Font Display Issues in Interactive PDF Forms Across Different PDF Readers

[Zane265532506bzi]

Hello, everyone!

Looking for someone who has experience in creating interactive forms with InDesign. The form works fine in Acrobat, but I have a problem with displaying the font correctly on other pdf readers, for example, opening it in Chrome.

I have attached examples how it should look like and how it opens in chrome. It seems like it has a problem with special characters.

I have tried this with multiple fonts and none of them open correctly in chrome. It is important that this form works on most, if not all, pdf readers and Chrome might be a popular choice.

Is there a way of embedding fonts in forms? Or am I missing something in settings?

Any help would be appreciated.

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[Abhishek Rao]

Hi @Zane265532506bzi,

Thanks for reaching out! I understand how frustrating it can be to see the fonts display differently across various PDF readers. 

Could you please share which version of InDesign you're using and the details of your operating system? Also, if possible, a screen recording of the workflow showing how it looks in Acrobat versus Chrome would be super helpful for us to understand the issue better. 

If you're comfortable, feel free to share the INDD file with us, and we can test it on our end to pinpoint the issue.

Looking forward to helping you resolve this!

Thanks
Abhishek Rao

[BobLevine]

If it works in Acrobat, then it works. Beyond Acrobat/Reader on desktop computers, there is no assurance anything will work properly. There are simply too many substandard PDF Readers out there. You will note that when you export you are exporting to Adobe PDF.

And I can't help but point out that if you want it to work in a browser, why not just create a form on your website and be done with it?

[TᴀW]

When you select a font for a form field in InDesign, using the Buttons and Forms panel, the font you've selected is not actually embedded in the interactive PDF. So only people who have that font installed on their system will see the font you've chosen.

To embed the font in the PDF (so everyone will see, including those who do not have it installed on their computer), you must do the font embedding in Acrobat itself and save the PDF. Acrobat embeds the font. InDesign doesn't.

You can also use a third-party add-on (such as https://www.id-extras.com/products/formmaker/ which is free for short 1-page forms) to allow you to choose a font in InDesign which will then be properly embedded in the PDF.

(Whether Chrome and other PDF readers will know what to do with this embedded font is a different question. It's there, but they might not know how to use it. But at least if the end-user opens your PDF form in the free Adobe Reader, they will see the font all right.)

[Joel Cherney]

I have attached examples how it should look like and how it opens in chrome. It seems like it has a problem with special characters.

I have tried this with multiple fonts and none of them open correctly in chrome. It is important that this form works on most, if not all, pdf readers and Chrome might be a popular choice.

The vast majority of my InDesign work, these days, is multilingual interactive forms. There is simply no way to guarantee that the non-ASCII glyphs in dropdowns will work outside of Acrobat. @TᴀW 's advice is completely correct - including "Whether Chrome and other PDF readers will know what to do with this embedded font is a different question. It's there, but they might not know how to use it. But at least if the end-user opens your PDF form in the free Adobe Reader, they will see the font all right."