The GingerDocs editor is built around one rule: the original PDF is never modified. Your file is rendered exactly as authored, and every edit lives on a separate, editable layer above it. This guide covers how to work in that model day to day.
The eight field types
Everything you place on a document is one of eight field types:
- Signature — captures a legally attributable signature (draw, type, or upload).
- Initials — a smaller mark for initialing pages or clauses.
- Text field — free-form text input for names, titles, and answers.
- Date — a date picker (MM/DD/YYYY).
- File upload — lets the recipient attach a file, such as an ID document.
- Radio buttons — pick exactly one option from a list.
- Checkbox — a single check/uncheck box.
- Dropdown — pick one option from a dropdown menu.
Placing and adjusting fields
Drag any field onto the page, then resize and reposition it precisely. Fields can go on any page of the document, and each one can be assigned to a recipient so the right person fills it during signing.
Undo, redo, and version history
Every edit is undoable. Step backward and forward through individual changes with undo/redo, or roll the entire document back to an earlier version from the version history.
The editor also auto-saves continuously, so closing a tab mid-edit loses nothing.
Editing on mobile
The editor adapts to small screens, so you can review and adjust a document from a phone or tablet rather than waiting until you are back at a desk.
What happens when you finish
While the document is in progress, the overlay stays editable and the source stays untouched. Only when the document completes does GingerDocs produce a single flattened PDF that merges the original with every field — clean output for download and archival, with the original still preserved.