Adobe Acrobat X Classroom in a Book: Actions
The accompanying files for this lesson can be downloaded here.
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
Lesson overview
In this lesson, you’ll do the following:
- Run an action (Acrobat Pro).
- Create an action.
- Create an instruction step for an action.
- Set options in steps so the user doesn’t need to provide input.
- Prompt the user for input on specific steps.
- Share an action.
This lesson will take approximately 45 minutes to complete. Copy the Lesson11 folder onto your hard drive if you haven’t already done so.
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Figure 11.1 Actions in Adobe Acrobat X Pro automate tasks and make processes more consistent. You can use the actions that come with Acrobat or create your own to use and share.
About actions
In Adobe Acrobat X Pro, you can use actions to automate multistep tasks and share processes with others. An action is a collection of steps: Some steps, such as adding tags to a document, can be performed automatically by Acrobat. Some steps, such as removing hidden information, require input as to which information to remove or add, or which settings to use. Other steps, such as adding bookmarks, cannot be done automatically because you need to use human discretion to create and name the bookmarks; in those cases, an action includes instructions for the user to perform the necessary step before the action continues.
Acrobat Pro includes several actions in the Action Wizard panel. You can use these actions to perform common tasks, such as preparing documents for distribution or creating accessible PDFs. You can also create your own actions, assembling steps in the order that works for your process, and including informational steps where appropriate for the people who will be using each action.
Actions that contain automated steps are particularly useful for tasks you perform frequently. Actions in general are handy for tasks you perform less frequently, but which require the same steps each time. Using actions, you can ensure that critical steps are included in the process.