How to Create a PDF Form in Acrobat
Adobe Acrobat Pro lets you create several types of PDF forms. PDF form options are extensive and nearly limitless. You can create forms for electronic distribution via email or the Web that users can fill out and submit with Acrobat Reader. You can create forms designed for faxing and printing that users can fill out manually. Acrobat Pro can convert existing PDFs, Word or Excel documents and several other file types to forms. You can also scan paper forms into Acrobat Pro. However, the easiest and most foolproof tool for creating and formatting PDF forms is Acrobat Pro's Form Wizard.
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Instructions
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Creating a Form in Acrobat Pro
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Click "Forms" on the menu bar in Acrobat Pro and choose "Start Form Wizard." This opens the Create or Edit Form dialog box. This box has three options: "An existing electronic document" converts an existing document to a PDF form. "A paper form" lets you scan a hardcopy form into Acrobat Pro. "No existing from" lets you choose and format a form from one of the many Acrobat Pro form templates. The first two options will most likely require additional editing and formatting---you'll need to know how to use Acrobat Pro's form tools.
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Click the "No existing form" radio button to select it. Click the "Next" button. This opens Adobe LiveCycle Designer and displays the New Form Assistant dialog box.
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Click the "Based on a Template" radio button to select it, and then click the "Next" button. This displays a list of form templates. This list has a template for most common form types.
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Select a form type in the list. The form is displayed in the right pane of the dialog box. Click the "Next" button. This displays the Company Name section of the Form Wizard.
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Type the company name in the "Company Name" field and click the "Next" button. This displays the "Company Logo" section.
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Click the "Browse" button to open the Browse for Image File dialog box. Navigate to your company logo graphic, select it, and then click the "Open" button. Click the "Next" button to move on to the Address screen.
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Type your company's address information in the fields provided and then click the "Next" button. This displays the Contact section.
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Type your company's phone, fax and website information in the fields provided, and then click the "Finish" button. The new form opens in LiveCycle Designer. You can now tweak the form as desired. For example, to change form field labels, select them and type the new label. To change text formatting, such as font, color and size, select the text and make your changes from the Toolbar.
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Click "File" on the menu bar and choose "Save As" to save the new form.
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Tips & Warnings
If you want to make more advanced changes to your form's format, such as deleting or adding fields, check out the "How To" panel on the upper-right side of the LiveCycle Designer window. You'll find instructions there for most formatting options.
If you want to add specific elements to your form, such as check boxes, drop-down lists, or an email "Submit" button, you can drag and place them into your form from the "Object Library" on the lower-right side of the LiveCycle Designer window.
References
- Photo Credit tax forms image by Stephen VanHorn from Fotolia.com
