Creating links to attached PDFs

[watermelon5]

I'm a noob with interactive PDFs, please bear with me. I'm sure there is a simple answer to this, but I haven't found my answer online yet.

The simple scenario:

I've created an interactive PDF with an active button. I want my end-user to be able to click this button in my interactive PDF to open a 2nd PDF file.

The real scenario:

My interactive PDF actually involves over 30 buttons linking to over 30 secondary PDF files.

I cannot make a linked URL on my file to a hosted website because the end-user may not have internet connection.

I also cannot host the files online because the files are information sensitive and the end-user prefers to work with it locally.

Because I have so many PDFs, I could simply link the PDFs to its local folder in InDesign, package the entire thing and send it off...I think.

The PDFs are actually very small and well optimized. I thought: instead of sending the guy a folder full of PDFs and adding to the bulk of the package, why not link all of the secondary PDFs within the primary PDF so the user only has to click on a link and it will open the attached file in a new window in Acrobat. This way is much more compact and seamless.

However, I don't know how to create links to nested documents in InDesign or Acrobat.

I tried messing with Add/Edit Web to Document Link within Acrobat, but all it wanted to do was create a "hotspot" so I wouldn't get my nice rollover effects on my buttons, and it didn't seem to offer options to links to attached documents within the PDF.

What would be the best way to approach this?

[BobLevine]

What does any of this have to do with InDesign?

You’ll get a lot more help in the Acrobat forum.

[watermelon5]

Because I'm exporting my interactive file from InDesign and I have roll-over button effects I want to keep?

[BobLevine]

Regardless, as Steve says, can’t be done in InDesign.

[Steve Werner]

It can't be done in InDesign. You need to ask in the Acrobat forums. Probably this one to check first:

Editing & Exporting PDFs

[John Mensinger · Accepted solution]

Set your rollover effects in InDesign, then export.

In Acrobat, add an action to your button as follows:

1. Enter form edit mode, select the button, and open its Properties dialog.
2. On the Actions tab, choose "Go to a page view" from the Select Action: menu, and click the Add... button
3. Open the Attachments pane, and double click the desired attachment. It will open. Click the Set Link button. Close the attachment.
4. By default, as you'll see when you test it, the button will now work to open the attachment in the same window, which will cause Acrobat to ask whether you want to save your form before you close it. (It would have to close your form to open the attachment in the same window.) Cancel that, and reopen the button's Properties dialog.
5. Back on the Actions tab, you'll now see the action you added in the Actions list, shown as "Go to a page in another document". Click that to select it, then click the Edit button.
6. Under Target Document, choose "New Window" from the Open in: menu, set the other options as desired, and click OK. Now your button will open the attachment in a new window, (or a new tab, if the user has enabled 'Open documents as new tabs in the same window' on the General panel of the Preferences dialog).

[watermelon5]

Beautiful! Thank you so much! You were so helpful! Wish I could move this thread to the Acrobat forum without double-posting, though.

[Steve Werner]

We'll leave this thread here. It's useful for other InDesign users who don't realize that InDesign can only work with PDF in a limited way: Oftentimes they need a thread to lead them to Acrobat Pro where they can finish the job.

[Am05]

Hey! This is an interesting solution, but I had a hard time following. I was in the edit mode, but couldn't find the buttons property you were talking about. Care to share some screenshots? I know I could use this for a future project. Thanks.

[John Mensinger]

Am05  wrote

I was in the edit mode, but couldn't find the buttons property you were talking about.

Right click on the button (or field), on the page, or in the Fields list, and choose Properties:

Or, with the button (or field) selected, press Ctrl/Cmd+I.