Way to automate/script pasting buttons on 300 pages?

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mmitchell_houston
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Way to automate/script pasting buttons on 300 pages?

Post by mmitchell_houston »

I am using a corporate configuration [Windows 7, PDF-XChange Editor Plus 6.0 (build 322.7), PDF-Tools 6.0 (build 322.7)], so my ability to customize or add plug-ins may be limited. Nevertheless, here is my situation:

THE SCENARIO:
  • I am using InDesign to create a 300+ page interactive PDF.
  • There is a menu bar at the top of the pages, with these buttons: Home | Menu | Prev | Next | Print
THE PROBLEM
  • I cannot add javascript directly to the hyperlinks, only to what it calls "interactive buttons."
  • However, InDesign creates HUGE files (100+ MB) when you let it handle the interactive buttons. It handles links fine, but buttons bloat the file size in ways you can hardly imagine.
  • So, I create a "normal" PDF (with lots of hyperlinks) and then use PDF-XChange Editor Plus to add the buttons.
  • This works great! My file shrank from 100 MB to 12 MB.
  • Except... I have to cut/paste the buttons on 300 pages! That's a LOT of clicking and pasting.
THE QUESTION
Is there a way to automate this? Can I write a script (or do something else) that will automate this in PDF-XChange Editor or the PDF-Tools?
NOTE: This is a corporate installation PC, so I cannot install an external macro editor. I might be able to do something in VBA or write a program to do it (I could request that they put a copy of Visual Studio on my computer... maybe), but that's not my strong suite and doubt I could get it working without a lot of help.

Thanks in advance for any help or guidance you can provide!

PS: I did look into the possibility of adding the buttons to a "Watermark" layer, but couldn't figure out how to do it with these tools. Any thoughts in that direction would also be appreciated.
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Tracker Supp-Stefan
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Re: Way to automate/script pasting buttons on 300 pages?

Post by Tracker Supp-Stefan »

Hello mmitchell_houston,

Have you tried the duplicate function available from the "Selection" entry in the toolbars:
Duplicate.png
Cheers,
Stefan
mmitchell_houston
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Posts: 8
Joined: Thu Apr 19, 2018 11:06 am

Re: Way to automate/script pasting buttons on 300 pages?

Post by mmitchell_houston »

STEPHAN: Thank you SO VERY MUCH! It worked perfectly, and was so fast I could hardly believe it.
Since it said "annotation," I never would have looked there.

- - - - - - - - - - For future reference - - - - - - - - - -
The tool is also located in main menu bar under Object > Duplicate annotation
  • Obviously, the first thing you should do is chose Form > Edit Form
  • Then select the buttons you want to duplicate
  • A dialog will appear giving you the option to duplicate them over a specific page range
  • Select OK and the buttons were instantly on each page (and they work perfectly).
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TrackerSupp-Daniel
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Re: Way to automate/script pasting buttons on 300 pages?

Post by TrackerSupp-Daniel »

Glad to hear its solved!
Dan McIntyre - Support Technician
Tracker Software Products (Canada) LTD

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