Create hyperlinked Table of Contents for PDF document

[gopher_everett]

Hello,

Now and then I come across a PDF document which begins with a blue Table of Contents in which the listed headings or chapters are clickable. In other words, they are hyperlinks which allow the user to jump directly to a specified heading or page.

Questions:

• 1) Using PDF-XChange Viewer, is it possible to create a Table of (hyperlinked) Contents of this type?
  2) If so, can you direct me to a location which describes how it's done?
  3) If not, can you tell me what software I would need to download or purchase in order to have that functionality?
  4) Also, how does one add a new page to the beginning of a lengthy PDF document or can a newly-created page only be attached to the end?

Thanks

[Herb Flores]

1.) Highlight the Title or text you want to hyperlink. Right click, go to Add Link and click, click on add "Go to a page in this Document", that and a new dialog box comes up, scroll to the page you want and on the bottom you can zoom in or out, then click on "Use Current View". Click OK, Then OK again and now you are linked on that title or text. I like to create a back link as well so I can go back to the table of contents.

2.) to add a new page go to Document Tab. Click on Insert Empty Pages, a dialog box comes up, pick where you want the page, before or after the current page etc., then click OK.

[Tracker Supp-Stefan]

Hello gopher_everett, Herb Flores,

If there is no Table of content already in the PDF file - then the Viewer won't be able to create one automatically. Those are usually created in an external application (e.g. Word) before converting the file with the already existing contents to PDF.

If you are missing a few links - you can add them just as Herb suggests, and creating a new page is also possible at any position through the document.

Regards,
Stefan

[gopher_everett]

1.) Highlight the Title or text you want to hyperlink. Right click, go to…
2.) to add a new page go to…

If there is no Table of content already in the PDF file - then the Viewer won't be able to create one automatically. Those are usually created in an external application (e.g. Word) before converting the file with the already existing contents to PDF.

Thanks for the very clear and helpful steps and comments.

I should mention that my goal is to create a table of contents (TOC) for two PDF files containing a combined 3000+ pages (File A = ~1600 pgs + File B = ~1400 pgs). The two documents are divided into sections and each section has between 10 & 80 or so numbered subsections which I want to define as the link destinations. (The link destinations number between 1200 to 1500.)

I have followed your instructions and created a Word DOC which contains the section headings and subsection numbers (H&N) corresponding to the locations described above and which I intend to convert to links. I arranged the H&N into three columns with each column containing H&N appearing something like this:

Heading A...1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40
41 42 43 44 45 46 47

Heading B...1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
31 32

Heading C...1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
11 12 13 14

etc.

With that configuration, I was able to include all H&N for both large docs on a single page. Also, I was pleased to discover that links can be created to destinations not only within the same file but to other files and I have therefore chosen to save the TOC as a separate PDF file rather than adding it as an additional page to one of the larger files. My plan, once the TOC becomes functional with hyperlinks, is to simply have all three files open simultaneously. I'm anticipating that I will then be only two clicks (1st to select the TOC & 2nd to click a hyperlink) away from any subsection in either large file.

Questions
• With that number (1200 to 1500) of hyperlinks in a single TOC file, will the hyperlink jump-time be hindered (ie vs. having the TOC as an additional page in the same file)?

• Based on what I have described, can you give me any suggestions for expediting this process? For example, is there any way to automate it rather than having to create a link and then manually find the corresponding destination location in the large docs and laboriously repeating those steps one-at-a-time?

• For example, would it be a good idea to first create a bookmark at each destination and then create the hyperlinks? I have spent some time in the Link Properties and also the Bookmark Properties boxes but I did not see a way to define an already-created bookmark as the destination for a new hyperlink. If that's possible, I assume it would enable me to avoid the necessity of scrolling to the exact page in one of the large documents each time.

• Any other comments, instructional YouTube video links, or other references relating to these questions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks