How to Create a Secure PDF Doc with Cloaked, Clickable Links

| by Paula Brett |

Some of the most popular questions I see on internet marketing forums involve creating PDF documents

Particularly, many people creating their first eBook want to do so in PDF format but are a little in the dark about how it all works.

How do I turn a document into PDF format?

How do I make clickable links?”

How do I cloak the links so you can click on words like `Click Here’ instead of having to display the full url of a website?

How do I secure my PDF document so it can’t be copy and pasted?

Here’s a short, illustrated tutorial that you might find helpful

• Go to http://www.openoffice.org and download a free copy of this wordprocessing software – it’s quite similar to Word!

• Once you’ve downloaded and installed on your computer, open up a new page

• Alternatively, if you have already typed your content in, say, Word, then copy and paste it to a blank page

N.B. You may find that the formatting is rearranged from Word to Open Office, so you will probably have to spend a few moments sorting out your formatting. However, now that you’ve got Open Office on your computer, you will be able to begin future projects immediately in Open Office.

• To change text into links simply highlight the words

• Then click on the hyperlink icon in the top tool bar

• You will then see a pop-up box which you need to complete

• Insert the url that you wish to link to in the Target box

• Set the frame as _blank in the drop down Frame box – this means that when someone clicks on your link they will still be able to access your PDF underneath, they will not close it when they close the webpage that you have just directed the reader to.

• If the words don’t already appear (sometimes they are there automatically) then type in the words that you wish the reader to see in the Text box e.g. Click Here

• You may also wish to include an image which, when clicked, leads to a website. Simply click on the image and follow the steps above from clicking on the hyperlink icon – you won’t need to fill out the Text box

Once you have created all your links, you will want to convert your document into PDF format.

• Go to your top tool bar and click on File to get a drop down menu, select Export as PDF

• You will now have another box pop up, click on the Security tab and check the restrict permissions box. Choose your restrictions.

• Then click on the set permission password box

• Insert your password, confirm it, click OK

• Click the Export button and you will see a pop up with all your files and directories on your computer. Choose where you want to save your PDF file on your computer from the dropdown menu, name it in the File Name box, click Save

• Go to where you have saved your PDF to view it

Check out your new PDF file to see if everything is how it should be. You can always make amendments by opening the original Open Office document and then creating your PDF again.

If you right click on your PDF document or try to select any text to copy and paste, you will see that this cannot be done.

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