Checkboxes disappearing in returned interactive forms

[stephanies19535053]

Hello -

We create a lot of forms using InDesign (CC) and then exporting to interactive PDF. In the past few months, we've been receiving returned forms where our users are noting that the checkboxes (in fields where we offer yes or no answers) along with some other text fields are disappearing when they fill out the form. We have not been able to pinpoint an operating system or browser because the issue seems to be seen across the board (some are experiencing it on Mac, others on PC, some experience it in Chrome, others in Safari, etc.) but I also haven't been able to replicate it. When we export these PDFs and try to fill them out on our end, everything works fine, but when others are filling them out and sending them back to us, they are saying some form fields are disappearing from the forms.

See below for an example:

Note: We have been using these interactive forms for 2+ years, and only recently (in the past 2 months) ran into this issue being reported by a good number of users. We had never had anyone mention this issue prior to that time.

[BobLevine · Accepted solution]

Beyond using Reader or Acrobat, Interactive PDF is a crapshoot. This has been discussed to death in this forum.

If you need to use PDFs then you must direct users to download the file and fill it out using Reader or Acrobat.

[stephanies19535053]

But any idea what changed? These used to work for us perfectly, and we only recently have been running into the issue. We have 50-some forms already created using interactive PDF, so it's not ideal to recreate them all in Acrobat.

[Steve Werner]

I'm afraid that currently Bob's answer is the correct one. Because of the convenience of using browser PDF readers or built-in applications like Preview, more people are using them. Those PDF readers are substandard. They don't follow the PDF specification. They don't work well with forms and interactivity. The only way to guarantee good results is to instruct your users to use the free Adobe Reader.

The developers (Google, Apple, etc.) don't care because the vast majority of users are not using forms or interactive PDF files. They opening simple PDFs from Microsoft Word, or the like and those work OK.

[stephanies19535053]

We have heard reports of this issue coming from people who say they were using Adobe to fill out the form and the boxes were still disappearing.

[BobLevine]

Please find those users and verify that information along with the fact they are using a current version of Acrobat or Reader. Have screenshots provided, too.

[Steve Werner]

Unfortunately, a lot of inexperienced users don't have a clear idea of what software they're using. When they double-click on a PDF, it opens up in what ever has been set by default. Or it just appears in their browser window because the browser uses its included PDF reader.  It's sad but this has made using PDF for these advanced features a lot harder.

[stephanies19535053]

That's kind of what I was thinking too -- that they assume they are using Adobe Reader but really are opening it in a defaulted tool. Thank you all for the input!