Importing Bookmarks from Existing to New PDFs

MPham · 2024-11-07T16:02:33+00:00

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Hello,

I've been searching for a way to import existing bookmarks to a new pdf using bluebeam, but there is no such function. I reached out to Bluebeam support and they confirmed that this function does not exist and I should make a suggestion here.

I would like to see a bookmark import function. Coming from using PDF Xchange Editor, you can simply copy the bookmarks in the bookmark window and paste it to a new pdf's bookmark window. I switched jobs recently and my current company only use Bluebeam.

Please let me know if this is in the works.

Thank you.

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Comments

Luke Shiras

I can see the benefit of this but in the meantime, is there something special about your bookmarks that recreating them automatically wouldn't solve?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=acEmk19u2AE

MPham

My bookmarks are not special, just need to jump to the correct page. Bluebeam auto bookmark function works well for drawings, but doesn't work for reports where you cannot easily assign bookmarks.

What I do is I would have individual pdfs for each section of the report, then for each new revisions, I would combine all the pdfs and redo all the bookmarks each time.

Jes Stafford

When we work with specifications, having similar formatting issues to your reports, that limit the PAGE REGION automation that Bluebeam has built in, we solved the problem with careful standardization of headers and footers that allow the PAGE REGION to be used as easily on all copy documents as it does on drawings.

MPham

Thanks Jes, that is a good way to do it. Depending on the requirements of a particular document format, headers/footers are not always permitted.

I just Hope Bluebeam will implement the copy and paste function for bookmarks, so if ever need to revise a pdf (replace, delete, or recompile), we wouldn't need to redo all the bookmarks.

Mike Fischer

I strongly agree that Bluebeam Revu would benefit greatly from a feature allowing users to import bookmarks from one PDF to another. This functionality is essential for efficiently managing revisions and recompiled documents without the need to recreate bookmarks from scratch.

As MPham pointed out, other software like PDF Xchange Editor allows users to copy and paste bookmarks seamlessly between PDFs. This saves significant time and ensures consistency, particularly for reports and specifications where automation tools like PAGE REGION may not apply due to formatting constraints or document requirements.

While standardizing headers and footers, as Jes mentioned, can be a workaround in some cases, it isn’t always feasible for every document type. A dedicated import/export bookmarks function would provide the flexibility professionals need for managing complex workflows, especially in industries where document revisions and combinations are frequent.

Bluebeam Revu’s strength lies in its focus on productivity and efficient document management. Adding this feature would align perfectly with that mission and bring added value to users who rely on Revu for managing large volumes of documents.

Thank you for considering this suggestion, and I hope to see this feature in future updates!

Shaya Birnbaum

I agree. Importing and exporting bookmarks would be extremely helpful.

Tara’s iPad

I also would like to advocate for the ability to import bookmarks. It would be an additional function that seems inherent if you allow for exporting.

Chase

There is a work around I use for this. You have to relink all the bookmarks, but you don't have to rewrite them at least.

Essentially, since you can't move the bookmarks, just move the pages from your new document into the old document with the bookmarks and save as.

Save the existing PDF with the bookmarks with a new name. > Delete all but 1 page of the PDF. > Paste all the pages of the new PDF into the one with bookmarks. > Delete the original page from the PDF. > You now have your existing bookmark structure in your new PDF. > Go through your pages and right click each bookmark when on the correct page "set to current view".

Alexandre de Massy

I also often have to package documents, assembling documents from multiple sources in a single one. I would like if there were an easy way to preserve the bookmarks when combining pdf and inserting pages.

I would also like to see a "bookmark manager" tool so we can reorder and modify the bookmarks structure more easily than manually one by one. And a automatic bookmark creation tool that recognizes text headers rather than only "page region" or "page labels".

Like MPham I have found pdf-xchange to do much better in that area for now..

Glynis D.

@MPham

Reading through your issue I wanted to see if I could come up with a workflow in the meantime that could speed things along a bit. Replace pages may solve your issue as long the bookmarks just need to go to the same page that they did before.

Open the document that has the bookmarks already created.

2. Select Document > Replace Pages

3. Select the new document that does not have bookmarks.

4. Adjust the range of the pages you want to replace so it is all pages

5. The bookmarks are in place and still go to the same page number but the content of the page is the new information.

From here you would just need to save as to rename the document. Does this speed things along for you?

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