Annotations

Annotations allow you to add information to document pages, such as highlights, redactions, stamps, text boxes, and sticky notes. Annotations can be used with any document that has pages, including PDFs. They cannot be used with documents that have other types of electronic files.

Applying Annotations

To apply an annotation to a document page, click the icon for the annotation on the document viewer toolbar. The most common annotations (highlight, redaction, sticky note, stamp, and text box) are on the toolbar itself, and the other available annotations can be found by clicking the Annotations button. You can then click on the document to apply the annotation. A single click on an existing annotation allows you to edit the annotation's contents (such as changing the text in a sticky note or resizing a highlight), and a double-click allows you to customize properties for the annotation.

Annotating Documents in Laserfiche

Removing Annotations

To remove an annotation, select the annotation and press the DELETE key.

Displaying and Hiding Annotations

By default, all annotations will be displayed on the image pages of the document. In addition, text annotations (highlights, readactions, strikethrough, and underline) will also be displayed in the text pane. To hide annotations on the image page, select the Show Annotations button. To display them, select it a second time. Note that this only affects the image pages; the text page annotations will always be displayed. In addition, only users who have the See Through Redactions entry access right will be able to hide redactions.

Annotation Types

The following annotations are available in Laserfiche.

Highlight

Allows you to highlight part of your page. Highlights can be used to draw attention to a particular section of the document.

Properties that can be configured for this annotation:

  • Fill color: The color of the highlight.

Redaction

Allows you to redact part of a page. Only a user with the See Through Redactions access right will be able to see the redacted portion. The redaction will appear opaque to all other users.

Properties that can be configured for this annotation:

  • Fill color: The color of the redaction. The only available colors for redactions are black and white.

Sticky Note

Allows you to place a small text note on the page. Unlike text boxes or callout text, sticky note text is not visible until a user clicks the sticky note. This allows you to write more unobtrusive notes, which is particularly useful for long comments.

Unlike other annotation types, sticky notes include a history feature. This allows you to view changes to the sticky note from within the sticky note's properties. To enable sticky note history for a particular sticky note, open the sticky note's properties and click the History tab. Select Track history. You can then view the sticky note's history in the same tab.

Properties that can be configured for this annotation:

  • Fill color: The color of the sticky note.

Stamp

Allows you to place a monochrome image or text on the page. Unlike a text box, a stamp's text cannot be change once the stamp has been placed on the page.

There are two kinds of stamps: imported image stamps, and custom stamps. An image stamp is created by importing a monochrome image in BMP, PNG, GIF, or JPG format, and a custom stamp is created by specifying the text that you want to use for the stamp. You can create either stamp type by clicking the Stamp button and selecting New Stamp. Once a stamp has been created, it can be re-used in the future. Stamps can be either public (shared with all users in the repository) or private (specific to the user that created it).

Tip: Custom stamps can also use tokens to update dynamically. For instance, you could use the Date token to create a stamp that will display the date the stamp was applied.

Properties that can be configured for this annotation:

  • Fill color: The color of the stamp.
  • Opacity: The stamp's's opacity as a percentage. An opacity of 100 is completely opaque; an opacity of 0 is completely transparent.

Text Box

Allows you to place text directly on the page. Unlike a sticky note, the text is visible on the page itself; unlike a stamp, the text can be modified after the annotation is created.

Properties that can be configured for this annotation:

  • Fill color: The color that will fill the text box.
  • Line color: The color of the text box's border.
  • Thickness: The thickness of the text box's border.
  • Style: The style of the text box's border (solid, dotted, dashed, etc.)
  • Opacity: The text box's opacity as a percentage. An opacity of 100 is completely opaque; an opacity of 0 is completely transparent.
  • Text size: The point size of the text.
  • Rotation: The text box's orientation.

Underline

Allows you to underline a section of text. An underline cannot be applied to a part of the page that contains no text.

Properties that can be configured for this annotation:

  • Line color: The color of the underline.
  • Rotation: The underline's orientation.

Strikethrough

Allows you to strike out a section of text. A strikethrough cannot be applied to a part of the page that contains no text.

Properties that can be configured for this annotation:

  • Line color: The color of the strikethrough line.
  • Rotation: The strikethrough's orientation.

Callout Text

Allows you to create an text box with a line or arrow pointing to a particular section of the page.

Properties that can be configured for this annotation:

  • Fill color: The color that will fill the callout text box.
  • Line color: The color of the callout text box's border and the line or arrow pointing to the image.
  • Thickness: The thickness of the callout text box's border and line or arrow.
  • Style: The style of the callout text box's border and line or arrow (solid, dotted, dashed, etc.)
  • Opacity: The callout text box's opacity as a percentage. An opacity of 100 is completely opaque; an opacity of 0 is completely transparent.
  • Text size: The point size of the text.
  • Head style: The shape of the end of the line or arrow.

Freehand

Allows you to draw freehand on the page.

Properties that can be configured for this annotation:

  • Line color: The color of the freehand annotation's lines.
  • Thickness: The thickness of the freehand annotation's lines.
  • Opacity: The freehand annotation's opacity as a percentage. An opacity of 100 is completely opaque; an opacity of 0 is completely transparent.

Line

Allows you to draw a line or arrow on the page.

Properties that can be configured for this annotation:

  • Fill color: The color that will fill the annotation's head or tail (if applicable).
  • Line color: The color of the line.
  • Thickness: The thickness of the line.
  • Style: The style of the line (solid, dotted, dashed, etc.)
  • Opacity: The line's opacity as a percentage. An opacity of 100 is completely opaque; an opacity of 0 is completely transparent.
  • Head style: The shape of the beginning of the line.
  • Tail style: The shape of the end of the line.

Polygon

Allows you to draw a polygon on your pages.

Properties that can be configured for this annotation:

  • Fill color: The color that will fill the polygon. (The polygon will only be filled if it does not overlap itself.)
  • Line color: The color of the polygon's border.
  • Thickness: The thickness of the polygon's border.
  • Style: The style of the polygon's border (solid, dotted, dashed, etc.)
  • Opacity: The line's opacity as a percentage. An opacity of 100 is completely opaque; an opacity of 0 is completely transparent.

Rectangle

Allows you to draw a rectangle on your pages.

Properties that can be configured for this annotation:

  • Fill color: The color that will fill the rectangle.
  • Line color: The color of the rectangle's border.
  • Thickness: The thickness of the rectangle's border.
  • Style: The style of the rectangle's border (solid, dotted, dashed, etc.)
  • Opacity: The rectangle's opacity as a percentage. An opacity of 100 is completely opaque; an opacity of 0 is completely transparent.
  • Shape: The annotation's shape: rectangle, rounded rectangle, or ellipse.

Rounded Rectangle

Allows you to draw a rounded rectangle on your image.

Properties that can be configured for this annotation:

  • Fill color: The color that will fill the rounded rectangle.
  • Line color: The color of the rounded rectangle's border.
  • Thickness: The thickness of the rounded rectangle's border.
  • Style: The style of the rounded rectangle's border (solid, dotted, dashed, etc.)
  • Opacity: The rounded rectangle's opacity as a percentage. An opacity of 100 is completely opaque; an opacity of 0 is completely transparent.
  • Shape: The annotation's shape: rectangle, rounded rectangle, or ellipse.

Ellipse

Allows you to draw an ellipse on your image.

Properties that can be configured for this annotation:

  • Fill color: The color that will fill the ellipse.
  • Line color: The color of the ellipse's border.
  • Thickness: The thickness of the ellipse's border.
  • Style: The style of the ellipse's border (solid, dotted, dashed, etc.)
  • Opacity: The ellipse's opacity as a percentage. An opacity of 100 is completely opaque; an opacity of 0 is completely transparent.
  • Shape: The annotation's shape: rectangle, rounded rectangle, or ellipse.

Image

Allows you to upload an image (BMP, GIF, JPG, PNG, or TIF) and apply it directly to the page.

Properties that can be configured for this annotation:

  • Opacity: The image's opacity as a percentage. An opacity of 100 is completely opaque; an opacity of 0 is completely transparent.

Attachment

Allows you to attach a file to the page. The file can be opened and viewed by double-clicking it and selecting Open.

Attachment annotations do not have any display properties.

Other Annotation Options

Several additional options can be configured for annotations by double-clicking them and selecting the Metadata tab.

You can save comments along with annotations. For instance, you might add a comment to a redaction explaining why you redacted a particular part of the page. To do so, type a comment in the Comments option.

You can also determine who can see and modify an annotation. If you select Private, only you will be able to see the annotation. This is useful for notes to yourself, or if you want to create an annotation to bookmark your place in a long document. If you select Protected, other users will be able to see the annotation, but will not be able to modify it.

Annotations and PDFs

By default, PDF annotations will be converted to Laserfiche annotations when a PDF is imported, and Laserfiche annotations will be converted to PDF annotations when a document is exported. If you do not want to perform these conversions, you can disable either or both of them.

To disable conversion of PDF annotations to Laserfiche annotations upon import, click your user name in the upper right corner and select Options. In the General section, clear the option Preserve PDF annotations on Laserfiche pages. You can re-enable it in the future if you would like to begin converting PDF annotations again.

To disable the conversion of Laserfiche annotations to PDF annotations upon export, click your user name in the upper right corner and select Options. In the Download section, clear the option Convert annotations into PDF annotations.