Can I add attachments to an Interactive PDF from InDesign?

[Spugsy69]

Ok so I am doing a large bid for client.  At the back we have an appendix, and instead of hyperlinks I want to attach files - some Word and some PDF.

The files aren't on a website so when I make the interactive PDF from InDesign and you go to the appendix I want to have the name and info and then a button or a way to click to download that file.

Can this be done?

Thanks in advance all!

[jane-e]

Hi

If you have the paid version of Acrobat you can add attachments to any PDF.

One way for the user to see the files and download them is to display the Attachments panel in the Initial View dialog.

Links and attachments in PDFs, Adobe Acrobat

Jane

[Spugsy69]

ok but can I not do this in Indesign? For example if I add them and need to make changes to the PDF will I have to redo them in the new PDF each time?

Thanks.

[jane-e]

Hi

That’s correct. Attachments can only be added in Acrobat. InDesign does not do everything that Acrobat can do. Sometimes I wish it did more!

Jane

[Derek Cross]

I suggest you keep your PDF interactivity to the minimum and you test it on various devices and PDF readers before making promises to your client.

[JonathanArias]

adding another .pdf(s) to a file will bring up your file size. make sure this file size stays small if this is a .pdf people will share via email.

if this is something people need to share via email it would be better to host the .pdf files online and make links to them.

[Steve Werner]

There are many PDF-related things that InDesign cannot do. You still need to rely on Acrobat to do a great deal of the refinement of PDF forms, add attachments, handle much of the work to create accessibility, etc.

Otherwise, InDesign would become a huge monster like InIllushop/XD that David Blatner fancifully wrote about on April Fool's Day this year (combining the features of InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop and Adobe XD):

Adobe Launches All-in-One Creative App, InDillushop/XD, Replacing Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesi...

[rtijn]

I always thought that Indesign was the go to place to do any pdf creation work. To me, that includes forms and attachments. It's something that seems quite fundamental and it feels strange having to switch to another program for a part of the creation process.

To me, Acrobat is a fancy pdf viewer. I like advanced editting options, so I appreciate that they are there. But they should at least also be where you expect them, in Indesign. The 'huge monster' thing really doesn't apply. It's abscence in Indesign is more complicating than its presence would be there.

It's easy to think 'haha silly user' and mock them with an april fools joke (one that isn't even relevant), but I think it would be better to listen to any suggestion and consider that maybe, just maybe, these people could be right. There is always room for improvement and the current workflow may not be that logical and obvious. Adobe would know, otherwise there wouldn't be any updates.