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kohesion
kohesion
Inspiring
February 2, 2023
Question

turn paragraph bullet points into interactive checkboxes via the interactive PDF capabilities

  • February 2, 2023
  • 4 replies
  • 2219 views

I am hoping to learn how I can turn bullet points into interactive checkboxes via the interactive PDF capabilities within indesign. I dont want to have to make individual squares and apply the checkbox state to them because then all the text I write may change and I will have to move the checkboxes around each time. can this be done?

4 replies

M
miss-charlotte
Inspiring
March 21, 2025

I did this recently and used tables to have each interactive checkbox align with text to the right -- 2 columns, first with interactive checkbox and other for text for each box,  then separate rows for each item.

Rene Andritsch
Rene Andritsch
Community Expert
February 2, 2023

Maybe also worth a shot would be to use an uncommon character as an interim bullet with the Bulleted List feature. Once the document is done make a copy of the document and convert your bulleted lists to text. Then you can “Find/Replace” that character with what you have in the clipboard (if you copy that anchored object to the clipboard before starting the replacement).

    Robert at ID-Tasker
    Robert at ID-Tasker
    Brainiac
    February 2, 2023

    I'm pretty sure the OP wants them to be INTERACTIVE - not just static symbols 😉 

     

    Rene Andritsch
    Rene Andritsch
    Community Expert
    February 2, 2023

    No idea which one was first / last - I've referred to the one where you suggest Find&Change. 

     


    Yes, so they wouldn't be static symbols after replacement.

    Rene Andritsch
    Rene Andritsch
    Community Expert
    February 2, 2023

    Did you try to use elements from the “Sample Buttons and Forms” Panel? They are ready for use and you can paste them where you need them. No need to apply the checkbox state to them. After exporting that to Interactive PDF they are ready to use.

    kohesion
    kohesionAuthor
    Inspiring
    February 2, 2023

    Thank you but yes, I am aware that is possible. The issue is, I want the checkboxes to remain as bullet points, until I export the document as an interactive PDF. Reason being, If I edit the text later, I want it's bullet point (or checkbox) to move around with the edit and not have to move them manually.

      BobLevine
      BobLevine
      Community Expert
      February 2, 2023

      You can use the Replace Pages feature in Acrobat. This will leave the interactive items in place while replacing the text. You might have to move things around a bit, but it's very easy to do.

        Steve Werner
        Steve Werner
        Community Expert
        February 2, 2023

        It sounds like a scripting project for someone to accomplish. Definitely not a built-in feature of InDesign.

          kohesion
          kohesionAuthor
          Inspiring
          February 2, 2023

          Do you have any idea of who can do such a thing? I'm surprised - it seems like a logical feature to me to have available in Indesign.

           

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