Annotations & watermarks

This group adds extra elements on top of a PDF: automatic fields (date and document information), sticky-note annotations, text and image watermarks, and pages imported from another PDF file. They are the finishing touches you place on top of the main content.

Prerequisite: before using any of these instructions, the workflow must already have a PDF created (with Create PDF).

These concepts recur across several instructions in this group; they are explained here once.

• Document: indicates which document in the workflow the instruction applies to. If left empty, the current document is used. If the document doesn’t exist (or is not a PDF), the instruction simply does nothing.

• When elements take effect: Insert Date Field and Insert Info Field add a paragraph to the page right away. Insert Annotation, Insert External Pdf Pages, Insert Text Watermark, and Insert Image Watermark are recorded now and applied when the PDF is saved (when it is rendered to the final file) — their effect appears in the finished .pdf, not before.

• Positions and sizes are in centimeters. Where an instruction places something on the page (annotations, image watermark), the position and size are given in centimeters, measured from the top-left corner of the page.

• Page numbers start at 1. For the watermarks, a page number of 0 means all pages; any other number targets that single page. Out-of-range page numbers are adjusted to the nearest valid page.

• Dynamic values (@name): in a text field (title, text, font name, path, format…) you can type @ followed by the name of a value saved earlier in the workflow, and it will be replaced by that value.

• Saving a result (Save pages added): Insert External Pdf Pages can save the number of pages it added into a named value, so a later instruction can reuse it. Leave it empty not to save anything.

• “From variable” fields: the @name trick only works in text fields. The numeric fields in this group (page number, positions, sizes, font size, opacity, color components) each have a companion “from variable” field:

  • If you leave it empty, the value typed in the normal field is used.
  • If you fill it in with the name of a saved value, the engine ignores the normal field and reads the value from that variable.

  This is mainly for chaining instructions. If you only work with fixed values, you can ignore these fields.

• Insert Annotation .pdf
• Insert Date Field .pdf
• Insert External Pdf Pages .pdf
• Insert Image Watermark .pdf
• Insert Info Field .pdf
• Insert Text Watermark .pdf

Insert Annotation .pdf

Adds a text annotation (a sticky-note comment) at a chosen position on a page.

When to use it: to attach a reviewer’s note or comment to the PDF that readers can open in their PDF viewer.

Parameter	Meaning	Default	Required
Document	Document the instruction applies to	(current document)	No
Page number	Page to place the annotation on (starts at 1)	1	No
Title	Annotation title (the note’s heading). Supports @name	Comment	No
Text	Annotation body text. Supports @name	This is an annotation.	No
X position (cm)	Horizontal position from the left edge	2	No
Y position (cm)	Vertical position from the top edge	2	No
Width (cm)	Width of the annotation box	5	No
Height (cm)	Height of the annotation box	2	No
Page number (from variable)	Reads the page number from a saved value	(empty)	No
X position (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No
Y position (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No
Width (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No
Height (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No

Important behavior: the annotation is applied when the PDF is saved. The page number is adjusted to a valid page if it is out of range. The note appears closed (collapsed) until the reader opens it.

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Insert Date Field .pdf

Inserts an automatic date field (optionally with the time) in a new paragraph.

When to use it: to stamp the document with the date it was generated, filled in automatically rather than typed by hand.

Parameter	Meaning	Default	Required
Document	Document the instruction applies to	(current document)	No
Date format	How the date is written, e.g. yyyy-MM-dd. Supports @name	yyyy-MM-dd	No
Include time	Yes = also show the time (HH:mm:ss) after the date	No	No
Include time (from variable)	Reads the yes/no value from a saved value	(empty)	No

Important behavior: a new paragraph is added at the end of the document containing the date field. When Include time is Yes, HH:mm:ss is appended to the format.

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Insert External Pdf Pages .pdf

Imports pages from another PDF file and appends them to the document.

When to use it: to attach an existing PDF (a cover page, a legal appendix, a scanned form…) to the one you are building.

Parameter	Meaning	Default	Required
Document	Document the instruction applies to	(current document)	No
External PDF path	Full path to the source PDF, extension included. Supports @name	external.pdf	No
From page	First page to import (starts at 1)	1	No
To page	Last page to import; 0 means up to the last page	0	No
From page (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No
To page (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No
Save pages added	Name under which to save how many pages were added. Empty = don’t save	(empty)	No

Important behavior: if the path is empty, the instruction does nothing. The pages are imported when the PDF is saved, but the number of pages added is computed and saved immediately from the source file. To page 0 imports through the last page; a value beyond the source’s length is capped at its last page.

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Insert Image Watermark .pdf

Overlays an image (typically a semi-transparent PNG) as a watermark on one or all pages.

When to use it: to stamp a logo or a “confidential” image over the pages.

Parameter	Meaning	Default	Required
Document	Document the instruction applies to	(current document)	No
Image path	Path to the image file. Supports @name	watermark.png	No
Page number	Page to stamp; 0 means all pages	0	No
X position (cm)	Horizontal position from the left edge	5	No
Y position (cm)	Vertical position from the top edge	10	No
Width (cm)	Width of the image	10	No
Height (cm)	Height of the image	5	No
Page number (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No
X position (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No
Y position (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No
Width (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No
Height (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No

Important behavior: if the image path is empty, the instruction does nothing. The watermark is applied when the PDF is saved. Page number 0 stamps every page; any other number stamps that single page. The transparency comes from the image file itself (use a PNG with transparency for a see-through watermark).

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Insert Info Field .pdf

Inserts a document information field (title, author, subject, or keywords) in a new paragraph, showing a value taken from the document’s properties.

When to use it: to print one of the document’s own properties (for example its title or author) into the page, kept in sync with the document metadata.

Parameter	Meaning	Default	Required
Document	Document the instruction applies to	(current document)	No
Field type	Which property to show: title, author, subject, or keywords	title	No

Important behavior: a new paragraph is added containing the chosen info field. An unrecognized field type falls back to title. The value shown comes from the document’s metadata (see Set Document Metadata in Document setup).

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Insert Text Watermark .pdf

Stamps a diagonal text watermark (for example “DRAFT”) across one or all pages.

When to use it: to mark pages as draft, confidential, or a sample, with large diagonal text over the content.

Parameter	Meaning	Default	Required
Document	Document the instruction applies to	(current document)	No
Text	Watermark text. Supports @name	DRAFT	No
Page number	Page to stamp; 0 means all pages	0	No
Font name	Font used for the watermark. Supports @name	Arial	No
Font size	Text size in points	60	No
Opacity	How opaque the text is, from 0 (invisible) to 255 (solid)	60	No
Color (hex)	Text color, 6 hex characters. Empty = black. Supports @name	B4B4B4	No
Page number (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No
Font size (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No
Opacity (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No

Important behavior: the watermark is applied when the PDF is saved. The text is drawn large, rotated to a diagonal, and centered over each page’s content. The opacity is limited to the 0–255 range and an invalid hex color is drawn as black. Page number 0 stamps every page; any other number stamps that single page.

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