Formatting text in form field
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Hi there, is it possible to format text fileds in multi page forms in indesign using character or parragraphs styles instead of changing the font and size on every new field that is entered?
I know I can do this in acrobat but I want to control and construct all of my forms in indesign. We have been doing it in Acrobat for years and it is time to change over I believe.
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It is not possible natively in InDesign, unfortunately.
One workaround is to copy/paste the actual text field. The copy should have the same font and point size applied as the original field.
A better option (not free, though), is to use a 3rd-party add-on such as https://www.id-extras.com/products/formmaker/
This will allow you to apply formatting to fields (and not just font and size, but colour and alignment as well) by using paragraph and/or characters styles. And the fonts are properly embedded in most cases (unlike when you use InDesign's Buttons and Forms panel to set the font), so even if the end-user doesn't have the font installed on their computer, they'll still be able to use your selected font for filling-in forms in Adobe Reader.
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Thanks so much TAW. I will check out these options. It would be good if Indesign could add this function though. I think everyone would like that benefit.
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Have been tryimng to use teh free version of the formmaker for a few hours now and it just doesn't seem to work well. Maybe I am doing something wrong but I set para styles with indents and the styles don't come thru. Seems very cumbersome to me. Any other form plugins. options for indesign that work better?
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In InDesign you could use paragraph styles to create the labels in a form.
But as to the form fields themselves, you create them in InDesign by creating a placeholder frame (like a rectangle), and then use the Buttons and Frames panel to set their attributes. You can't use paragraph styles there (see illustration below):
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Thanks for the reply Steve. The placeholder frames won't work for me becasue the forms quite often change so the fields need to be attached/a part of the the text flow. So when fileds move around, everything moves together. That is the main reason we are swapping our work process to do the forms in indesign instead of acrobat.
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Rely on the given fonts for forms, even if it is possible to change in Acrobat Pro. To use any other font than the given fonts they have to be available everywhere where the PDF form is used. That requires:
- The font has to have the license to do so, many fonts allow only embedding used glyphs.
- Embedding complete fonts increases the file size of the PDF.
To stick on the given fonts is better for the user and recipient.
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A few points:
1. Unless everyone has these fonts installed, they won't work.
2. Many PDF readers, browsers, and mobile devices will choke on a PDF form.
3. AFAIC, unless this is a special use case, I wouldn't even bother with a PDF. I'd create the form on a website or use Google Forms. Those platforms will allow the end user to fill out the form and submit it and they are responsive so it will be easy to navigate even on a phone.
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Hi Bob,
If the fonts are selected in Acrobat, they do actually become embedded in the PDF, and are available for anyone filling in the form with the free Adobe Reader, and possibly other free PDF readers (I think Foxit might work as well, need to check).
@Willi Adelberger If the font has licensing issues (the embedding bit is off), if the form creator selects such a form in Acrobat, Acrobat throws an error message saying that the font cannot be used for form fields. This makes it easy to know which fonts are permitted to be used. With this information, the same fonts can be selected with FormMaker or FormMagic in InDesign.
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I assume you're referring to a form created with Form Magic, because unless something's changed it won't work from InDesign. Additionally, it seems to me, embedding entire fonts can really blow up a file size.
And, again...there are too many sub-standard PDF readers out there that could choke on this kind of thing.
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Yes, forms created with FormMagic or FormMaker, or forms where you've selected the font in Acrobat (rather than InDesign) -- which is the same thing, since FormMagic is run in Acrobat, and is simply using Acrobat's mechanism to select (and thus embed) the font.
As to the advisability of using a PDF form these days, that definitely should be part of the end-user's calculation, but if they do go for PDF forms (and many still do, in my experience, especially big concerns where they are able to dictate to the end user what reader to use), the options are as stated.
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Thanks Bob, I too like the idea of web forms only but some clients still need the user to print the form, physically sign it and post back. And yes web forms do print but not as pretty.
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