can't open pages documents I created 3 days ago with Pages 5.2

Have you looked in your Applications/iWork folder?

Version 5.1 will not open v5.2 documents, so if the document came from somewhere else or was saved on an iPad or the like it may be a later version.

It may say what you have open is one thing but double clicking on a file may attempt to open the alternate version.

Peter

When it doesn't allow you to open, have you tried using Control+Click? That will give you the option to select which version of Pages it opens with. Since you have the latest verson all you need is select 5.2. That should work and you should be able to open your documents.

As to why it's giving that message everytime, it seems to be a bug that defaults to opening an older version of Pages rather than 5.2. I've tried to set it up as 5.2 by default by going to Command+I in a pages document in Finder to set that up for all Pages files, but that doesn't seem to work.

I have found a way to solve it and that is to temporarily remove the old Pages 09 version in Applications. I was reluctant to do that initially for all the reasons that others have outlined in the new Pages, but I've found that the very latest version has brought back the things that I missed in the old Pages, even if in a slightly altered form. So I gave it a go. Here's how I fixed it.

1. In Finder, I moved the Pages 09 folder to Trash (but did NOT delete Trash). It will ask you for your password to do so.
2. Then I opened a Pages document. It took a little longer as I think the computer was looking for the old Pages 09 folder intiially. But within 30 seconds it had opened it in Pages 5.2
3. Then I went back to Finder and undid the movement to Trash (either Command+z or go to Edit and select Undo). Again it will ask for your password.
4. You're done. You should be able to open any Pages document by default to 5.2. Pages 09 remains there in case you do want to use it in the future and if you want to open a document in Pages 09 you'll need to use Control+Click to select the older version. Note you cannot open documents created in the newer version.

It is not a bug.

All Pages documents have the same .pages file extension even though most are incompatible with each other.

Finder is simply opening the first app it finds that uses the .pages extension.

Peter

I have experienced a similar problem as the OP. I created a Pages document with Pages 5.2 and could not re-open that document on the same day. I was adding items to my home maintenance log and could not re-open when I had more to include. I was able to open older documents with Pages 5.2, so I suspected a corrupt file and was able to restore using Time Machine. This has happened a few times, but only with Pages documents. Each time the problem has been on my late 2012 27" iMac running OS X 10.9.4 with 3 TB Fusion drive, but most documents are stored on an encrypted 1.5 TB Toshiba USB 3.0 drive.

During the initial switch from Pages 09 to 5.0, I started using Bean but I like the goal Apple has with iOS, OS X and iCloud file sharing. I think Apple still has a lot of room for improvement with iWork. Short term, I'll probably use Bean for files I only access on my Mac and Pages when I want easy access from multiple sources. For anyone unfamiliar with Bean, it is a free app, straightforward to use and has been around for some time.

Whilst I am not discouraging people using Bean, development has ceased, the developer is only doing maintenance fixes.

LibreOffice [free] is probably a better choice as it is in active development, will be on all OSes including iOS and opens and saves to virtually all formats (not Pages yet).

Don't trust anything you value to Pages 5 files or iCloud.

Peter

Wow Apple. Seriously unimpressed. Don't think I will pay for any more Apple software. The most obvious simplest need not met: to be able to open and work on the document.

Mine said: "(File)" could not be opened. The required index.xml file is missing.

???

Thank you to the person who suggested finding my other version of pages and trying there. That has worked.

But really,...Come on Apple. Surely one of the world's most profitable companies can get basics (open) of basic software right?

I have the same issue, running Pages 5.2.2 that came pre-installed on a brand-new Macbook Pro (a few weeks ago) and can't open existing on iCloud or save new Pages documents – but only from the User account I set up for the kids. My administrator account has all access.

This isn't the only problem I have had with this latest Mac. Becoming very unhappy with the company and their products. Been a Mac user since Mac IIcx back in 1988. Every software update makes their devices operate less well. And now a new Macbook Pro doesn't work with Apple software. Garbage.

Having same problem as described by others. Definitely not caused by version incompatibility in my case. Using a new Macbook Pro with v 5.5.1 Pages installed. Can't open or save documents while using Pages within the User Account I set up for the kids (I don't want them accessing my stuff).

Been a Mac user since Mac Iicx in 1988. Never unhappier than I am with this latest piece of crap. I blame the Cloud. Messes everything up.

I agree with your description of Pages 5, but it sounds like you have set up the iWork apps for just your Account, you need to install them for All Accounts.

Peter

This is absolutely unbelievable. They want you to upgrade the software instead of making sure that all versions open all documents.

Moreover they force you to upgrade to maverick which I cannot do because it is incompatible with software like matlab (Mathworks)

so you have to choose between one software pack you need and another one and there is no way you can have both.

There is however one solution and this is the online version of Pages on iCloud. This at least solved it for me.

Mickey

iWork for iCloud beta is called beta for a reason and is a dog to use.

Don't upgrade just stick with Pages '09, because it works.

I have long practice ignoring Apple when I choose and providing mostly unwelcome feedback. It is slowly filtering through their impenetrable self-certainty. I had a Genius the other day crying on my shoulder over the all the trouble that has been caused by the "upgrades" to the iWork apps. But then there are many others who prefer to (smuggly) not know.

Peter

Those of us with iWork '08 or '09 have Pages or Numbers documents that can't be opened by the newest apps (i.e. Pages 5.5.1) for those applications. I had one computer running '08 and another using '09. Both would not open with the new software. I followed the instructions offered for the "09 computer and saved each document in '09 and then opened them with Pages 5.5.1 or Numbers.

An Apple advisor told me the '08 was more complicated. First, it must be saved in '09. So if you don't have that application, you need to acquire it from a third party, as Apple no longer sells it. I used a network between my two computers to open and save the "08 documents in '09. Then they can be opened with the new applications.

It's not easy, you have to do it for every document, but you don't have to lose all your old documents to the new technology!

As has been repeatedly stated here, Pages 5 will only open Pages '09 files, Word .doc, txt and Pages 5 files of a lower version (although there are no clues as to what that is).

Nothing complicated about it, just Pages 5 is very incompatible, and best avoided.

Peter