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I'm using pdftk to fill in a PDF form with an XFDF file. However, for this project I do not know in advance what fields will be present, so I need to analyse the PDF itself to see what fields need to be filled in, present an interface to the user accordingly, and then generate an XFDF file from that to fill in the PDF form.
How do I get the field names? Preferably command-line, .NET or PHP solutions.
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To extract fillable fields in a PDF, select a completed document as a template and click Extract in Bulk on the right pane. Define the fields with data you would like to extract. Click Add New Data Field in the upper right corner and draw a rectangle around the data you'd like to extract.
Once the PDF form is open in the program, click on the "Form" > "Extra Data" button, and then select the "Extract Data" option. A new dialogue window will appear. You can then select the option of "Extract data from form fields in PDF ".
It is not possible in one go to paste form fields to multiple other PDF's. It is possible to copy form fields from one PDF (your master document) to another PDF. In order to do this, the destination PDF must be in "Advanced Edit Mode" which is under the Edit Tab and "Convert to Editable".
Right-click the field and choose Duplicate from the shortcut menu. In the Duplicate Field dialog box, leave All selected if you want the field to show on each page, or click From and type the page range, such as pages 1 to 4. You don't have to worry about excluding the page where you added the original field. Click OK.
Easy! You are using pdftk already
# pdftk input.pdf dump_data_fields It will output Field name, field type, some of it's properties (like what are the options for dropdown list or text alignment) and even a Tooltip text (which I found to be extremely useful)
The only thing I'm missing is field coordinates...
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This worked for me:
pdftk 1.pdf dump_data_fields output test2.txt Then when the file is encrypted with a password, this is how you can read from it
pdftk 1.pdf input_pw YOUR_PASSWORD_GOES_HERE dump_data_fields output test2.txt This took me 2 hours to get right, so hopefully i save you some time :)
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