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Can't drag objects

I am unable to drag objects/textbox/etc in InDesign. I can resize using corner handles but I'm unable to click and drag object to desired location I've uninstalled, reinstalled, shutdown, restarted, cleared all settings, etc and nothing seems to work. I have never encountered this issue in all my years of using InDesign. Please help!

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Alvina shared this idea  ·   ·  Report…  ·  Admin →
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FIXED  ·  Abhinav Kaushik responded  · 

Hello All,

We thank you for your patience all this while.

Addressing this problem has been tricky for us given the random nature of the issue.
Determined to resolve the issue, we had launched our investigation into the matter to identify the root cause and fix it.

Many of you must have received email from us seeking more details about the issue.

We have concluded our investigation and came up with the below mentioned finding:

It was found that, most of the times, users were trying to drag an empty polygon which was leading the confusion because the legacy behaviour of InDesign allows dragging of polygon only from its edges or the centre most point.
If the user tries to drag it from any other position, the object cannot be moved.

We have tried to improve the user experience in this regard. You can try the same in InDesign’s latest version id 14.0.3.

Please download and install id 14.0.3 and let us know your feedback on the new experience.

Note:
If you are unable to drag other types of objects (other than empty polygons), please check the memory usage of your system. It has been observed that when the memory usage reaches the critical level, dragging of the objects become difficult.
As a workaround, you may either try to close some applications or restart the system.

Regards,
InDesign team

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  • Jacob commented  ·   ·  Report

    1. Sierra Version . 10.12.6
    2. Yes, I'm able to resize objects I'm not able to drag.
    3. Application frame is off
    4. Issue happens with all of the above, text frame, rectangles, graphic frames, etc.

    Very frustrating to not be able to meet deadlines because of such a basic error.

  • Anonymous commented  ·   ·  Report

    Having issues dragging and dropping objects. Ah, this sux! anyone have a fix for this. It just started happening yesterday. I am using CC2018?

  • mcmchelle commented  ·   ·  Report

    I updated to the new version and I can now move objects.

  • Kevin Engler commented  ·   ·  Report

    I experienced this issue after adding some new Chrome addons. By process of elimination, it turned out to be one called "Session Manager." After disabling it, the problem disappeared.

  • Anonymous commented  ·   ·  Report

    I'm am unable to drag objects with the cursor. I can only move object with the arrows. I updated to InDesign CC on a MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid-2015) running macOS Sierra. I should mention that I'm an Adobe employee....this makes me sad that so many people including myself are having this problem.

  • Anonymous commented  ·   ·  Report

    Having the same issue both in CC2017 and CC2018.
    This is a disaster!

    1. OS Version: 10.11.6 (El Capitan)
    2. Yes, i can resize the objetccs
    3. Application frame on or off makes no difference
    4. Happens with every kind of Object.

  • Misty commented  ·   ·  Report

    I am having the same issue as of today! I have had no issues prior to today, and nothing is different on my end. Please fix!!!!!!

  • anonymous commented  ·   ·  Report

    I am on Mac OS Sierra 10.12.16. Yes, I can resize objects. Have tried with Application frame both on and off, still doesn't work. This is happening with every type of object: image, text etc. Have tried deleting my preferences, restarting. Please let me know if there is any fix as this is adding too much time to designing layouts.

  • Ashton commented  ·   ·  Report

    First off some information on what I'm running:
    1: InDesign vers 13.0.1
    2: OS X El Capitan 10.11.6
    3: It happens at random whether I've closed out of inDesign and restarted it, cleared all my preferences with the CMD CNTRL OPT SHIFT method at the start, or had it sitting open after it had been working. So I'm not even sure how to reproduce the problem.

    Mouse or tablet, neither work. Using the move tool, I can USUALLY click and drag objects around the page and organize them as needed. With this bug, I can only 'nudge' the object from side to side. But in a large document this would take me years to finish my work. I can resize the objects as well as place new objects - but cannot move them.

    This has been a well documented problem but there never seems to be any answers or updates for it. I've tried updating InDesign, clearing preferences, restarting my computer, and every other little trick in the book when this comes back.

  • Anonymous commented  ·   ·  Report

    Yosemite 10.10.5 — can't drag and drop text. This is as basic as knowing your ABC's ... doesn't work anymore after updating to the newest version of CC 2017. I'm using a late-2009 iMac and can't update to CC 2018, so maybe that's the issue. But if it is, it's shortsighted of Adobe.

  • Hamish More commented  ·   ·  Report

    Same issue - worked fine yesterday, now can't move the bloody objects.
    Win 10 - so no application frame
    Can resize
    Any object - imported image, vector, created shape (e.g. rectangle, circle)

  • Hamish More commented  ·   ·  Report

    Same issue - worked fine yesterday, now can't move the bloody objects. What a joke

  • Jack Quarrie commented  ·   ·  Report

    1. OSX - Sierra 10.12.6
    2. Yes, I can drag a corner
    3. AppFrame turned ON
    4. Happens to all objects

    What is happening? Has anyone found a fix yet??

  • Mick commented  ·   ·  Report

    Is it possible that a so advance software could have a so stupid bug?
    Tried every tip here, but nothing is working.

    canceling subscription RIGHT NOW

  • Feve commented  ·   ·  Report

    Hi. I am unable to drag objects like objects/text/graphic in Indeisgn CC 2018. I am using a MacBook Pro but I haven't updated to high sierra. I have tried uninstalling, restarted, reinstalling, shut down, cleared settings etc. but still nothing. This has been happening since last week & I am upset I cannot work on my projects with this bug. Please help asap!

  • Feve commented  ·   ·  Report

    For some reason I am unable to drag any of my objects around in my indeisgn, i have a final project due and this is annoying. I have uninstall and reinstalled 3 times but still nothing. all my layers are unlocked. can we pls find a solution?

  • RMS commented  ·   ·  Report

    It is the oddest thing, as this error comes and goes. Rebooting/Restarting *occasionally* works, as does resetting preferences. Using the latest version of InDesign CC.

    1. OSX - Yosemite 10.10.5
    2. Yes, I can drag a corner.
    3. AppFrame turned ON
    4. Happens to all objects, regardless of content (or which tool created it)

  • Anonymous commented  ·   ·  Report

    Has anyone found a fix for this as none of the suggestions on this forum has worked for me on a mac?

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