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J
jessiej85585195
Participant
December 26, 2019
Question

How do I open an InDesign Classic Document?

  • December 26, 2019
  • 3 replies
  • 299 views

Hello,

I've come across some old Indesign files on my computer. The file type says "InDesign Classic Document" and when I try to open the file, I get the error that InDesign Classic files are no longer supported. There must be a way to open these files. Please help.

 

Thank you,

JD

This topic has been closed for replies.

3 replies

Bill Silbert
Community Expert
Bill SilbertCommunity Expert
Community Expert
December 27, 2019

What suffix does the document you are trying to open have? I seem to remember that the earliest InDesign versions had a different suffix. So if your document doesn't say ".indd" try changing it to that suffix or if it has no suffix at all try adding it. 

BobLevine
Community Expert
BobLevineCommunity Expert
Community Expert
December 27, 2019

InDesign files have always been INDD files. They have never had a different file extension.

Quark and Pagemaker have changed through the years so perhaps that's what you're thinking of.

That out of the way, in the olden days, pre-release versions of InDesign created files that could not be opened in release versions unless they were run through a converter that only prerelease testers had access to.

I wonder if "classic" is some sort of translation.

Ashutosh_Mishra
Ashutosh_Mishra
Inspiring
December 26, 2019

Hi JD,

 

Thanks for reaching out. I agree with Steve here, we need to know more about the problem you have.
InDesign should be able to open any earlier version file. In addition to the questions asked by Steve, please share the version of InDesign as well where this document was created. A small video or screenshots would help a lot here to understand your issue.

 

Looking forward to your response.

 

Regards,

Ashutosh

    Steve Werner
    Community Expert
    Steve WernerCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    December 26, 2019

    I don't believe there is such a thing. 

     

    But, to help you figure it out start with:  Please tell us what operating system (exactly) you're running. Please tell us (exactly) what InDesign version you're using. Please upload in the editor a screen capture of where it says "InDesign Classic."

     

    InDesign 2020 (current version) or recent versions should be able to open very early InDesign versions.

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