Adobe Acrobat 9 Pro

Working with Bookmarks

In a PDF file, bookmarks make it easy to navigate from one page to the next, or to skip to specific sections of text. They can also provide an overview of document content. The bookmarks act like target links in a web document or bookmarked text in a Word document. This document explains how to work with bookmarks in PDF files, including the following:

Creating Bookmarks
Using Bookmarks
Renaming Bookmarks
Changing Bookmark Location
Modifying Bookmark Properties
Changing Bookmark Organization

Creating Bookmarks

When you create a bookmark, it will link to the page you are currently displaying by default. However, you can link bookmarks to any place in the current document or to other files, such as websites and movies. To change the bookmark so that it links to external files, refer to Modifying Bookmark Properties.

Creating a Bookmark for Selected Text

Open the PDF document you would like to add a bookmark to
From the Navigation pane, click BOOKMARKS
The Bookmarks pane appears inside the Navigation pane.
NOTE: If you cannot see the Navigation pane to the left of the document, from the View menu, select Navigation Panels » Show Navigation Pane.
From the Select & Zoom toolbar, click the SELECT TOOL button
In the PDF document, highlight the text you would like to bookmark
NOTE: The bookmark will be set to the exact level of magnification, or zoom percentage, you are currently viewing the document with.
On the Bookmarks pane, from the Options drop-down menuselect New Bookmark
OR
On the Bookmarks pane, click the NEW BOOKMARK button
The bookmark appears in the Bookmarks list. The selected text will be the default name of the bookmark, but you can type in a new name if you desire.
Press [Enter]

Creating a Bookmark for an Image

Open the PDF document you would like to add a bookmark to
From the Navigation pane, click BOOKMARKS
The Bookmarks pane appears inside the Navigation pane.
NOTE: If you cannot see the Navigation pane to the left of the document, from the View menu, select Navigation Panels » Show Navigation Pane.
From the Select & Zoom toolbar, click the SELECT TOOL button
In the PDF document, click the image you would like to bookmark so that it is selected
NOTE: The bookmark will be set to the exact level of magnification, or zoom percentage, you are currently viewing the document with.
On the Bookmarks pane, from the Options drop-down menuselect New Bookmark
OR
On the Bookmarks pane, click the NEW BOOKMARK button
The bookmark appears in the Bookmarks list. It will be untitled, but you can type in a new name if you desire.
Press [Enter]

Using Bookmarks

Bookmarks in a PDF file generally follow the hierarchical structure of the document and, therefore, act much like a table of contents. At a glance you can see the sections, subjects, or topics in the publication. Clicking a bookmark takes you to a specified place in the document. For more information on navigating a PDF document using bookmarks, refer to Navigating with Bookmarks.

Renaming Bookmarks

From the Navigation pane, click BOOKMARKS
The Bookmarks pane appears inside the Navigation pane.
NOTE: If you cannot see the Navigation pane to the left of the document, from the View menu, select Navigation Panels » Show Navigation Pane.
From the Bookmarks list, right click the bookmark you would like to rename » select Rename
The current name of the bookmark is highlighted.
Type the new bookmark name
Press [Enter]

Changing Bookmark Locations

You can change the destination of a bookmark after you have created it.

Open the PDF document you would like to work with
From the Navigation pane, click BOOKMARKS
The Bookmarks pane appears inside the Navigation pane.
NOTE: If you cannot see the Navigation pane to the left of the document, from the View menu, select Navigation Panels » Show Navigation Pane.
From the Bookmarks list, select the bookmark you would like to change the location of
In the PDF document, select the text or image of the new bookmark location
NOTE: For more information on how to select images or text, refer to Creating Bookmarks.
OPTIONAL: You may also decide not to select anything. The bookmark will then be set to the current view within the PDF document.
From the Bookmarks list, right click the selected bookmark » select Set Destination
A confirmation dialog box appears.
Click YES
The bookmark is now set to the new destination.

Modifying Bookmark Properties

A bookmark can be modified to change the way it behaves. Bookmark Properties allow you to change the look of the bookmark's name. You can also modify the bookmark to link to movies, outside links, and other forms of media.

Modifying Bookmark Appearance

Open the PDF document you would like to work with
From the Navigation pane, click BOOKMARKS
The Bookmarks pane appears inside the Navigation pane.
NOTE: If you cannot see the Navigation pane to the left of the document, from the View menu, select Navigation Panels » Show Navigation Pane.
From the Bookmarks list, select the bookmark you would like to modify
Right click the selected bookmark » select Properties...
The Bookmark Properties dialog box appears.
Select the Appearance tab
From the Style pull-down menu, select the desired style
From the Color palette, select the desired color
Click OK
The bookmark's appearance is now reformatted.

Setting a Bookmark Action

Open the PDF document you would like to work with
From the Navigation pane, click BOOKMARK
The Bookmarks pane appears inside the Navigation pane.
NOTE: If you cannot see the Navigation pane to the left of the document, from the View menu, select Navigation Panels » Show Navigation Pane.
From the Bookmarks list, select the bookmark you would like to modify
Right click the selected bookmark » select Properties...
The Bookmark Properties dialog box appears.
Select the Actions tab
The Bookmark Properties dialog box changes appearance.
In the Add an Action section, from the Select Action pull-down list, select the desired action
Click ADD...
A dialog box corresponding to your selection appears.
Make desired selections and entries appropriate to the action you selected
Click OK
NOTE: Actions are carried out according to the order in which they appear in the Actions section. You can change the order by selecting the action and clicking UP or DOWN.
To delete an action
1. Within the Actions section, select the action
2. Click DELETE
To edit an action
1. Within the Actions section, select the action
2. Click EDIT
3. Make the desired adjustments
4. Click OK
When you are satisfied with the action, click OK
The bookmark properties have now been modified.

Changing Bookmark Organization

By default, bookmarks appear in the order they were created. You can easily change the order or hierarchical organization of bookmarks. You can create multiple levels of bookmarks, which can give the effect of chapters and sections within chapters. Refer to Reorganizing Bookmarks for examples.