Part 2: Setting up the Application for Tagging
- Daniel LaGrow
Instructions
Step 3: Adding Form Fields
Now that we are in Acrobat with our file, we need to create our form fields for each of the line. Acrobat can create these fields for you and place them on the lines. To add the form fields,
Go to the All Tools pane on the left side of the screen and click on the Prepare a Form Tool.
The Choose an Option to Create a Form page will open. Be sure that you are on the Select a File option. Select your untagged PDF, and leave the option for This Document Requires Signatures unchecked. We will add a signature line ourselves later on.
The option for Form Field Auto Detection should be left as on.
Click the blue Create Form button.
Now your tool has added form fields to your entire PDF document. Field Names and Tooltips are also added, but you should check those to be sure they are accurate.
This tool will automatically add form fields to your document and your PDF will be open in Form Editing Mode. One thing to keep in mind is that the tool will only create text box form fields. If you only use form fields for typing in text, that is okay, but if you need to create check boxes, or dates, or other complex form fields, you will need to make those manually. Field Names and Tooltips are also added automatically, but you may want to edit them.
Step 4: Replacing Form Fields
Now that your form fields have been created, you need to check them all. All of our form fields are text fields. This means that you can type in letters and numbers in the boxes. The issue is that a text field is not necessary for every field. On the left side of the screen, the Prepare a Form Tool is open, there are 10 different form field options including,
Text Box
Check Box
Radio Buttons
List of Choices
Dropdown List
Action Button
Image Field
Date Field
Signature Field
Barcode Field
When you are looking at your form fields, ask yourself: Does it make sense to have this type of form field for this question? In our example, Full Name has a text field, this makes sense. However, Position Applied For also has a text field. While you could use a text field for this, it is better to use a dropdown menu field. This is because having a dropdown menu can allow you give people options of different positions to choose from instead of users typing in a job that is not available.
You can delete your form field by right clicking on the field and clicking the Delete button in the expansion menu.
To replace your field, click on the Dropdown List button. Then click by your line to create your box.
Finally, click and drag your field to make the box go from one end of the line to the other.
Repeat this process for the rest of the fields you want replaced. In our example, the following forms were changed.
Form Field Name | New Type of Form Field |
|---|---|
Position Applied For | Drop-down List |
Are you a US Citizen? | Drop-down List |
If no, are you authorized to work in the US? | Drop-down List |
Have you ever been convicted of a felony? | Drop-down List |
Did you graduate? (High School) | Drop-down List |
Diploma (High School) | Drop-down List |
Did you graduate? (College) | Drop-down List |
Degree (College) | Drop-down List |
May we contact your prior supervisor at Company 1? | Drop-down List |
May we contact your prior supervisor at Company 2? | Drop-down List |
Signature | Signature |
Clear Form | Button |
Note from the author: In our example, there are also many form fields that could be replaced with a date field. I would not recommend using this type of field because it is easier to type in a date in a text field. You will ability to specify the format of the dates in the text field, which we will cover later. If you use a date field, you will have to use a screen reader to access a calendar then go through the calendar one day at a time to find the correct day. This is much more time consuming and not recommended.
Step 5: Editing Form Fields
Now that our example has all of the correct form fields, we need to edit the form fields to have the attributes we want in them. You can change the form attributes by double clicking on each field. After double clicking, the Field Properties box appears. In our example, we want to make changes to the Name of the Field and the Tool Tip, which are found in the General Tab. The Format, in the Format Tab, and the Options, found in the Options tab. Most fields have different needs so you may not need to edit all of those attributes. However, you must make sure that all fields have different names, and a tooltip.
Below is a table showing all of the form fields and information on their Names, Tooltips, Type of Field, and Format used. Keep in mind that all fields in our example have the fonts set to Times New Roman size 14.
Name of the Field | Tool Tip | Type of Field | Format | Options |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Full Name | Type in your full name | Text Field | None | None |
Date | Enter Today’s Date | Text Field | Date | None |
Address | Type in your street address | Text Field | None | None |
City | Type in the name of your city | Text Field | None | None |
State | Type in the name of your state | Text Field | None | None |
Zip Code | Enter your 5 digit zip code | Text Field | Special, Zip Code | None |
Social Security Number (SSN) | Type in your 9 digit Social Security Number | Text Field | Special, Social Security Number | None |
Phone | Type in your phone number | Text Field | Special, Phone Number | None |
Position Applied For | Choose the position you are applying for | Drop-down List | None | Please select an option, Concierge, Front Desk, and Housekeeping |
Are you a US Citizen? | Choose your citizenship status | Drop-down List | None | Please select an option, Yes, No |
If no, are you authorized to work in the US? | If no, are you authorized to work in the US? | Drop-down List | None | Please select an option, Yes, No |
Have you ever been convicted of a felony? | Have you ever been convicted of a felony? | Drop-down List | None | Please select an option, Yes, No |
If yes please explain | If you have been convicted of a felony, please explain | Drop-down List | None | None |
High School | Type in the name of your high school | Text Field | None | None |
City/State High School | Type in the City and State you went to High School in. | Text Field | None | None |
Attended From High School | High School Starting Year | Text Field | None | None |
To High School | High School Ending Year | Text Field | None | None |
Did you graduate High School? | Choose graduation status | Drop-down List | None | Please select an option, Yes, No |
Diploma Earned | Choose the diploma you earned. | Drop-down List | None | Please select an option, Regents Diploma, Advanced Regents Diploma |
College | Type in the name of your college | Text Field | None | None |
City/State College | Type in the City and State you went to college in. | Text Field | None | None |
Attended From College | College Starting Year | Text Field | None | None |
To College | College Ending Year | Text Field | None | None |
Did you graduate college? | Choose your graduation status | Drop-down List | None | Please select an option, Yes, No |
Degree Earned | Choose the college degree earned | Drop-down List | None | Please select an option, Associates, Bachelors, Masters, PHD/MD/Doctorate |
Previous Employment Company 1 Name | Type in the name of company 1. | Text Field | None | None |
City/State Previous Company 1 | Type in the city and state Company 1 is located | Text Field | None | None |
Phone Number Company 1 | Type in the phone number of Company 1 | Text Field | None | None |
Supervisor Name Company 1 | Type in the name of your supervisor at Company 1 | Text Field | None | None |
Start Date Company 1 | Type in the date you started working at Company 1 | Text Field | None | None |
End Date Company 1 | Type in the date that was your last day of work at Company 1 | Text Field | None | None |
Job Title Company 1 | What was your job title at Company 1? | Text Field | None | None |
Responsibilities Company 1 | Type in your responsibilities at Company 1 | Text Field | None | None |
Starting Pay Company 1 | Type in your starting pay at Company 1 | Text Field | None | None |
Ending Pay Company 1 | Type in your ending pay at Company 1 | Text Field | None | None |
May we contact your prior supervisor at Company 1? | Choose if we can contact your supervisor | Drop-down List | None | Please select an option, Yes, No |
Previous Employment Company 2 Name | Type in the name of company 2 | Text Field | None | None |
City/State Previous Company 2 | Type in the city and state Company 2 is located | Text Field | None | None |
Phone Number Company 2 | Type in the phone number of Company 2 | Text Field | None | None |
Supervisor Name Company 2 | Type in the name of your supervisor at Company 2 | Text Field | None | None |
Start Date Company 2 | Type in the date you started working at Company 2 | Text Field | None | None |
End Date Company 2 | Type in the date that was your last day of work at Company 2 | Text Field | None | None |
Job Title Company 2 | What was your job title at Company 2? | Text Field | None | None |
Responsibilities Company 2 | Type in your responsibilities at Company 2 | Text Field | None | None |
Starting Pay Company 2 | Type in your starting pay at Company 2 | Text Field | None | None |
Ending Pay Company 2 | Type in your ending pay at Company 2 | Text Field | None | None |
May we contact your prior supervisor at Company 2? | Choose if we can contact your supervisor | Text Field | None | None |
Reference 1 Name | Type in the name of your first reference. | Text Field | None | None |
Relationship Reference 1 | Type in the relationship between you and your first reference. | Text Field | None | None |
Company Reference 1 | Type in the name of the company your first reference works for. | Text Field | None | None |
Title Reference 1 | Type in your first references title. | Text Field | None | None |
Email Reference 1 | Type in the email of your first reference. | Text Field | None | None |
Phone Number Reference 1 | Type in the phone number for your first reference. | Text Field | Special, Phone Number | None |
Reference 2 Name | Type in the name of your second reference. | Text Field | None | None |
Relationship Reference 2 | Type in the relationship between you and your second reference. | Text Field | None | None |
Company Reference 2 | Type in the name of the company your second reference works for. | Text Field | None | None |
Title Reference 2 | Type in your second references title. | Text Field | None | None |
Email Reference 2 | Type in the email of your second reference. | Text Field | None | None |
Phone Number Reference 2 | Type in the phone number for your second reference. | Text Field | Special, Phone Number | None |
Signature | Enter your signature | Signature | None | None |
Date | Enter Today’s Date | Text Field | Date | None |
Print Name | Enter your name | Text Field | None | None |
Clear Form | Click to clear the form | Button | None | None |
Next, we want all of our form fields to be required. Acrobat does have an option to make each individual field required. However to save time, we can edit our PDF to just have the text “All fields are required” between Employment/Job Application and Personal Information. To do that:
Stay in the Prepare Form Tool, and click on the text at the top of the page.
Press the Enter button to create a new line, and type in “All fields are required”.
Finally, shrink the text make the full text block align with your content. In our example, the new text is set at Times New Roman size 12.
Step 6: Tab Order
Now that all of your form fields have been completed, you need to test the tab order of your PDF. A user may not be able to use the mouse to click from one form field to another. A good alternative to access the form fields is by using the Tab Key. To test your PDF, click the Preview Button and hit the Tab Key several times. What should happen is that the first form field at the top of the PDF should be highlighted first. Then by clicking the Tab Key again, the form next to or underneath the first form field will be highlighted. If a form field is skipped, that means the Tab Order is out of order.