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I have used Indesign for years, but this past month I have had this issues multiple times with different documents. When I open a document - either by double clicking the document file or by going to file>open, the program "window" menu says it is open, but it is not visible. This happens with all documents I try to work on. Restarting the program does not help. I have to restart my computer (Macbook running High Sierra) before I can see the document. Any idea what is going on?
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Is it listed at the bottom of the Window menu?
And have you tried clearing your prefs and/or cache files?
CC 2018 InDesign—Don't Import previous settings and preferences
~Barb
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Yes, it is listed in the Window Menu.
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Hi Cath:
So that means the file is open. Does clicking the name in the menu bring it forward? If not, on to the link I posted in my first response.
~Barb
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No clicking on it does not bring it forward. I did go to the preference folder, I was not sure besides the com.adobe.InDesign.plist file, If I should be deleting the entire Folder that says Adobe InDesign. The directions referred to files but not folders.
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Which version of InDesign do you have?
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Derek - I use the Creative Cloud, 13.0.1
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Hi cath27 ,
are you on Mac OS X or on Windows?
If on a Mac enable menu:
Window > Application Frame
Does that help?
Regards,
Uwe
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Uwe - It is a mac. When it has occurred I have tried every show/hide option there is! I have tried opening another document, I have tried creating a new document. I have tried restarting the program, cleaning the machine memory, closing other programs, opening the document directly and from File>Open.
The only thing that works is restarting my Mac. In the last week it has happened twice. In my many years of using InDesign it had never happened before.
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Hi Cath:
You can delete than entire folder and it will be recreated. Two notes:
~Barb
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OK - I deleted everything, and the first time I tried to open a document it happened again. I closed InDesign and again deleted the cache and preferences and it did open. Hopefully that will cure it - time will tell. Thank you all!
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Keep us posted, and in the meantime, I'll keep my fingers crossed.
~Barb
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Thank you I will come back in a few days and mark it solved if there are no more occurrences. At least I didn't have to restart my computer again!
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Hi,
if that happens again try the following ExtendScript script, that should be edited in text-only-mode only with e.g. TextEdit app. Do not use formatted text mode for this. Name the text-only file with suffix: .jsx
Read about editing, saving, installing and running scripts here:
Indiscripts :: Indiscripts for Dummies
Type in the name of your document in line 11 of the code.
Do not change the straight quotes. If the name has the suffix .indd do not forget the suffix. If there is no suffix do not add one.
( function()
{
/*
Type in your document's name between the two straight quotes.
Type in the name how you see it under the Window menu with one exception:
If a * in front of the name indicates, that the doc was changed and the last
change was not saved, do not add the * in front of the name in line 11:
*/
var name =
"documentName.indd" ;
var doc = app.documents.itemByName(name);
var wasNeverSaved = true;
if(!doc.isValid){ alert("Document: \""+name+"\" not found. Script stops."); return };
if( doc.properties.fullName == null ){ wasNeverSaved = true };
if( doc.properties.fullName != null ){ wasNeverSaved = false };
if( wasNeverSaved == true )
{
alert( "Script will prompt you to close and save the doc because it was never saved before.");
};
if( wasNeverSaved == false )
{
alert("Script will try to close the doc.");
};
if(doc.layoutWindows.length == 0)
{
try{
doc.close( SaveOptions.ASK );
}catch(e){ return };
return
};
doc.layoutWindows.everyItem().restore();
doc.layoutWindows[0].bringToFront();
doc.layoutWindows[0].maximize();
var result = confirm
(
"SCRIPT MESSAGE: | Can you see the document window now?" ,
false
);
if(result == true){ return };
try{
doc.close( SaveOptions.ASK );
}catch(e){ return };
return
}() )
I hope, one of the three methods—restore(), bringToFront() or maximize()—will work…
Could also be that there is no layout window at all. Then the script tries to close the doc. If it was not saved, InDesign will ask you to save it.
If there is a layout window, the three methods mentioned above will be executed and you will be asked if you can see the window now.
If yes, press "Yes" and procede. If no, press "No" and the script tries to close the document. If it is not saved, InDesign will ask to save it.
Regards,
Uwe
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This is an absolute nightmare! I am on InDesign CC v16 (Mac Pro 2017 runnign Mojave). I tried everything, including restarts. I do not see the open documents. ID is learly active as I see the .idlk files being generated.
My business is on a halt, I cannot work. This is an absolute worst case scenario. I've been putting up with dramatic bugs in PS CC for years now, bugs that ruin every workflow, with months waitung for fixes.
And I have always been waiting for the worst case such as CC software corrupting my files or plainly refusing to operate. Well, here we are.
Apart from that: original post is from 2018. Shame that this still is an issue. I never ever had such problems with any piece of software since picking up digital workflows in the early 2000s.
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Con 1234 – A few things for you to try:
How much RAM and spare hard disk capacity do you have?
Have you tried resetting the InDesign preferences?
Have you tried in InDesign Preferences, under the GPU Performance tab, unticking GPU Performance?
Have you thought of getting your graphics card checked?
Consider uninstalling InDesign using the Adobe Cleaner Tool to do so, then reinstalling InDesign.
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Thanks Derek!
How much RAM and spare hard disk capacity do you have?
> I'm only using 50% of a 0.5 TB SSD (OEM), 16GB Ram are basically idle since ID is the only bigger software running at the momend
Have you tried resetting the InDesign preferences?
> Yes, did not help.
Have you tried in InDesign Preferences, under the GPU Performance tab, unticking GPU Performance?
> Yes, did not help.
Have you thought of getting your graphics card checked?
It's the built-in Radeon Pro 560 4 GB (MacPro) and other more demanding software such as Capture One work just fine with hardware acceleration. I have no reason to believe my GPU is flawed.
Consider uninstalling InDesign using the Adobe Cleaner Tool to do so, then reinstalling InDesign.
>Well, I guess I will have to try a down-grade to the previous version and disable automatic updates. Will give this a chance at some point, for now I have purchased Affinity Designer to keep on working.
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Here's a link to the Adobe Cleaner Tool, let us know how you get on:
https://helpx.adobe.com/creative-cloud/kb/cc-cleaner-tool-installation-problems.html
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I just uninstalled the most recent version 16.4 of ID and installed 16.3.2. Now, fortunately, everything is back to normal and indd files all are visible. Unfortunaltely this is the new standard workflow with CC updates.
A word of criticism: the Adobe experience has become an expensive monthly beta testing. I end up desperately waiting for fixes of bugs that are completely unneccessary (such as direct control of brushes disappearing, PS mask refine corrupting image data, glitches with PS masks suddenly getting broken and many many more).
Remarably: most bugs are well documented and widespread but concern tools that have been working for 20 years, are usually quite fundamental and some of them never got fixed (PS still fequently eats my layer masks). Other features such as 'saved undo history' or similar have been requested forever but get ignored while other software makers such as Affinity do it right out of the box and adopt convenient and absolutely vital features right from the start. Instead, we can now for instance use neural networks to make a person look aged in PS, which cleary is a gimmick and nothing aprofessional would ever revert to. At the same time basic functionality gets more and more corrupted through - what seems like - messier and messier coding. It's a shame, I so much want to spend my professional carreer with Adobe products. But it's getting less and less likely that this will last.
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Press Control + Command + F.
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Thanks Eugene. Will try to remember this with the next update. Is this a sort of safe mode start of ID? Or another way of resetting the Prefs (which I tried and it didn't help). For now v16.3.2 is working as expected and I will just skip v16.4.0 alltogether.
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No - it forces the Mac window to full screen - that's all.
Worth a try.
Once you do this - you should be able to reset the size.
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Ah, ok thanks! I tried the same thing through all the different Window > Arrange functions and it did not help. I once had a case where a window got somehow stuck in Nirvana, but that wasn't the case here.
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Ok thanks for clarifying.
Can you please confirm you tried the shortcut and it didn't work?
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Sorry, I downgraded to v16.3.2 which works normally. I saw your comment after I had uninsrtalled v16.4.