I found a solution by combing your suggestion of using another pdf viewer - the Sumatra or PDF-XChange Editor - and changing the system mouse pointer as described here https://softwarerecs.stackexchange.com/questions/16761/presentation-software-with-a-cursor-looking-like-a-laser-pointer-instead-of-mous
"Go to the Mouse properties control panel, in the Devices and Pointers control panel section, click on the Pointers tab. Under the Customise scroll box there is a Browse... button. Clicking this allows you to select a .cur file to change the cursor's appearance. However, the built-in cursor files do not provide a laser-like cursor. This is where you have to create your own."
Answer from lkdo on Stack ExchangeI found a solution by combing your suggestion of using another pdf viewer - the Sumatra or PDF-XChange Editor - and changing the system mouse pointer as described here https://softwarerecs.stackexchange.com/questions/16761/presentation-software-with-a-cursor-looking-like-a-laser-pointer-instead-of-mous
"Go to the Mouse properties control panel, in the Devices and Pointers control panel section, click on the Pointers tab. Under the Customise scroll box there is a Browse... button. Clicking this allows you to select a .cur file to change the cursor's appearance. However, the built-in cursor files do not provide a laser-like cursor. This is where you have to create your own."
With just Adobe Acrobat:
- Cursor size: With current version of Adobe Acrobat Reader, the mouse pointer size follows the size set in Windows: Settings → Cursor & Pointer.
- Pen cursor and functionality: in Adobe Acrobat: Preferences → General → Basic Tools → Use single-key accelerators to access tools (checked)
- Then, in full-screen mode,
Shift+Dswitches to different annotation tools (side effect is that it changes the cursor for some of them). After pressing it about 7 times, you will get a pen. You can use it to draw on the slide as well! Hwill get you your hand cursor back.SFor a speech-bubble (comment - sticky note) cursor
- Then, in full-screen mode,
(More shortcuts and meaning: https://helpx.adobe.com/acrobat/using/keyboard-shortcuts.html)
Videos
I can't seem to get the hand tool to remain as an arrow when I ctrl-L to fullscreen so I can present. When I go fullscreen the mouse pointer goes back to being the hand tool which is white and hard to see compared to the nice big red mouse pointer we've set up for the people using powerpoint.
Can I force acrobat to use the windows mouse pointer when fullscreen? I'd settle for the arrow that acrobat uses if that is as close as I can get. Anything but Mickey Mouse's hand.
This might not be exactly what you were looking for, though you could change your cursor to look more obvious.
You could then change it back to the "normal" cursors after the presentation is done.
You could use MARKITOS66's bDMZ cursors, make a "presentation theme" which changes the cursors to this custom one, then use it while presenting. Again, this might not be exactly what you're looking for, but it is universal, and works with everything, since it isn't a program's feature, but a change to the cursor itself.
Okular allows draw over PDF. Not a laser-mode, but similar to requirement
I know that you said that you want to use Acrobat but this page, Use Mouse as Laser Pointer in a PowerPoint Presentation, shows you how to do it in PowerPoint, using an inbuilt function, without the need for extra/third party software (always a bonus).
You have a presentation to deliver in few minutes and you just realize that you forgot your laser point in home because you were in a hurry. Don’t Panic. PowerPoint has an amazing feature using which you can turn your mouse pointer to a laser light pointer.
When you are presenting a slideshow, hold down the Ctrl key and press the left mouse button. You will notice that the regular mouse pointer will disappear and a laser like dot appears on the screen. Once you see the laser pointer, you can move it across the screen to explain the viewers certain aspects of your presentation.
To use mouse cursor again release the control key. That’s all.
By default the color of laser pointer is red but you can change it to green and blue if it’s camouflaging with the slide background. To change the color, expand the Slide Show menu and open the Set Up Slide Show window. On the window you will see the option Laser Pointer Color. Click on the dropdown menu and select the color you would like and save the settings.
Keep in mind that when you are controlling your presentation using mouse, always remember to press the Ctrl key first or you might skip a slide there.
You could convert the PDF to a PPT file (see also How to export PDF to Word, Excel or PowerPoint using Acrobat XI) and use the laser pointer method described above.
Alternative
You don't say which OS you are using but if you are using Windows, and you don't mind a bit of prep work, you could create your own laser pointer cursor.
Go to the Mouse properties control panel, in the Devices and Pointers control panel section, click on the Pointers tab. Under the Customise scroll box there is a Browse... button. Clicking this allows you to select a .cur file to change the cursor's appearance. However, the built-in cursor files do not provide a laser-like cursor. This is where you have to create your own.
In MSPaint, you can create a laser-like "red dot", on a canvas with a size of 32 pixels square (32x32), save it as a bitmap file, i.e. laser.bmp. Then in Windows Explorer, right click that file, select Properties and change the file extension from .bmp to .cur, so that you end up with laser.cur.
Now, go back into the Mouse control panel, Pointers tab, browse for your laser.cur file and select it.
Your mouse cursor is now a laser, just as you wanted for your presentation, with the bonus of not requiring extra software AND you can use Acrobat for your presentation, without having to resort to using PowerPoint.
Alternatively, you could always download a custom cursor .cur file, such as the Predator 3 Dot Laser Cursor.
I recommend Presentation Pointer Software.
The Presentation Pointer Software:
- Adds cursor highlighting abilities and more visual and audible mouse click effects
- Displays your keystrokes in an overlay at the bottom of the screen.
- Allows you to draw on a “live” screen to point out whatabouts and whereabouts of the things you are demonstrating.
- Allows you to zoom in and zoom out the screen and still use its usual utilities.