Adobe Acrobat 8 Professional
Setting Tabbing Order
For many PDF documents and especially PDF forms, users may press the [Tab] key to move through the document. You can specify the order in which tabbing moves a user through your document. This can make your document more navigable for your readers.
Setting Tabbing Order: Page Properties
You can set the order in which users can tab through elements on your page (e.g., links, text fields).
NOTE: You have to set a tabbing order for every page separately.
-
Open the PDF document
-
On the left side of the window, from the Navigation pane, click PAGES
The Pages pane appears, displaying thumbnails of each page in your document. -
Right click the thumbnail of the first page you want to set a tabbing order for » select Page Properties...
The Page Properties dialog box appears.
-
Select the Tab Order tab
-
Select the desired tab order
Use Row Order
Tabs through rows from left to right
Use Column Order
Tabs through columns from left to right and from top to bottom
Use Document Structure
Tabs as specified by the program creating the document (e.g., Word, Excel)
Unspecified
Tabs by row, first through form fields, then through links, and lastly through comments
- Click OK
Setting Tabbing Order: Form Fields
Users completing your form will often press [Tab] to advance from one field to the next. You can set the order that the user tabs through the form fields.
-
Open the desired PDF document containing form fields
-
Ensure that the tab order for page properties is set to Unspecified
HINT: For more information, refer to Setting Tabbing Order: Page Properties. -
From the Forms toolbar, click EDIT LAYOUT
Your form fields are selected.
NOTE: If the EDIT LAYOUT button is not visible, click PREVIEW
-
From the Forms menu, select Edit Fields » Set Tab Order
A dialog box appears, asking you if you would like Adobe Acrobat to determine the tabbing order for you. -
Click NO
-
Each form field displays a number representing its current tabbing order.
-
To set a different order, click the form fields in the desired tabbing order
HINT: Be sure to start with the first form field.
