();

[Bernd Alheit]

Yes, this is possible.

[try67]

In theory, yes, but in practice you'll notice that if you use it in a recent version of Acrobat or Reader it won't work.

I think this was done on purpose, although it's not documented in the API Reference, so I guess you could say it's a bug.

Either way, it doesn't work.

[Joel_Geraci]

I use the method quite a bit. It works perfectly fine on the current version of Acrobat DC on Windows and Mac.

[Jim_MacD1]

Hi, Joel

My called document.pdf contains the line 'this.disclosed = true;' within a JavaScript.

Still doesn't work.

Could you provide sample code?

[Joel_Geraci]

Where did you put the disclosed code? It needs to go in the document level script and inside an anonymous function.

(function () {
     this.disclosed = true;
})();

[try67]

Why do you say it needs to be inside an anonymous function? It also works if you just place it as-is, outside of a function.

[Joel_Geraci]

I've found that on certain machines (slower ones), Acrobat DC isn't fully loading the JavaScript engine before the document level scripts are interpreted and the document level code just falls on the floor unless you wrap it in an anonymous function. This only happens when Acrobat isn't running and you open a document from the system explorer. If Acrobat is already running, this doesn't happen.

[try67]

Very strange, but good to know!

[Joel_Geraci]

It took quite a bit of time to track down but when I noticed that the JavaScript for Shared Reviews always ran properly and didn't intermittently fail on various machines. I looked at how it was stored and it was in an anonymous function. When I put my own code inside one, the problem went away with no other code changes.

[try67]

It didn't use to in previous versions. Maybe the bug got fixed...

[Joel_Geraci]

You can use JavaScript to open a PDF file and keep it hidden but in your use case, the document wll also need to be "disclosed" in order to use JavaScript to communicate data between documents.

[Jim_MacD1]

Still can't get bHidden to work. Yes, I put this.disclosed=true in document level.

Anyone have SIMPLE sample code using bHidden?

[Thom Parker]

Where are you using this code?

Please post the complete script.  

[Jim_MacD1]

"this.disclosed = true" in docuemt level script

var otherDoc = app.openDoc("SampleDoc.pdf", bHidden:true);

otherDoc.closeDoc(true);

I get SyntaxError: missing ) after argument list

[Thom Parker]

Here is the correct syntax, but your file path isn't going to work.

var otherDoc = app.openDoc({cPath:"SampleDoc.pdf", bHidden:true});

With nearly all Acrobat JS object methods you can either provide the native list of arguments, or pass the arguments as an object. It has to be one or the other. You can't mix them up

[Jim_MacD1]

Thanks for your responce. I have little knowlegde of Adobe - I'm afraid I don't understand the meaning of 'native list of arguments, or pass the arguments as an object'. Any chance of providing sample code which opens a hidden file called "SampleDoc.pdf"?

[Thom Parker]

I already provided that code in my previous post. In fact, you already posted it on July 26th of last year. 

Everything you need to know has already been provided in the previous posts. However, if you do not know how to program using JavaScript, then you're chances of success are extremely low. I would strongly suggest you learn about programming in JavaScript, or hire a consultant to either create the code for you, or walk you through the process of developing it yourself. 

You have not answered one of the most critical questions posted here. Where is this code being used? For initial testing purposes it should be done from the console window.

You'll find a tutorial on the console here:

https://www.pdfscripting.com/public/Free_Videos.cfm#JSIntro