Export PDF maps with Hyperlinks active

[BrianJohnson]

The ability to link features by using hyperlinks is great.

GPS cameras have made taking photos with geographic location and orientation very easy.  Making a point feature with this information, as well as a hyperlink to the photo file location is a great way to create an interactive map.  Clicking on a point can bring up the photo - just like the Panoramo feature on Google Maps.

However - you have to have a copy of the ESRI software to use this feature.  I think it would be a great tool to be able to export a map to PDF format and have the PDF retain these hyperlinks.  This would allow you to send a PDF maps with a folder of photos to a client - and they could use the map to view the photos quite easily.

Making a mapbook with an overview map, with hyperlinks to the inset maps within the same PDF would also be useful.  The PDF would appear to be an interactive map - clicking on areas to zoom in, with 'click here to go back to the overview map' links on each inset map.

[maryandrews]

I would like this added too!  Thanks.

[Jack_Zhang]

Hi Tijs, could you please provide an example? thanks

[DevinRoth]

Going to post to keep a candle burning for this one. If Adobe is still a roadblock after 8 years, why not move on to Bluebeam or another PDF application?

[DavidCook2]

Tijs Lips‌ is right on

in text box within layout: 

example><

<<<<

response to comment was posted on thread <url>webaddress</url>

>>>>

the <url></url> will not appear as text in the layout

the result on export will be the text webaddress is activated as a link, however it will not be blue-underlined unless you have  changed the color manually in the layout prior to export.

[Jack_Zhang]

thanks for the further explanation. Got it working now. cheers.

[PaulLohr]

This post is specifically about linking between pages of a PDF rather than hyperlinks. Has anyone seen how AutoCAD through its Sheet Set Manager handles linking pages of a PDF to a master page? Bear in mind that all of the pages are in the same PDF. I have very little knowledge of it but can say that it uses what we would call Dynamic Text as the basis of a link that goes from a master page to a child page (or index page to detail page). There is some setup involved but it is mostly automated. I've given a vague description and there are more details to how it works. The inserted graphic shows what is setup by AutoCAD in the PDF.

A couple of possible issues. Do the folks at GeoPDF stand to lose substantial market share if ESRI builds this into ArcGIS Pro? Has Autodesk built their own comprehensive PDF object library, which ESRI does not have, at least to this broad of an extent? Or did Autodesk purchase a PDF object library which ESRI does not have?

Just trying to spur some thoughts about how the ESRI developers might implement links between the pages of a PDF.

[DatNguyen2]

Absolutely needed that great features. My work around solution is making layout by Adobe InDesign then placing the exported PDF map in middle.  It works, but kind off long way to go.

[GBacon]

It would be helpful to have the ability to use the <url> text formatting tag to change the text displayed for a hyperlink. I would like to display the text "Full Article" for a link to a newspaper article by using <url href="  " Full Article</url> but it doesn't seem to work. Instead, I must display the full article's URL in my layout, using much more space than I need to.

This topic appeared in the ArcGIS Pro Questions community as well:

https://community.esri.com/t5/arcgis-pro-questions/formatting-hyperlinks-for-pdf-layout-export/td-p/...