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romantic_worldba4f
Participant
September 23, 2026
Answered

problem when opening PDFs

  • September 23, 2026
  • 4 replies
  • 30 views

Acrobat Reader is my default program for reading PDFs - I don’t need to edit, I just need to be able to read them.

When I open a PDF, there is another Window with a thin gradient title bar that only shows “Adobe Acrobat Reader (32-bit)” and I have to click the X to close it three times in a row. Only then can I use Acrobat Reader. It happens every time I open a PDF document. If I want to open another PDF, it works, but the first PDF I open always makes me close this blank window three times. 

Below is what it looks like - as you can see the window completely covers the document and I have to close 3 times before I can see my document.

 

    Correct answer romantic_worldba4f

    So I uninstalled and reinstalled Acrobat Reader, and it stopped doing the thing, and did ANOTHER thing: asked me multiple times if I wanted AI to read this for me, summarise it for me, etc. But I managed to disable the ‘new’ Acrobat and go back to Old Faithful - who knows how long I’ll be allowed to use it before the AI overlords try to take over again.

    Thanks for your help, everyone!

    4 replies

    romantic_worldba4fAuthorCorrect answer
    Participant
    September 23, 2026

    So I uninstalled and reinstalled Acrobat Reader, and it stopped doing the thing, and did ANOTHER thing: asked me multiple times if I wanted AI to read this for me, summarise it for me, etc. But I managed to disable the ‘new’ Acrobat and go back to Old Faithful - who knows how long I’ll be allowed to use it before the AI overlords try to take over again.

    Thanks for your help, everyone!

    DFWTechGuy
    Participating Frequently
    September 23, 2026

    This sounds like Reader is creating a blank/duplicate window during the first launch. Since it happens every time with the first PDF but not subsequent ones, I'd try resetting the Reader preferences first.

    You can also test Edit > Preferences > Security (Enhanced) and temporarily disable Protected Mode at startup, then restart Reader. If the extra windows disappear, that points to a startup/security-process issue rather than the PDF itself.

    If it still happens, I'd check the exact Reader version and whether this started after a recent update. A clean reinstall would be the next step.

    Meenakshi Negi
    Community Manager
    Meenakshi NegiCommunity Manager
    Community Manager
    September 23, 2026

    Hi romantic_worldba4f,


    Thank you for reaching out, and sorry to hear that you are exeriencing an issue.

    From the screenshot, it appears that only the application window is visible. Could you please confirm whether removing this window allows you to see the PDF, or if you open the PDF after the window closes? It would be helpful if you could share a video showing what happens.


    In the meantime, please try reinstalling the application using the steps suggested below:

    Please check if these steps change the behavior.


    Let us know how it goes.


    Thanks,

    Meenakshi

    romantic_worldba4fAuthor
    Participant
    September 23, 2026

    I’ve attached an mp4 showing what happens: after I click close 3 times, I can finally see the PDF. I’ll try reinstalling later.

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