Endnote references don't work in PDF

I did a bug report at InDesign UserVoice.

Also posted a link to my test documents over there.

Please vote for fixing the issue:

Text formatting can break backlinking endnote texts to endnote refs when exported to PDF (Print)
Uwe Laubender, Nov 27, 2020

https://indesign.uservoice.com/forums/601180-adobe-indesign-bugs/suggestions/42062446-text-formatting-can-break-backlinking-endnote-text

Thanks,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

Hi together,

as I tested and found, this is the minimum requirement that linking from endnote references to endnote texts will work:

PDF Export (Print)

Compatibility: Acrobat 5 (PDF 1.4)

[x] Create Tagged PDF

[x] Hyperlinks enabled

If you want linking back from the endnote number at the start of the endnote text you have to be careful with formatting of that endnote number which in fact is a special character.

What worked:

The endnote is using a paragraph style without any specialities. No overrides, no character styles applied:

Result: No issue with linking back and forth between endnote reference number and number in the endnote text.

Now I had the idea to format that special character, the number that starts the endnote text with a character style.

Result: Linking from the endnote reference number to the endnote text worked. Backlinking did not.

More details in this thread:

Endnotes not exporting with links to PDF
Mr_Wonderstuff, Nov 18, 2020

https://community.adobe.com/t5/indesign/endnotes-not-exporting-with-links-to-pdf/m-p/11628582#M40545...

https://community.adobe.com/t5/indesign/endnotes-not-exporting-with-links-to-pdf/m-p/11628643#M40546...

What broke the backlinking:

[1] Character style applied through a GREP Style

[2] Character style applied directly as formatting

[3] Properties directly applied as overrides without a character style

What finally worked:

[4] Character style applied as nested style through the applied paragraph style:

Character style to 1 tabulator character

I did not test on to eliminate other factors.

Maybe one of the used properties are the real culprit?

What I defined in that character style and also tried to apply as character override was:

Character width and height: 70%

Baseline Offset: 2 Pt

Fill Color: "C=100 M=0 Y=0 K=0"

Regards,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

Hi Peter:

How are you exporting to PDF? Try Adobe PDF (Print) and enable the Hyperlinks checkbox in General category.

~Barb