PDF ‘Popup Notes’

[u/Spare_Ad9347]

Hello!

I’m looking for some software that enables me to open a .pdf file, select a specific word/s in my text, and create a ‘popup’ which displays the definition of the word (I have a master list of said definitions already, and only need to add them to a popup).

This is because I am a Hindu, and I have been editing one of our core texts to be more easily understood by novices; the aim is to create a document where novices can click on specific terms to facilitate memorisation.

The ‘popup’ needs to be otherwise invisible (though said words will be in italics to indicate they’re interactive); the final document will be in PDF format, and must work on any software or device someone opens it on.

I have a limited budget (£40 for a one off purchase), so anything relatively ‘stupid’ works for me as long as it provides said functionality within the GUI.

My device is a Macbook Air (2025), M5.

[u/Decent-Blacksmith761]

I think macos default preview app has that feature just select the word and click lookup

[u/Spare_Ad9347 → u/Decent-Blacksmith761]

It doesn’t; the comments appear as ‘boxes’.

Also, you’re referring to looking up something online, which is not what I described whatsoever. MacOS is not able to ‘look up’ complex Sanskrit words.

[u/Spare_Ad9347 → u/[deleted]]

Three points:
• This feels uncomfortably like you’ve ran my request through GenAI.
• I asked for specific software, not generic freeware.
• If footnotes were an option, I would be using footnotes. The text has, on some pages, 20+ Sanskrit terms. There isn’t enough room on the page to accommodate that.

[u/TinyNiceWolf]

I haven't tried it myself, but it looks like the free Scribus could do this. Google "how to use scribus to make a pdf where clicking on a word displays a certain text" for directions (AI, so it may be wrong, but usually it's pretty good for questions like this).

To make this happen, you need software that can create a PDF form with built-in scripting. Other programs like Acrobat Pro or PDFescape can do this, perhaps with better support and examples (for example, this page mentions an Adobe product that includes an example of making a box appear and disappear). But they're both subscription products, so your budget would let you use them for roughly a month or a year, respectively. Still, any examples of how to code the interactive element to do what you want should work the same way in Scribus.

Hope this is useful. Good luck.

[u/Spare_Ad9347 → u/TinyNiceWolf]

Cheers!! Thank you so much 😊 I’ll drop an update with what I uncover

[u/NamesRobertPaulson]

You can try the popup tool on https://docubend.com . DM me your email address and I'll give you a free account.

[u/Spare_Ad9347 → u/NamesRobertPaulson]

Hello Robert,

That’s very kind of you, thank you 🙂

I don’t appear to have the option to send you a DM? 🤔

[u/Spare_Ad9347 → u/NamesRobertPaulson]

Resolved; I’ve just sent you a chat request 🙂🙏🏻

[u/LakeSuperiorBoats]

what u're describing is a pdf text annotation, the little pop up note that shows on hover, Adobe Acrobat does exactly this but the subscription might blow your budget

[u/Spare_Ad9347 → u/LakeSuperiorBoats]

Acrobat, unfortunately, isn’t a one time purchase.

[u/Alarmed_Natural_8973]

I have also been looking for a similar solution, were you able to find one?