Preparing for a Commenting Session

When you open a file that has been enabled with usage rights for Adobe Reader users, the Commenting and Drawing Markups toolbars load in the Reader application. These tools are not available to you unless you're working on a PDF that has had usage rights applied. By default, the toolbars are hidden from view. You need to open the toolbars to use the commenting tools.

If you don't have a file with usage rights enabled, use the draftLayout.pdf file from www.peachpit.com/adobereader7 for all the steps related to using the Commenting toolbar.

To open the Commenting and Drawing Markups toolbars in Adobe Reader:

1.	Open a PDF document with usage rights enabled for Adobe Reader.
2.	Open a context menu in the Toolbar Well and select Commenting (Figure 11.2). Return to the menu and select Drawing Markups and again to select Properties Bar. Figure 11.2. Open a context menu in the Toolbar Well and select the Commenting and Drawing Markups toolbars and the Properties Bar.
3.	The toolbars open as floating toolbars in the Adobe Reader window. Return to the context menu and select Dock All Toolbars. The toolbars are docked in the Toolbar Well. You'll want to open these toolbars each time you engage in commenting and review sessions. TIP You can also open comment tools from the Comment & Markup task button that appears in the Toolbar Well. From the task button pull-down menu select commands for opening the toolbars. NOTE When you open your first PDF document for which Reader usage rights have been enabled, all the toolbars are hidden from view. After you open the toolbars and dock them in the Toolbar Well, the new toolbar locations become a default. When you quit Adobe Reader, relaunch the program and open a file with usage rights enabled, the toolbars appear as you last left them in the Toolbar Well.
4.	To further prepare you for commenting, verify that the Identity preferences are set properly. Open the Preferences dialog and click Identity in the left pane (Figure 11.3). Verify that the text boxes contain your personal identity information (or, if they don't, enter the info). Figure 11.3. Click Identity in the Preferences dialog box and fill in the text boxes with your personal information.
5.	Open Help in the How To window. You may want some help while working in a commenting session. Quick access to help information is provided in the How to Window. Open a pull-down menu from the Comment & Markup task button and select How To…Add Comments & Markups (Figure 11.4). When you select the menu command, the help categories are listed in the How To window to the right of the Document pane. Click an item in the list to obtain help information that corresponds to the item. When finished reviewing information, click the Hide button to provide more working area in the Document pane. Figure 11.4. Select How To…Add Comments & Markups from the Comment & Markup task button pull-down menu.

Why are Identity preferences important?

When you create comments, the comments are assigned an author name derived from the Identity preferences. Having your name assigned to comments you create makes the comment identification clear when you're sharing comments with other usersparticularly when participating in review sessions. In addition, when you use dynamic custom stamps, as explained in Chapter 12, certain identity information is dynamically added to the stamps.