This tutorial shows how to open links in separate tabs in Adobe Acrobat and Acrobat Reader.
[Typewriter sounds]
Hello, my name is Erin.
I’m a technical writer and editor who shares step-by-step software tutorials
and writing tips for the real world on this channel and on my blog at erinwrightwriting.com.
Today, we’re going to tackle one of the most frequent questions I receive
and that is how to open links in separate tabs rather than separate windows in Adobe Acrobat and Acrobat Reader.
In addition, we’ll look at how to quickly turn tabs into separate windows.
First, let’s cover two important points:
The steps shown here only affect links to other PDFs.
Links to other types of files will still open in that file’s native application.
So, a URL link will still open in a web browser.
And a link to a .doc file will still open in Microsoft Word.
Most importantly, the primary setting that controls how links open in Adobe Acrobat and Acrobat Reader
is stored in the software, not in the PDF.
So, while you can indicate how you want a link to open when you create it in Acrobat,
that choice will be overridden by the setting in your reader’s device.
I’ll be using Adobe Acrobat DC.
These steps also apply to Acrobat 2020, Acrobat 2017, and Acrobat Reader DC.
You can perform these steps with or without opening a PDF.
To begin, select the Edit tab.
Mac users should select Acrobat/Acrobat Reader, instead.
Then, select Preferences from the drop-down menu.
When the Preferences dialog box appears, select the General category.
And then select the "Open documents as new tabs in the same window" option.
Next, use the scroll bar to move to the bottom of the dialog box and then select the OK button.
Now, save your current PDF if you’ve made any changes, and then close and reopen Adobe Acrobat or Acrobat Reader.
PDF links should now open in separate tabs rather than separate windows on your device.
You can turn any tab in Adobe Acrobat or Acrobat Reader into a separate window without changing your settings.
To do so, click, hold, and drag the tab away from the toolbar.
The tab will become a semitransparent thumbnail.
Then, release the tab thumbnail.
The tab should now open in a separate window over the original window.
I have created many other videos about Adobe Acrobat,
including “How to Create In-Text Links to Attached PDFs with Adobe Acrobat”
and “How to Create Internal Links in PDFs with Adobe Acrobat.”
Please see the complete list in the playlist titled “How to Use Adobe Acrobat,” which is linked in the description box below.
The companion blog post for this video showing all the steps we just performed
appears on erinwrightwriting.com, which is also linked below.
Feel free to leave me a comment if there’s a specific topic
related to Adobe Acrobat or Microsoft Word
that you would like me to talk about in the future.
And please subscribe to my channel so you don’t miss future tutorials.
And give this video a thumbs-up if you found it helpful.
Thank you so much for watching!
[Typewriter sounds]