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Helpful Hints & Tips for Navigating
Screen-Fillable PDF
Forms
The
fillable forms available on this web site have been created using Adobe Acrobat
5.0
(or later) software. The majority of the
forms make use of the most fundamental form fields, such as simple text fields,
radio buttons and check boxes.
Once
again, please remember:
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We
recommend that you work offline within the Adobe Acrobat Reader or other Adobe
Acrobat software products to (a) prevent the loss of data through inadvertent
use of your browser while completing the form and (b) to minimize the
confusion of layered menu bars that occurs when working online within your
browser frame.
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Acrobat
Reader does not allow you to save a completed, or a partially completed form
to a disk on your computer. If you wish to save a completed form, or retain
your work on a partially completed form, you must purchase additional software
- Adobe Acrobat 5.0 (or later) or Adobe Acrobat Approval 5.0.
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You
are responsible for the completeness and accuracy of all data provided on your
form.
USEFUL
TIPS:
1. Navigating
a PDF form
To
begin filling in a “screen-fillable form:
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Select
the hand tool from the Acrobat toolbar.
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Position
the hand pointer inside a form field and click. The I-beam pointer allows
you to type text. The arrow pointer allows you to select a field, a check
box, a radio button, or an item from a list
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To
accept the field change and go to
the next field, press [TAB] or use your mouse to click on the next form
field.
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To
accept the field change and go to
the previous field, press [Shift] + [TAB] or use your mouse to click on
the previous form field.
2. Magnifying
the form to make it easier to read and fill-in.
You can increase the magnification of the form to make it easier to view, read
and complete. Changing the magnification on the screen will not change the
size of the printed form itself.
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On
the tool bar, there is a box that contains the number: 100%. This box can be changed with
user-supplied “zoom” levels: 150%, 200%, 300% etc. After the new value is entered into
the field, hit the “enter” to
increase (or decrease) the magnification.
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In
addition, there is both a “zoom-in” (+) and “zoom-out” (-) button on either
side of the magnification box.
Clicking either of these buttons increases or decreases the
magnification in preset increments.
3. Moving
from one form field to the next
Most
forms have an applied Tab Order sequence so that forms can navigated and
completed in a logical order.
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Use
the “TAB” key to move from one field to the next. This procedure will also help you
avoid accidentally skipping over any form fields.
4. Text
boxes (single line or multi-line)
Text
boxes are straightforward fillable fields where you can type text or numeric
data onto the form.
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Single-line
text boxes allow you to enter text on a single line within the specific
confines of the box. The text begins and ends within the box provided.
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Multi-line text boxes allow you to enter multiple lines
of text depending on the size of the box or space
provided. Generally, the text will “wrap” (as with most
word processors) within multi-line text boxes. You may
also hit ”ENTER” at the end of a line to move to the
next line of text.
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To begin entering text, click on the Hand tool, place
the blinking “I-beam” within the text box and begin
typing.
5. Form Fields with a limited number of characters
Some form fields have been configured to accept a maximum number of characters.
Generally such form fields tend to be phone numbers (area code, prefix, suffix),
dates, social security numbers or similar items.
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Where these multi-part fields may be separated by a
hyphen or a dash, use the “TAB” key to move to the next
part of the form field.
6. Check
Boxes
Check
boxes are used on forms for lists of items in which more than one item can be
selected. They may also be used for items like “Check here if you wish to
add an additional page of information, etc.”
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Place
your cursor over the box in which you wish to place a check.
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When
the cursor changes from the hand tool to the hand pointer, click your left
mouse button to check the box.
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To
undo the selection, left-click your mouse button again and the check mark will
be removed.
7. Radio
Buttons
“Radio
buttons” are generally used on forms to ensure that a user selects only one item
from a list of two or more choices. Radio buttons usually appear as small
boxes and are used for simple Yes/No selections (the answer must be either “Yes”
or “No”) as well as for more comprehensive lists of items. Radio button
fields, when filled, generally appear in the form of a small solid circle or
check mark.
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Place
your cursor over the box in which you wish to place a check.
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When
the cursor changes from the hand tool to the hand pointer, click your left
mouse button to select (check) the box.
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To
undo the selection, left-click your mouse button and the check mark will be
removed.
8. Signatures
At
this time, all signatures, where required, must be hand written on the
form. Signature blocks are not fillable via your keyboard. These
forms cannot be submitted electronically.
9. Printing
Forms
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Once
you have completed filling in a form, select [File] and then [Print] from the
Acrobat menu toolbar or click the small printer icon on the toolbar. This
brings you to the print dialog box which you may configure as necessary.
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Please note: Before printing your form - use your
mouse to select an area of the form that is not inside a form field or hit the
[TAB] key after completing the entry of your last box. If a form field is
active (e.g. contains the blinking bar) the contents of that block will not
print.
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Please note: If the fillable form is displayed
within your browser’s window, be sure to use the printer button on the Acrobat
toolbar menu to print the form instead of your web browser’s print
function.
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Since
form data cannot be saved when using Adobe Reader, we strongly recommend that
you print two copies of the filled-out form: (1) one copy to and (2) one copy for your personal records. (Alternately,
you may make a photocopy of the completed form for your records or save an
electronic copy on your own computer if you are using Adobe Acrobat 5.0 (or
later) or Adobe Acrobat Approval 5.0).
10. Submitting
Forms
Submit
the form to the administering agency as you normally would - via regular mail or
in person. Most forms include
instructions about where to send the completed paper copy.
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