A signature field can be added when someone signs a document, or a signature can be placed into an existing signature field on a document. You may want to add blank signature fields to a document if you are the originator of the document, for example, and need approval signatures from a number of others. A certified document cannot be signed by anyone else unless there are blank signature fields added to the document prior to certification.

Follow these steps to add a signature field to a document:

1. Click the Sign task button's drop-down arrow and choose Create a Blank Signature Field from the menu.

2. An Adobe Acrobat dialog box opens saying the Signature Field tool is selected and that you can draw a marquee to place the field; click OK to close the information dialog box.

3. Draw a marquee on the page for the signature field; release the mouse to open the Digital Signature Properties dialog box, which displays the Appearance tab by default.

4. Select visual options for the signature field, such as border and fill colors and styles, on the Appearance tab.

5. Click the General tab; the field is named Signaturel by default. Leave the default text or type custom text.

6. Click the Tooltip field and type text instructions if desired.

7. Click Close to dismiss the dialog box and complete the field.