Pages won't open documents

[Patsy Cockrum]

I use Pages ALL THE TIME! Recently, I've been having trouble opening Pages documents. Sometimes I can restart my computer then things will work fine for a little while. When I click on Pages in the dock, its name appears in the menu bar as it should, but from then on it's spinning beachball. I have to force quit. I'm using Catalina on my late 2013 Mac. I cannot see the version of Pages that I'm using now because it won't let me. It's frozen. But I do know that it's the latest version that's compatible with Catalina. Am I gonna be forced to buy a new computer just so I won't have to restart my computer whenever I want to open a document? I've called Apple but they don't have an answer. I'm hoping there's someone out there that's had and solved this problem. Thanks!

 

[TonyAguila]

I use Pages ALL THE TIME! Recently, I've been having trouble opening Pages documents. Sometimes I can restart my computer then things will work fine for a little while. When I click on Pages in the dock, its name appears in the menu bar as it should, but from then on it's spinning beachball. I have to force quit. I'm using Catalina on my late 2013 Mac. I cannot see the version of Pages that I'm using now because it won't let me. It's frozen. But I do know that it's the latest version that's compatible with Catalina. Am I gonna be forced to buy a new computer just so I won't have to restart my computer whenever I want to open a document? I've called Apple but they don't have an answer. I'm hoping there's someone out there that's had and solved this problem. Thanks!

Do you have a copy of the Catalina installer file? Usually behavior like you describe is indication of system files being damaged or corrupted, and the easiest method to renew your system is by reinstalling macOS. If you don’t have the file, you can try to download it from the Apps Store—do a search for “macOS Catalina.” If it shows up, select it until you get the “Get” button. Click on it to start the download. When it finishes, and the installer launches, quit the installer. The file will be in your Applications folder. Copy it to a different place other than the Applications folder, then, restart in Safe Mode by rebooting and immediately holding down the Shift key. One you are logged in (don’t be concerned that things seem sluggish—that’s how Safe Mode is) open the Applications folder and locate the installer application (Install macOS Catalina.app), double click to start the installation.

I’m not sure if the 10.15.7 installer of Catalina contains the latest security update, so once you are rebooted and logged in, check Software Update in Systems Preferences to see if you will be offered the security update. I think the latest one is 2022-001.

The reason for making a copy of the installer is so that you can do the reinstallation in future without needing to download it over. You can install it from its present location, no need to copy back to Applications. If downloading from the Apps Store fails, I can show you other means of downloading it. Good luck!

 

[Patsy Cockrum]

Thank you for your prompt and detailed reply. But it sounds so scary and I need someone to hold my hand I will have to think on this for awhile to see if I can get up the courage to try it. Thank you so much!

 

[TonyAguila]

Thank you for your prompt and detailed reply. But it sounds so scary and I need someone to hold my hand I will have to think on this for awhile to see if I can get up the courage to try it. Thank you so much!

Yes, but… Those are baby steps and will not lead you to a slippery slope. You don’t have to go through the sequence on one breath.

Believe me, when work gets really hectic on my end, I sometimes do these system “refreshes” once or twice a week, or even more. If you consider the thousands upon thousands of files involved in running macOS, it’s understandable that some get damaged from being read and rewritten to over and over.

P.S. My Mac Studio will arrive soon and I will probably be down for a couple of days. I don’t like getting on this forum from my iPhone.

 

[Patsy Cockrum]

Thanks again. I'm just so afraid I'm going to totally ruin everything by pushing the wrong button or saying no or yes when I should have said yes or no. But I'll try to talk myself into doing it. Thanks, also, for letting me know that u won't be available for a couple of days.