Adobe Acrobat 9 PRO Extended - Manual (Page 228)

222 USING ACROBAT 9 PRO EXTENDED
Forms
Last updated 9/30/2011
Fill in flat forms
The Typewriter tool provides a simple solution for filling out forms without interactive fields, called flat forms. The
text you add with the Typewriter tool is a form of commenting, and appears in the Comments list (Comments > Show
Comments List).
Note: Reader users can use the Typewriter tool only if the creator of the form enabled the use of the Typewriter tool for
that form.
1 Choose Tools > Typewriter > Typewriter.
2 Click a blank form field and type.
3 (Optional) Choose Tools > Typewriter > Show Typewriter Toolbar. Double-click to select typed text. Then use
these tools to change the color, size, or position of the typed text. For more information about the Typewriter tool
and toolbar, see “
Add text using the Typewriter tool ” on page 332.
4 When finished, print a copy of the completed form.
Fill in flat forms in a browser
A common way to view a PDF form is in a web browser, for example, when you click a link on a website. If the form
does not contain interactive fields, you can use the Typewriter tool to fill out the form. Some forms open with the
Typewriter toolbar displayed. But with others, you must first save the form, then open it directly in Acrobat.
Note: You cannot electronically submit a form that you filled out using the Typewriter tool. You can print a copy of the
completed form.
If the Typewriter toolbar is displayed, click the Typewriter tool. Then click the page and start typing. For more
information, see “
Fill in flat forms ” on page 222.
If you don’t see the Typewriter toolbar and you can’t select or type in the fields, save the PDF to your computer. (Click
the Save icon
in the upper-left corner of the PDF form.) Open the PDF form in Acrobat, and choose Tools >
Typewriter > Typewriter.
Note: Reader users can use the Typewriter tool only if the creator of the form enabled the use of the Typewriter tool for
that form.
Fill in interactive forms
Some text fields are dynamic, meaning that they automatically resize to accommodate the amount of data you enter
and can span across pages.
1 If necessary, select either the Hand tool or the Select tool.
2 (Optional) To make form fields easier to identify, click the Highlight Fields button on the document message
bar. Form fields appear with a colored background (light blue by default), and all required form fields are outlined
in another color (red by default).
3 Click to select options, such as radio buttons. Click inside a text field to type.
4 Press Tab to move forward or Shift+Tab to move backward. For more choices, see “ Options for moving among
form fields ” on page 223.
5 When finished, click the submit button to either send the data to a server or create an email to send the data. The
submit button can appear in the purple message bar at the top of the form or in the form content.
For troubleshooting tips on completing forms, see Troubleshooting forms .