Add multimedia to PDFs

Adding video, sound, and interactive content transforms PDFs into multidimensional communication tools that increase interest and engagement in your documents.

All multimedia that is developed in Flash® as well as multimedia that is H.264 compliant can be played back in Adobe Reader® 9 and later. (H.264, also known as MPEG-4 part 10, is a video compression standard that provides high quality video without substantially increasing file size.) Video files of varying formats and filename extensions can be H.264 compliant.

Media files in other formats can be played back in earlier versions of Adobe Reader. However, users must install the appropriate application (such as QuickTime or Windows Media Player) to play the multimedia.

Another way to add multimedia is by entering a URL that refers to a video file or streaming media. Three types of URLs can be used: RTMP, HTTP, and HTTPS. Flash Media Servers (FMS) use RTMP to host FLV files and H.264-compliant media files. On HTTP and HTTPS servers, FLV files and H.264-compliant MOV and MP4 files are supported.

Interactive content developed in Flash and produced as SWF files (.swf) can be added to PDFs to provide complimentary tools for text. Examples of applications developed in Flash include an RSS Reader, calculator, and online maps. For more information about the interactive applications that you can download from Adobe, see www.adobe.com/go/learn_acr_interactive_en.

For more information on adding multimedia to PDFs, see these resources:

Note: FLV video files and H.264-compliant MP4 and MOV files are supported with Flash Media Server 3.0.1. Earlier versions of FMS support FLV files only.

Add multimedia files to a PDF

  1. Open the PDF.
  2. Choose Tools > Multimedia, and select the Video tool  the Sound tool , or the Flash tool .
  3. Drag or double-click to select the area on the page where you want the video or sound to appear.

    If you double-click the page, Acrobat places the upper-left corner of the video where you clicked. If you drag an area on the page, the media is placed within the area. The play area of the video is the exact size of the video frame (if Acrobat is able to read the video clip dimensions).

  4. Add a URL in the Name field, or click Browse to find the media file, and then click Open.

    For URLs, use the full file address, including the video filename extension, such as .flv or .mp4.

  5. Use the options on the Insert dialog box to change the media if needed, and then click OK.

    Not all of these options are available for all media types.

    Maintain Original H.264 Encoding
    If a file is H.264 compliant, this option is automatically selected. Clear this check box if you need specific features that are only available for FLV files. Another reason to clear this check box is to create a smaller file size for sending in email.

    Snap To Content Proportions
    Ensures that the play area retains the height and width ratios of the original video or interactive content.

    Preview And Trim
    To reduce the size of a video or remove unwanted frames, drag the Start and End pointers on the slider bar to the desired location.

    Set Poster Image From Current Frame
    For video files, the poster image is displayed when the video isn’t playing. Move the marker above the slider bar to the frame you want to use, and then click Set Poster Image From Current Frame.

    Show Advanced Options
    Opens the dialog for additional settings such as video quality, play back controls, and display options. The options available depends on the format of the media you are inserting as well as whether you have Acrobat Pro or Acrobat Pro Extended.

    Create Legacy Multimedia Content
    Opens the dialog box for setting media that is compatible with earlier versions of Acrobat. Legacy media can be larger than converted files and also requires additional media players to view.

    Adobe recommends converting video and audio files to allow play back across platforms without the need for additional multimedia players. Converted media requires Adobe Reader 9 or Acrobat 9 for play back. Users who attempt to play converted media in earlier versions of Adobe Reader or Acrobat are prompted to upgrade to Adobe Reader 9 or Acrobat 9.

    To insert files that are developed in Flash, use the following instructions for adding legacy and other multimedia files to a PDF. Also use these instructions to add files that are not H.264-compliant.

Add legacy and other multimedia files to a PDF

Use these steps for media files other than FLV or SWF files that are not H.264 compliant.

  1. Follow steps 1-4 in “Add multimedia files to a PDF.”
  2. In the lower-right corner of the Insert Video dialog box, click Create Legacy Multimedia Content.
  3. Select the version of Acrobat or Reader that you want the media to be compatible with.
    Acrobat 6.0 (And Later) Compatible Media
    Provides access to all options, but the user must have version 6 or later of Acrobat or Adobe Reader to play the clip. If you choose the Acrobat 6.0 Compatible Media option, you have many more choices, such as the option to embed the video and add multiple renditions. However, users with earlier versions of Acrobat must download Adobe Reader to play your clip.

    Acrobat 5.0 (And Earlier) Compatible Media
    Ensures that your clip is available to users who are using version 5.0 or earlier of Acrobat or Adobe Reader. This option requires that you select media that is playable in the QuickTime player.

  4. (Optional) If you selected Acrobat 6.0 (And Later) Compatible Media, include the clip with the PDF by selecting Embed Content In Document. This option increases the file size of the PDF.
  5. To display an image in the play area when the video or sound isn’t playing, select a poster option, and then click OK.

    After you add the video to the PDF, you can specify additional properties that determine how the clip appears and plays.

    Note: If an alert message tells you that no media handler is available, install the appropriate player before you add clips to the PDF. For example, install QuickTime if to embed an MOV file in a PDF.