PDF West

Phoenix, AZ

Nov 2001

ted padovaauthor:Acrobat 5 PDF Bible

ted@west.nethttp://www.west.net/~ted/pdfwest

an

Introduction

AcrobatForms

AcrobatForms

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Forms are used for:Forms are used for:

http://www.west.net/~ted/pdfwest

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Employment

HR Departments

Operations management

Procedures

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analog vs. electronic forms

Author reports from publishers:

Envelopes .03Photocopies/Laser prints .06Postage .55Total............................................... .64

Monthly for 5,000 titles: $3,200.00Annual 38,400.005 year costs 192,000.0010 year costs 384,000.00

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e-Commerce

Consumer databases

Surveys

Certification

Largest development of Web forms:e-Commerce and Transactions

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Where the market is:Largest purchasers of goods & services:

Boomers(aged 45-60 in 2000)

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Never saved money

Spent all they earned

Need to continue working past 65

During the next decade and a half:

They’ll inherit over 12 Trillion dollars

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Computer sophistication:*32% are very confident with computer usage68% little to somewhat confident

Internet usage of 45+ population:91% have access to the Internet39% make online purchases

* Source: Market Facts, Inc.February 2000

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Current Growth of Internet usage:*

1999 New Web/Internet users:

18.4% of 50+ population17.5% of 17 - 25 year olds

1999- 45+ population averaged:

$36 on software purchases$42 on hardware purchases

*Source: Technology NewsAARP bulletin

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Greatest concern with online purchases of 45+:

74% concerned with use of personal information

93% believe no personal information should be shared

Market Facts implication from survey:

Utmost concern is distribution of financial information

Cornell U. Geriatric studies reported same findings

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Top US Magazine circulation ~ millions:*

NRTA/AARP Bulletin 21.10Modern Maturity 21.00Reader’s Digest 15.10TV Guide 13.20National Geographic 9.00Better Homes and Gardens 7.60Good Housekeeping 5.30Ladies Home Journal 5.04Family Circle 5.01Women’s Day 4.70

*Source: ajr.newslink.org

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Boomers are the largest consumer group

More print advertising is targeted at this group

Boomers are the fastest growing Internet users

91% have online connections

39% currently make online transactions

Spend more money than any other age groupWill spend over 12 trillion dollars over next 15 years

Least to invest in new hardware/software

Not likely to provide financial information

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HTML Forms:Require connections to URLs

Require an uninterrupted connection

No offline completion is available

PDF Forms:Require connection to the URL to download the form

Don’t require an uninterrupted connection to complete the form

Can be completed offline

Can be archived on local hard drives

“Today, up to 95percent of usersthat start a trans-action on theWeb fail to com-plete it.”*

*Source: Shane Hughes, CEO Pyxis Consulting asreported by Tony McKinley in an ePaper atwww.adobe.com

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Static FormsScans of hard copy forms

Digital files converted to PDF

Designed to be printed, completed and faxed

Require manual input for digital data

Smart FormsDesigned with field boxes for completion in Acrobat

Intelligently prevent user error

Can route data electronically

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Keep them simple and intuitive

Avoid using scanned image files (for Web use)Long downloads are as bad as interrupted connections

Try to anticipate user error and control it if possible

Avoid asking unnecessary personal informationEspecially personal financial information for the 45+ population

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Use vector art/layout applicationsAvoid nesting EPS filesCrop raster images tightlyReplace pages to modify form

Scan text with OCR applicationsUse Acrobat Scan with Capture to convert to text

Use Acrobat Distiller to produce PDFEmbed fonts and used font subsettingUse Screen Optimized JobOptions

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Creating Field Tables

Alignment/Sizing

Setting Tab Order

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What’s in a name?

Inserting Fields in Tables

Calculating on Names

Conditional Options

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Logging Passwords

Electronic File System

Insurance Data

Quote Calculator

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Making Sense of Form Submission to Web Servers

1. You create the Acrobat Form

2. You send the form to a Web Server (i.e. uploading the PDF file).

3. A user loads the PDF file from your URL (inside the Web browser).

4. The user completes the form and submits the data (a button you created).

5. The Acrobat viewer exports the form fields as an FDF file (from the submit button ~ in transmission).

6. When the FDF file hits the server, the Acrobat viewer is no longer involved.

7. A CGI script at the specified URL receives the FDF file, reads it, andprocesses the information in it.

8. A script may be used to parse the data for delivery to a DBMS.

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Dynamically serving PDF Files

Web Servers can be set up to dynamically populate PDF form fields.*

A server side script must be created to route FDF data to a PDF form

The user submits FDF data to the server

A script collects the data and routes it to a PDF form (the fields are populated with corresponding data).

The Web Server can return a PDF form with the data filled in.

PDF files with completed forms can be saved, archived and printed.

* Note: Adobe Technical Support does not provide technical assistance for Web Server scripting and trouble shooting.