Importing PDFs with notes into ID

[Mike_Fernbank]

I'm using the latest versions of AI, ID and Adobe Acrobat XI. I was sent a PDF with some notes drawn on it. It is a small section of a very large outdoor site plan, so I want to bring it into ID and place it so I can focus on just the annotated areas. Much to my surprise, the notes do not import. No surprise, there doesn't seem to be an obvious way to do this pretty fundamental action. I imagine there is a way to do it in the settings of one of the three separate applications, but I can't seem to find it. Can anyone let me know how this is done? In short: export a PDF so I can see it in Illustrator or ID the way I see it in Acrobat.

Thanks,

Mike

[Steve Werner]

The drawings were probably made with Acrobat's Commenting/Annotation tools. Those annotations are NOT part of the PDF file itself but are stored on a separate layer. InDesign and other applications cannot see those annotations.

[Mike_Fernbank]

Thank you for your help and yes, I'm sure they were done that way in Acrobat, but I can't imagine I'm the first person to want to open such a file In AI or place it in ID with those notes intact. I'm looking for a way to embed the notes so I can do that. The fact that they are stored on a separate layer should not make them invisible to the other members of the "suite." At least that should not be the default.

Thanks,

Mike

[Steve Werner · Accepted solution]

Trust me, it's been a requested feature for a very long time. You can add you request for that feature here:

Feature Requests/Bug Reports

[Mike_Fernbank]

So there is no way to print out a section of an annotated PDF. That is disappointing. Since AI is the only app in this "suite" that allows selecting and enlarging a specific area I generally print my PDFs out of AI. Thanks for letting me know it is impossible; I'll stop wasting my time looking—unless someone has discovered a "trick" or third-party software that does this.

Thank you,

Mike

[BobLevine]

Opening PDFs, unless created in Illustrator, with Illustrator is not a recommended workflow at all.

I’ve already given you a 3rd party application but you’re not interested in paying a developer that has come up with something you need.

[Mike_Fernbank]

Thanks, for the tip, Bob, but I beg to differ. Opening PDFs in Illustrator in order to print enlarged sections is very much a recommended workflow. It has never failed to work and it is essential in printing very large architectural files where you only want to print a small part. PDFs are used to send drawings back and forth. Illustrator is not just used by print media designers and the workflow that is considered proper for that specific profession are not comprehensive across all other occupations. I feel that anything that works reliably can become part of a workflow. I've been using Illustrator to selectively enlarge and print specific areas of PDFs for quite some time with no damage. I can't see a compelling reason to stop when I have a large amount of empirical data that show it works just fine.

[Willi Adelberger]

No, never open any PDF in Illustrator except those made in Illustrator with the AI fork in it. It can cause huge damage and you will not aware of it.

When you want to print a portion enlarged of any PDF in Acrobat, use the Snapshot tool. Draw an area around the item you want to print enlarged and then in the print dialog, you will find additional the snapshot are which you have selected before. This you can print enlarged as you want.

[BobLevine]

If you don’t mind spending a few bucks:

http://www.dtptools.com/product.asp?id=anid

[Mike_Fernbank]

Thanks for the link, Bob, but I'm not paying 60 quid for something this basic. Unfortunately I can't express what I really think on a moderated forum, but you can probably make a good guess!

Mike

[Jongware]

Yes, have been using that for years.

Usefulness depends on your entire workflow. For us, it has been well worth the money, even with those authors who "don't know" how to use the right tools and add corrections into a 300p. book using yellow popup notes only.

[BobLevine]

That’s pretty much how it works. PDFs are treated as artwork. Annotations are not part of that.

[Barb Binder]

So there is no way to print out a section of an annotated PDF.

Hey Mike: you can print your annotations through Adobe Acrobat.

[Mike_Fernbank]

Thanks, Barb, but Adobe Acrobat doesn't allow you to print at an enlarged scale AND select the area you want to print. Of the applications in this "suite," Illustrator is the only one with a print dialog that allows this. As a "suite" of applications, they should all have the same print dialog box, but they do not.

Mike

[Willi Adelberger]

https://forums.adobe.com/people/Mike+Fernbank  schrieb

Thanks, Barb, but Adobe Acrobat doesn't allow you to print at an enlarged scale AND select the area you want to print. Of the applications in this "suite," Illustrator is the only one with a print dialog that allows this. As a "suite" of applications, they should all have the same print dialog box, but they do not.

Mike

Oh yes, it does. Use the snapshot tool, select the area and you have additional functionality in the print dialog. Don't use Illustrator.

[SJRiegel]

https://forums.adobe.com/people/Mike+Fernbank  wrote

Thanks, Barb, but Adobe Acrobat doesn't allow you to print at an enlarged scale AND select the area you want to print. Of the applications in this "suite," Illustrator is the only one with a print dialog that allows this. As a "suite" of applications, they should all have the same print dialog box, but they do not.

Mike

Mike - Hidden under the More Options section of the Acrobat print dialog, you can choose to Print Current View.
Zoom into the area you want to print, set the percentage of enlargement under Custom Scale. Change the Comments and forms section to Document and Markups.

I just tested this, and it printed the area I was zoomed to with all markups.

[Mike_Fernbank]

Great! Thanks to everyone who pointed out the "snapshot" tool. Still, I wish all the apps could be a bit more coordinated in where they put stuff.

[Mike_Fernbank]

Sorry, it turns out this does not work. For some inexplicable reason, you can't save as a PDF in the printer dialog box once you have it all set to the view you want. Apparently, all you can do is print it. That would be fine if it were 1987, but it's 30 years later and much of what I do is done electronically. Am I missing something simple? Thanks to all who helped. Certainly in the area of printing this will be the way to go, but that is not a huge help.

[Barb Binder]

No, they don't. The various applications are managed by independent design teams, and while standardization would be awesome, it's certainly not available now. Acknowledging that you don't want to purchase any additional software, I think that Steve's 2nd response is the best answer to your question—file a feature request with Adobe.