NetX allows users to create custom PDFs using existing assets in the application. These PDFs display asset thumbnails according to the order and layout dictated by your PDF's customization. Attribute data can also be included. Any asset may be used to create a PDF, though non-image assets without a thumbnail or image preview will display a default thumbnail icon.
Create PDF action
PDFs can be generated for a single asset or multiple assets at once:
- Open the action menu from a single asset's detail page; select Create PDF.
- Right-click a single asset's thumbnail and select Create PDF from its context menu.
- Select assets, open the selection bar's action menu and select Create PDF.
- Open the gallery action menu and select Create PDF.
Creating a PDF during download and share
In addition to the Create PDF action, PDFs may be included as download options for both regular Download and Share actions.
Creating a PDF
- Give your PDF a Title that appears in every page header.
- Select the grid layout the PDF will use to display assets. The number of attributes displayed depends on the chosen grid layout: a selection of 1x1 has a maximum of ten attributes, 2x2 allows for five, and a selection of 3x3 is limited to three.
- Choose an attribute set that includes the attributes you wish to display. Note that even if an attribute set is selected, the maximum number of attributes allowable for your chosen grid layout will still apply. Attributes populate in the order they appear for the attribute set, from top to bottom.
- Manually add attributes by selecting the dropdown and seeking the desired attribute, or typing the name of the attribute into the field. Once you have selected an attribute, hit enter on your keyboard to queue the attribute to the bottom of the list. These selections are not tied to a specific attribute set. You will not be able to add more attributes than allowable for your chosen grid layout.
- Edit which attributes are displayed in your PDF, whether generated by an attribute set selection or added individually. Attributes can be rearranged using the drag button, or removed using the X button.
- This pill will display the number of currently selected attributes. You can clear all currently selected attributes with the X button.
- If Display attribute names is checked, and an attribute selection made, attribute names will be displayed alongside their values.
- If Use high-res images is checked, NetX will use a 1000px zoom instead of a 500px preview of your assets, when possible. Note: this option only affects 2x2 and 3x3 layouts; 1x1 already uses a 1000px image. If InDesign Server is integrated with your NetX instance, NetX will use the original asset file for common image and Adobe file formats, otherwise, it will use the 1000px zoom if present.
- Cancel closes the creation window without saving your configuration; Download initiates a download of the PDF.
The final PDF for the above configuration looks like this:
Sorting PDF Assets
The order of assets displayed in your PDF will depend on how the Create PDF action was launched:
- If Create PDF was launched from a selection, the assets in the PDF will be sorted in the order they were selected. This order can be viewed by clicking View all on the selection bar.
- If Create PDF was launched from a gallery menu (collection, saved search, folder): the PDF will respect the order they are sorted in the gallery. To rearrange the assets for a PDF sheet, choose a new attribute and sort order.
Custom PDFs
If your administrator has created their own custom PDF templates, the fields that customize your PDF will be slightly different from the default download options window.
- Presents the custom PDF templates as selectable icons.
- A dropdown containing any PDF quality presets your administrator has configured.
- Individual attributes and attribute sets are selectable as usual, with a limit of ten attributes. Your administrator, however, may have included fewer attribute fields, limiting the number of attributes that can appear on the subsequent PDF.
Advanced configuration
Properties
The following properties may be used to adjust the output of your PDFs.
| Month | Description |
|---|---|
share.contactSheet.includeAssetLinks |
If this property is true, clicking an asset's image on a PDF sheet will navigate a user directly to the asset's detail page in NetX. Note that this feature will still be subject to asset permissions and requires an active NetX session. Value options: true / false Requires restart? No |
share.contactSheet.keepGrid |
If this property is true, attributes included in your share link will be truncated to preserve a consistent grid layout. If you would like attributes to always display their full values, and do not need the PDF to maintain a consistent grid, set this property to false. Value options: true / false Requires restart? No |
share.message |
Use this property to display a custom message on the PDF creation modal. Value options: email message Requires restart? No |
Extended character support
On-premise admins: If you have characters that are out-of-bounds for the Latin set — such as Devanagari, Cyrillic, and others, this will cause PDF output to convert all extended characters to underscores. To prevent this, install a copy of Microsoft's Arial Universal Font (arialuni.ttf) on your server. Copy the file into the NetX installation path, typically here:
${DOCROOT}/WEB-INF/bin/font/arialuni.ttf
With this properly installed, the Create PDF system will utilize that font for supporting extended character sets. This font is supported in NetX version 8.5.75 or later.
Custom templates with InDesign server
When NetX is integrated with Adobe InDesign Server, you can create your own InDesign templates to use in lieu of the standard PDF template design. To do so, you must first: