Q: Pages 4.3 templates do not convert to Pages 5 templates

Nope. Just have to do it all over again!

Let Apple know that your time is worth something, by taking some of it to downrate Pages 5 to 1 star with comments in the App Store.

Peter

Why bother to do it all again? Why not just revert to using Pages 9 (v.4.3). Unless you did a "clean installation" of Mavericks it should still be on your system.

In my case, I have several "My templates" with such features as custom styles and also logos AND text in headers, with a big main one in the header on the 1st page and a smaller "reminder logo" repeated on every other page. These were converted automatically into Pages 5 templates and I find the images can no longer be modified or changed, they seem to have become a sort of inaccessible watermark. In other words I am unable to modify my own templates (or at least, if it's possible, I haven't yet invested enough of my own valuable time in seeking how to do it).

So I tried recreating a template in Pages 5 just to see how - and found I cannot put an image in a header - just page numbers and text!

Also I find the Inspector in Pages 5 far less good than in Pages 9 but perhaps that's just because I'm not used to it yet.

Bottom line: I shall continue to play around with Pages 5 to try and learn it in case I discover anything useful, but for real work Im sticking with Pages 9 version 4.3.

No reason to recreate all your work. 

Pages 4 is still in an iWork folder within your Applications folder.  You can use that to get work done.

Please also let Apple know at:

http://www.apple.com/feedback/pages.html

Despite what Peter says, there is a kind-of work around.

We have similar problems to you - we are heavy users of Pages and the transition to Pages 5 is problematic as it does kill the templates.  I was one of the first to post about this issue in this forum, and contributed to some of the elements on Peter's list...

But unlike Peter, for whom it seems it is enough simply to throw stones at Apple, we have a business to run, and so need to work out coping strategies.  Here's what we've found:

• Pages 5 does import 'sectional' information from 4.3 documents - you just can't edit it right now (as the UI for editing section margins etc. is missing currently in Pages 5). 
  • This is why when you import a Pages 4.3 document that is based on use of a template, the document looks 'the same' as the 4.3 version - and why you can't create a replica of this document just in Pages 5.
• When you open a Pages 4.3 template in Pages 5, all you get is the 'default' pages (i.e. whatever pages are set up in the 4.3 template 'document') - you loose access to all the sectional template information itself.
• Provided you are careful about not deleting section boundaries, you can add to / amend an imported Pages 4.3 document in Pages 5, and preserve the imported section layouts.
• Pages 5 versions of 4.3 templates are really just 'starter documents' with varying section margins / layouts.  It seems the idea (at least with current version of Pages 5) is that you overtype these standard layouts.

So what we are doing is the following:

• We are creating 'examples' of our Pages 4.3 templates that contain as their 'document' definition common section patterns. 
  • So for example, we have a "long document" template in Pages 4.3 that has several single page sections with 'front page' alternatives (mostly varying due to what copyright information goes on the page), a body section template (multi-page), and several single section back page alternatives.
  • We have therefore created several 'Pages 5' templates in Pages 4.3 - these are duplicates of the master template, but in each we have pulled out a single front page, and inside section and a back-page into the template document (i.e. what you see initially when you create a new document in Pages 4.3 using the template)
  • We are then 'opening' these templates in Pages 5.  When you do this, Pages 5 asks you if you want to import the template into your "My Templates" area, and if you say yes, will create a "template document" with just the 'default pages' in your 4.3 document in it.  So we end up with multiple 'templates' in Pages 5 - one for each common combination of sections for our 4.3 tempates
• Separately, we are also creating documents using 'seed' documents (i.e. just duplicate an existing 4.3 document with roughly the right layout, and then paste in your alternative text etc.) - which is not so much different to how Pages 5 templates work anyhow.

All this is not perfect - weird things happen sometimes to footers it seems - and you are bound by the many other limitations of Pages 5 etc.  But it is early days, and we've already demonstrated that we can create working editable documents in Pages 5 'derived from' Pages 4.3 templates.  Hopefully when the today announced regular updates to Pages 5 appear, this all will get easier.

We really wish Apple had done this change differently - we're consuming lots of resource trying to work out how we accommodate the changes that could be used for something else.  But at least we're doing something... and finding solutions.

Finally, we're really pleased about one thing - the proper support for RTL.  Will be a boon to our Middle East business.

Gavin you are a poor listener. I responded to:

diorite wrote:

 

What to do? Well, it appears that to uses Pages 5 I must recreate (if even possible) all my templates.

Which is basically what you are recommending, which is not original, even though you took forever to explain how to open all Captured pages and save them as flat documents to be resaved in Pages 5 as Templates again.

There are very good reasons why this is not a real solution;

1. It is a tedious waste of time

2. It will still be a document and not the structured templates of Pages 4.3

3. It is no solution for linked Layout documents or anything that uses features unavailable in Pages 5

4. Your work will turn out rapidly to have been futile as Apple changes something else

5. It would be wiser to go back to Pages 4.3 and wait to see what happens next

or

6. Better to plan on a secure long term solution. Pages 5 is out of the frypan into the fire.

Peter

You know you don't need to export to get a PDF in 4.3, right?  Easier to use the Print dialog.  In the bottom left corner is a "PDF" button...

Hi Peter

PeterBreis0807 wrote:

 

Gavin you are a poor listener. I responded to:

 

diorite wrote:

 

What to do? Well, it appears that to uses Pages 5 I must recreate (if even possible) all my templates.

Yes, and your respone was "Nope. Just have to do it all over again!".  I'm sure there is scope to interpret this, but I struggle to see how you turn these nine words into my reply - which is what you are suggesting.

But your reply to my posting suggests:

• "it is not original" - so actually you knew there were alternatives to "recreating all my templates" but chose not to disclose this.  You didn't even think to include a link to whichever of the (probably many) other threads that cover this you have in mind.
• "you took forever to explain" - so you are able to communicate what can be done more concisely than I did.  Encouraging.
• "this is not a real solution" - on the basis it seems that it will take time to do, and because Pages 5 documents have other limitations beyond the template issue (points made in my post).  OK, but not grounds for saying nothing about their being something to do.

Putting to one side the remaining points - which are just ranting really - it is clear then from your most recent post that when you crafted your first reply you could have actually answered the question with something more useful than "nope", but chose not to.  In the light of this, flaming others for actually doing so seems harsh. 

I never recommend that anyone do anything not in their best interests.

You obviously have quite particular workflows and needs do what you must. I would have taken the hint and removed Maverick from my Mac. Apple has given everything a haircut on Maverick, not just Pages.

For everyone else I give the simple advice:

Don't commit to a product based on promises of future benefits and improvements. There is no guarrantee that those will ever materialise and you will have to put up with a lot of inconvenience and cost meanwhile.

If Apple, or anyone else, wants you to be their Beta testers, let them inform their users that that is what they are doing and recompense them for the time, cost and trouble that they are going through.

Peter

Gavin

There are short answers and then there are long answers.

The short answer to have to recreate diorite's templates was yes diorite would.

Going through the convoluted recreation method as you suggest or any other is the same. A lot of work or a bit less work. Either way the same, and time ill spent when all that work is likely to be futile or irrelevant.

Peter

I agree with Peter about the haircuts on Apple's apps on Mavericks, but so far my other main software, OpenOffice of various flavours, Gimp, the Adobe CS5 suite (after updating Java) and various photo software including iPhoto and Aperture seem to work well. Also speed and reactivity between the many processes always on the boil on my machine (I generally have to have several work threads active at the same time, I'm not lucky enough to just be able to do one thing at a time) are much improved compared to Mountain Lion and was my main reason for upgrading. Due no doubt to the memory management methods, and not just to having cleaned out a lot of old system dross.

But I'm a suspicious and cautious person - I still keep a Snow Leopard partition on this machine, and it has several times saved my bacon, particularly when away from home, and I think it is still faster than Mavericks. Also I have a Lion and a Mountain Lion partition on external disks just in case.

There is just one other problem with Pages, which after all is the subject of this discussion: the old Pages 4.3 apparently can't open documents created under Pages 5.0, although luckily there are work-arounds such as exporting to doc or docx first. Same problem with Numbers. Neither is forward-compatible, but I suppose that's more normal. But it won't really bother me because I'm not going to use Pages 5 in earnest. Here, Apple has failed us by trying to downgrade serious work to the level of iOS capabilities.

iWorkTipsnTricks Forum

We agree that users should continue using Pages '09 if that is possible, and if they are unhappy with Pages 5 give it a review and rating in the App Store.

Peter

One does begin to wonder why you're still on here, Peter - and spending SO much time, to boot - if it's all so futile and you've declared you're not using the product anymore.