Dumb Frustrating folder finder when extracting pdf pages to individual files

[ds316]

Turns out that if you want to extract multiple pages as individual files from PDF file in Acrobat Pro, when it's time to decide where you want to store those files, you get this...

Really? This is extremely cumbersome. You really want me to look through my whole system directory? You really want to default to a file folder I almost never use for anything? Don't you want to provide me with a standard Windows File Explorer interface? Don't you want to default to the location of the source file? or maybe the same location I used last time? or maybe let me designate a default location?  

As far as I can tell, this is the ONLY function in all of Adobe-land that presents me with this nonsense. Is there a good reason for this? If I insert a page from a file, you don't make me use this to find it.  What the heck?

This Browse for Folder thing (or is it Browse for location...) is one of the dumbest things I've seen in a while.

[try67]

This is a standard Windows OS folder selection dialog, used in many applications. I'm really not sure what the issue with it is. I guess it could default to the folder where the file is located, but it seems to me a minor problem.

When you insert a file you need to select, well, a file, not a folder, so of course it will be a different type of selection dialog...

[ds316]

OK, well I think the screenshot below is the standard Windows OS folder selection dialog. It's the one Adobe uses in Photoshop when I export a bunch of .jpgs at once.  AND, unlike the one Acrobat is using, it is designed to be easy to navigate without memorizing your whole file directory from the inside out. AND it defaults to the last used folder or to the folder of the source file, based on a setting I can set. In short, it's EASY to use. The one Acrobat uses is CUMBERSOME by comparison. You say that it's used in many applications, but I never see it apart from this single function in Acrobat. And it is NOT used in the other place I know of in Adobeland that wants me locate and select a folder to put some files in.

[try67]

I agree it's more old-fashioned but I still see it used from time to time. The new one is indeed better, and more common now.

And both dialogs can be set to show a specific folder as the default (or not). It's not a feature that only the later one has.

[ds316]

I would love it if anyone can explain how to set the default folder in the old-style folder finder. According to various tech-help websites I found by searching "Browse for folder" in the Windows search bar, it's not possible to change anything about this.

[ds316]

And both dialogs can be set to show a specific folder as the default (or not). It's not a feature that only the later one has.

By @try67

I'm sorry, but after doing a good bit of research on this, I think you are just mistaken. Do you know how to change the default folder location in this dialogue? Even changing the default for the whole system in File Explorer didn't change it in the Acrobat-presented dialogue. Everything I could find indicates that the solution to this problem is for the application author (Adobe) to join the modern world and stop using this archaic option.

[try67]

Sorry, you misunderstood me. The programmer can set the default folder when writing the code that uses either dialog. The end-user cannot (unless the programmer gives them a way to do so).

I think there isn't really much more to discuss here. If you want to ask Adobe to change it, this is the place to do so: https://www.adobe.com/products/wishform.html

[ds316]

Oh, and it also doesn't let me rename the files before saving them.

[Kim38778705t0gr]

Not sure if you found the answer but buy turning off the tick in

Edit/Preferences/Security (Enhanced) 

Then untick Enable Protected Mode at Startup

Restart your computer and you should be all good

[Courtney38616545epzl]

Agreed - two issues remain. Also having this issue and the document is not protected in anyway. it does NOT prompt a file name nor the folder and it used to just pop up a new pdf and you can save from there... why. so annoying

[Koopa_Troopa]

Same issue. The previous verion placed the extracted pages in a new file you could look at and when clicking save defaulted to the last folder you saved to. Not sure why they decided that making it more cumbersone and less easy to use was a good idea.