Exporting and Importing Form Data

When forms are enabled with usage rights, you can import and export form data between forms. The requirement for importing form data is that the names of the form fields must match identically on both forms. If the field names don't match, the data are not imported into similar fields. As an Adobe Reader user, you do not have the option of changing field names; therefore, the only thing you can do is try and see if the data are imported into the correct fields.

Use the form saved from the previous steps.

To export and import form data:

1.	Open the file that you saved in the previous exercise. If the file isn't open in the Adobe Reader Document pane, open it.
2.	Open the Form Tasks button pull-down menu (Figure 19.14). Figure 19.14. Open the Form Tasks button pull-down menu by clicking the down arrow. NOTE The menu options shown in Figure 19.14 are available only when working with forms that have been enabled with usage rights so that the form data can be saved. If you're using an Adobe PDF form without usage rights, the Form Tasks button doesn't appear in the Toolbar Well.
3.	Select Export Data from Form.
4.	The Export Form Data As dialog opens. Navigate your hard drive to locate a target folder in which to save the file. Click Save to export the data.
5.	Open the original f1040.pdf document.
6.	From the Form Tasks pull-down menu select Import Data to Form.
7.	The Select File Containing Form Data dialog opens.
8.	Locate the exported data file on your hard drive if it doesn't appear in the Select File Containing Form Data dialog. If the file doesn't appear in the dialog, navigate to the folder location where you saved the data. Select the file and click Select. NOTE Data exported from forms are exported in a Form Data Format format (or in XML format when the form was created with Adobe Designer) and appear with an .fdf (or .xml) extension. Similarly, when you import data, the Select File Containing Form Data dialog displays .fdf (or .xml) files. The files are thereby easy to locate when browsing your hard drive.
9.	The data are imported into the same form fields.

What is the benefit of exporting form data?

You're not likely to export form data from a form and import the data back to the same file very often. You can use exported data for a much greater benefit. If you have a document where data needs to be returned to a PDF author, you can export the data from a form and email the data to the PDF author. If no Submit button exists on the form, the only way to return the data is to email either the populated PDF document or the form data to the PDF author. Since just the data are a text file, the file size is much smaller than the populated PDF form. When working on forms of several pages, the PDF file size can be quite large. A more efficient way of returning data is to email the data file. The PDF author retrieves the data file and imports the data into a blank form. Since the PDF forms are identical and all fields have the same common field names, the data are imported precisely as the form was populated.