formatting a simple text

[DecoyFrost]

Hi everyone,

First off: English isn't my native language, so please bear with me.

Since I'm also a complete beginner with PDF-XChange, I bought a license yesterday after contacting support to ask if I could format text in a PDF with the program, and they confirmed that I could. So now I have a file that I obtained from an external source; it's a blank file, and I can easily insert text into it.

I click in a field, insert my text, and then print it. So far, so good. My problem is this: When I type text into this field and then click on "Format" in the menu bar on the far right, practically everything is grayed out. I can only click on "Properties" and change the capitalization. However, I can't select a word in the text I've written and, for example, make it bold. Clicking the "Properties" icon opens a "Text Properties" window on the right. However, I can't change anything there either. First, I have to click on "Select Fields" under the "Form" tab, and then I can click on the field and define the basic formatting for it. But I can't select individual words and format them separately.

So what am I doing wrong? Why can't I simply highlight the text I've written in this field and format it, for example, as bold or red?

I would really appreciate an answer.

Greetings from Austria
Mike

[Daniel - PDF-XChange]

Hello, DecoyFrost

The only scenario where what you describe would happen is if you are "filling" in an existing form-based document. In that case, the creator of the form has pre-defined the formatting options that each form field should use, and these are intentionally not available to the filler of he document. This is to ensure consistency in presentation, and is a core facet of PDF structure/data presentation.

If you are the creator of the form, than the "select fields" tool you found is (by intent) the only way to modify these items, and those values need to be set for the entire field. It is not possible to make just one word in a given field bold, either everything is, or nothing is.

Should you need to create/edit non-field based text content, that is a different story, the locations you were looking *(format tab and properties pane) are absolutely the correct locations, but you need to be working with either comment text items (for example, the typewriter tool from the comment tab) or base content text (anything added with the "add > text" tool or edited with the "Edit text" tool - both located on the Home tab).

I hope this helps!
Kind regards,

[DecoyFrost]

Hi Daniel,

I just wrote the author of the document and he will give me the "opened" pdf where I can fill in those texts and format them. Thank you for the fast reply.
Wish you all the best

Decoy

[Daniel - PDF-XChange]