Can't open a file in Pages because they are greyed out

Question

Level 1

12 points

Can't open a file in Pages because they are greyed out

I created a document in Pages. It saved fine. I just made a correction to the file, saved it as a new file name (added the word revised) but I can't access it now. It is showing up grey and won't open. I was able to locate it in Finder, but when I resaved it, still wasn't able to open it. I also tried exporting it as a .pdf file but that file also shows up greyed out. I'm new to owning a MAC, always used PC prior to this so I'm not really sure how to fix this issue. Help!

iMac Pro

Posted on Dec 15, 2019 9:42 AM

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Answer 1

Missi63 Author

Level 1

12 points

Dec 15, 2019 3:50 PM in response to Barry

I'm going out of my mind - I updated Catalina to the most updated software. Still no luck. I can open the file if I locate it by using Finder. But if I try to open it or to post it to my Facebook it's greyed out. I have no idea what to do.

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Answer 2

VikingOSX

Level 10

122,922 points

Dec 15, 2019 10:18 AM in response to Missi63

PDF documents cannot be opened in Pages, thus they appear grayed out in your Open panel. As for your unopenable revision, I recommend that you reboot your Mac and see if that allows Pages to open that document. And no, you shouldn't have to do this, but Pages has been misbehaving lately.

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Answer 3

Missi63 Author

Level 1

12 points

Dec 15, 2019 11:14 AM in response to VikingOSX

Thank you! I realize that the .pdf files can't be opened in Pages. I was trying to upload a flyer to my Facebook page, so I thought maybe if I made it a .pdf file I could add it as a photo. But it's greyed out, just like the original file. I've rebooted several times with no luck.

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Answer 4

VikingOSX

Level 10

122,922 points

Dec 15, 2019 11:22 AM in response to Missi63

You can open that PDF in Preview, and select/export each page as an image of a type supported by Facebook.

I have a clean install of Catalina 10.15.2 with Pages v8.2.1 and have no file open/save mystique as has plagued others in this community.

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Answer 5

Barry

Level 9

60,023 points

Dec 15, 2019 3:41 PM in response to Missi63

"Maybe I should reinstall Catalina. "

Similar questions have been posted frequently since the introduction of Catalina.

"Restart your Mac and try again to open the document(s)" has been reported to lead to success in many of those cases. I would try that before going to a reinstall of the OS.

Regards,

Barry

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Answer 6

Missi63 Author

Level 1

12 points

Dec 15, 2019 12:17 PM in response to VikingOSX

Hmmm now that you mentioned it I just started having this problem after installing Catalina. I can’t even select the pdf file in preview. It stays greyed out. Maybe I should reinstall Catalina.

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