Open document in a new tab

[sajit63]

how do I open another copy of a document in another tab instead of another window? I am using Acrobat Pro 2017.

[Amal.]

Hi Sajit,

Thanks for reaching out, as described above, you want to open another PDF file in a new tab under the same window, correct?

Please try the following steps:

• Go to Edit (Windows), Adobe Reader / Adobe Acrobat DC (Mac) > Preferences > General > Select, Open documents as new tabs in the same window > OK
• Restart the application and check.

Let us know if that works for you.

Regards,

Amal

Just a reminder, the Adobe Forums are transitioning to a new community experience soon. New threads and replies posts to the forums between August 22nd and September 9th will likely be lost, but we’re here to help!

[sajit63]

Dear Amal,

That preference, I have already selected and it is working.

I want to open 2 instances of the same document. Let us instance 1 will show the paragraph body and instance 2 will show the reference list of drawings.

Is this possible. If not can you please request a feature?

Sajit

[Aryo-Zare]

In brief, dragging tabs would be the solution !!

Here’s a workaround in steps :

1 : open the same document in a new window

2 : cascade the windows so that you can see both windows

3 : drag the tab from the 2nd window corresponding to the same document to the tab-bar of the 1st window corresponding to the same document.

Now you have the same document opened in 2 tabs in one window instead of 2 separate windows.

Note : you can not drag a whole window to another window !  You can only drag a tab from one window to the tab-bar of another window !

[touch litho]

Hi: Amal

Yes! This is work on newer version. But how about in older version as Acrobat XI (11). Can't find that check box at General? Some where else?

[try67]

Acrobat XI doesn't have the tabs feature.

[Colleen5D73]

My version doesn't HAVE that check box.  Is there any other way to get this to open in TABS instead of a new window for each file? 

[try67]

No. Only by upgrading to a more recent version (Acrobat DC or 2020).

[Elisabeth23562121ijze]

This does not work.

Checkbox is selected and it opens in new windows. I can not even drag the tabs to the same window.

[Tim26658029rf33]

I'm having the same issue on Windows 10. Checkbox selected but only way of opening in tabs is from within Acrobat. If I load from Explorer, Outlook, etc... it opens in a new window.

[ls_rbls]

please see answered thread in the link:

[ls_rbls]

https://answers.acrobatusers.com/How-I-open-PDF-file-screen-q192275.aspx

[NudeCruzer]

With the new version "23" you can only open documents in a new tab, the option is gone and the shortcut key to switch documents, switches to nowhere, because you can now only have one window. So you can only have one document open at the same time.

[NudeCruzer]

In order to bring the option back to open documents in a new window, you need to go back to the old version: (Unless someone knows where the option got moved to) For Version "23":

• Windows: Click the hamburger menu (   ) at the upper left corner and choose Disable new Acrobat.
• macOS: Go to View > Disable new Acrobat.

[Denise29489482v477]

Thank you! It's been bugging me forever and couldn't find a solution in any of the help groups. This is exactly what I had to do and now I can open in new windows! Thank you!

[Will32119876e2yy]

Thanks for this tip. I cannot understand why Adobe is forcing users to view a single document as a tab in the new version. The file name is abbreviated, and I can't command-click on the tab to view the path. I've disabled "New Acrobat" until this is resolved. 

[DianaCTC]

Thank you, been looking for the option to open PDF in a different window in the newer version but hopeless... 

[garyj62680292]

Brilliant.  Thank you so much NudeCruzer.  unbelievable how hard this has been to fix especially when you need to compare PDF documents side by side.

[AnandSri]

Hi All,

We appreciate your valuable feedback! We're always looking for ways to improve Acrobat, and we appreciate the time and effort you have taken to share your feedback.  

  

We acknowledge that the new Acrobat represents a notable change; however, we hope that as you get familiar with the new interface, you will be able to be more productive & get more out of Acrobat.

We are actively working on all the currently unavailable features, such as 'open PDFs in a new window' and customizing these preferences. We will address them with the highest priority.

As you get more comfortable with the new interface, please contact us with specific questions on tools, features, or functionalities. We're happy to provide helpful resources and answers to your questions.

If your critical workflows are impacted, you can switch to the old UI from the "Menu" on the top left corner of  Windows OS and View Menu on MacOS. We will follow up with a detailed community-featured post, guiding you to familiarise yourself with the new interface and regular updates on upcoming changes.

Thanks,

Anand Sri.

[S.3220752452ch]

Removing options is NOT a way of improving a utility. It is frustrating and counter-productive to have long established workflows disrupted this way. I truly hope that separation of different pdfs into several windows will very quickly be brought back.

[Jennifer32213220520f]

Same. I have to view two different documents side by side. The easiest way to do this is different pdf files.

[Lee Ming]

The only thing I can see that is a good improvement to the latest version of Acrobat is the inclusion of the Disable New Acrobat option. It is completely horrendous. Shifting menus over to the opposite side, making it messy to jump between edit and view modes, and worst of all, removing the Open PDFs in a New Window option are all making it far more complicated than it needs to be. Stop making asoftware "improvements" in an effort to target the layman and start to have empathy for your existing audience. If you want to make improvements, you can always bring back the support for including GIF and video in the PDF format that was removed years ago.

[Will32119876e2yy]

Couldn't have stated it better. Exhibit A is the page number field. Oh, you thought you were going to put your cursor there to enter a page number? Nope; a redundant box flies out so you can enter the number there. Pointless, gimmicky nonsense.

[im33014983xz3y]

Maybe don't force the new version on your users unknowingly and sneakingly without being asked to and wasting time figuring out how to change it back. Not adding this most basic of features to your newest version before releasing... what the hell was your team thinking the benefits were to this? 

[mariajean]

Just switched to the old UI, thanks for the info as this unexpected change has been slowing me down and causing errors during a busy and deadline driven work cycle.