The days of printing pages to pen red ink to highlight amendments or typing out a list of changes in an email are long gone. Dean Cook looks at how annotating PDF files has become the easy, faster and more accurate way to apply changes.
We work with editors and content providers who always aim to supply clean copy for page layouts which can speed up the production process. However, the odd typo that wasn't picked up before can often appear after the pages have been laid out. That's fine — word blindness is common when writing content; it's how it works. We're used to running through a round or two of amendments before the artwork is signed off for print or to produce a digital publication, and this is where annotating PDFs comes into its own.
For anyone not familiar with annotating PDF files, here's a brief guide to show you what five easy-to-use tools you should use in Adobe's Acrobat.
How does it work?
Basically, using Acrobat's tools, amendments can be easily applied and saved within the PDF. The production artist can then import your requested amendments from the PDF directly into the original InDesign document. It then enables the production artist to see exactly what those changes are and where they need to be applied throughout the artwork while maintaining document conformity for onward applications. This process helps to significantly reduce time spent locating, interpreting and correctly applying the amendments.
The toolbar
In Acrobat, we can see all the available tools (pictured below) at your disposal. The five key tools you would use are: Sticky Note (1), Highlight (2), Strikethrough (3), Text Replace (4), and Text Insert (5). We'll cover the features below.
1) The Sticky Note
This is a good 'observational' tool, for example, to highlight a move of an object or replacement an image. However, if other tools don't provide what you need, fall back on a Sticky Note and write what the production artist needs to do.
2) The Highlighter
The highlighter pen is great if you need to suggest a visual change to the text, such as its colour, italicise or make bold, or request that the selected copy be indented.
3) Strikethrough (Delete copy)
Strikethrough copy indicates what selected text is to be deleted. When imported into InDesign, it will enable the production artist to delete the chosen copy with a single click. Still, they will have one keen eye on any copy movement that follows and make adjustments if needed.
4) Text Replacement Tool (Replace copy)
Select copy that needs to be replaced with new text by typing the new text into the box. When imported in InDesign, it will allow the production artist to automatically update the copy with a single click but keep a keen eye on how the text behaves surrounding the change and make adjustments if needed.
5) Text Insertion Tool (Insert copy)
Placing the cursor where new copy needs to be inserted and typing the new text into the box will allow the production artist to automatically insert the new text with a single click again, keeping an eye on what happens with the surrounding copy and make adjustments if required.
When you're finished, just save the file and send it to the production artist. They will do the rest.
Do I need Acrobat on my system?
Not at all. Adobe has a free online tool (available here) where you can upload PDF files and then, using the available annotation tools, apply your amendment requests. Once done, you can either share a link with your production artist or download the PDF and upload it onto your shared servers, so comments and changes can be imported into InDesign directly from the PDF. Once applied, the production artist will supply an updated PDF file.
What if I have another program to annotate PDFs?
That's fine. We can still work with it. However, while it is possible to annotate the PDF, importing tool-applied features and comments into InDesign may not always be possible. Instead, we would open the PDF in Acrobat and then manually run down the list, cross-referencing changes, which will invite time to service, but there is a risk that some amendments could be missed or incorrectly applied. In the long run, using third-party software could be counter-productive, but it's nowhere near as bad as marking up hard copy using a red pen.
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