Not able to Hyperlink when export to PDF

[Christine40]

I have Indesign 7.5.2.  I have run all updates.  I have a file that I am trying to make hyperlinks on.  I can create the link in Indesign.  When I export the file to PDF the links are not active.  I have selected the feature to include hyperlinks.  I am new to Indesign and this is driving me crazy! I have searched and tried everything that was recommended but still not working. Does anyone know of a fix?

[Peter Spier]

I've moved this out of Feature Requests to the general discusion forum since it's a question rather than a feature request.

What settings are you using (if a preset, which one?) for the export? Did you actually create hyperlinks in the file using the Hyperlinks panel?

[Christine40]

I am exporting as Adobe PDF interactive.  I have found that if I select rectangle tool then select the text and go to window interactive hperlinks I can get them to work.  But there must be an easier way.

[Peter Spier]

It sounds like you think you can just type a URL and it becomes a hyperlink. That's not true. You must create the destination.

[Christine40]

OK thanks. 

[Jeffrey_Smith]

Also, Acrobat/Reader will create a link from a typed URL as long as this application preference is turned on. This pref is turned on when app is installed and most people do not change this behavior. So what this means is, you wouldn't need to define a URL hyperlink in Indesign for the majority of users.

[lesleycsage]

Hi,

I kinda picked up on this conversation as I am having similar issues. I you say there was an 'app' to make hyperlinks work in Acrobat? or is there another Acrobat application which may serve better to produce hyperlinks along with other useful animated tools which support graphics and text from InDesign and Illustrator?

I just trialled a test PDF with www.google.com and the URL was active in PDF Reader. I assume that Acrobat recognises the 'www'? but what I need to do is create many hyperlinks which lead to specific pages and PDF documents on our intranet.

For example, I highlighted the text I wanted to link; '  'Set up project in APIC' and I set the destination as 'URL' and the true link name and it doesn't work, in the hyperlinks panel the button is displaying as red and the link doesn't work in epub or exported as interactive PDF?

It has taken me longer to try and resolve the links than to design the whole document, I can only come to the conclusion that the link names are either too long or there's some kind of weird character in the pathname that it doesn't like?

Many thanks

Lesley

[elat87993188]

having same issue. been taking me longer to figure out how to create hyperlinks than it took to design the entire document.

the hyperlinks seem to work in the pdf when there's a www. or http:// in the text. But if the text doesn't include those, and the images I turned into hyperlink - none of these work.

Frustrating! Anyone figure this out...?

[elat87993188]

neeeeever mind... evidently all I had to do is post the question on this forum before I could figure it out.

Had to do with the settings when I exported the pdf. Evidently the "include" > "hyperlinks" had to be checked off. Whoda guessed.

That said, when I did check that box before, I also checked off "Interactive Elements" > "Include Appearance", although I had no idea what that meant. Every time I did that the program crashed and I couldn't open the PDF.

So got rid of "include appearance" (still don't know what it means. maybe it means "make indesign crash") and everything went smoothly after that. All is well

[NWKCA]

I have also noticed that hyperlinks work better when the entire link is on a single line rather than two or three lines.

Challenging at times. Maybe Adobe can elaborate. @AdobeInDesign

[lucyn47909319]

Thank you so much! Took me forever to work out the issue, finally found your comment and it resolved my problem! Who would've thought it would be so simple.

[Jeffrey_Smith]

Are you creating just a hyperlink destination without applying it to text? What is the hyperlink linking to: URL, File, Page, Text Anchor, etc. ? Does the destination still exist in your document (i.e. if the link goes to page 12, is there still a page 12 in doc?) If the hyperlink goes to an URL, is the address spelled out correctly?

[Christine40]

I am trying to link to a url. 

[Jeffrey_Smith]

In a text frame, you can set the text of an URL, select it, from the Hyperlinks Panel > New Hyperlink from URL. This will do two things: create the hyperlink destination, and then make the selected text a link with your URL destination.

[Christine40]

Thanks

From: Jeffrey_Smith <forums@adobe.com>

To: Christine40 <christine_salmon@waters.com>

Date: 01/26/2012 12:53 PM

Subject: Not able to Hyperlink when export to PDF

[Christine40]

I know I can create the links in Acrobat but I want to add other interactions and don't know if modifying urls in Acrobat will mess them up.

[Jeffrey_Smith]

re Post 9: an URL link happens automatically. You do not need to create anything in Indesign or Acrobat. If pref is turned on it happens whether you like it or not.

[Christine40]

Which is perfect but I have a file created already with text for training classes that I want to link to the class description on our intranet.

[Jeffrey_Smith]

I want to link to the class description on our intranet.

How are you defining the URL destination: with an HTML link destination (http://www.training.com/classdescription/class1.html) or the intranet's directory path (\\servername\folder\classdescription\class1.html) ?

[Christine40]

HTML link destination (http://www.training.com/classdescription/class1.html)

[Jeffrey_Smith]

Is the problem

1. a hyperlink can not access the desired destination within the intranet? or

2. the process of successfully creating the hyperlink in Indesign?

[Christine40]

It was both.  I was not able to select the text and create a hypelink fom the hyperlink tools. I had to create a rectangular frame, select the text then go to Window - Interactive - Hyperlinks. The Hyperlinks appear on the interactive PDF this way.   I still have not found a way to edit a hyperlink once created.

[Jeffrey_Smith]

To create a URL hyperlink: With no text selected, Hyperlink panel > flyout > New Hyperlink Destination > Type: URL > Name: (whatever you like) URL: HTML destination

To edit an existing hyperlink: From flyout > Hyperlink Destination Options > Edit > change text in URL field

To apply hyperlink to text: Select desired text in frame > Hyperlink Panel > toggle (red dot) the list and select desired link

[Christine40]

Thanks!

[Peter Spier]

There are two problems with Acrobat's URL recognition, it can be turned off, and it won't work on a URL that breaks across a line.