Cannot download PDF documents?

Most of the time this problem is caused by the client browser and other browser component (mis)configurations. Please follow the guideline below to properly configure your browser and to get around the problem.

  1. Be sure that you have Internet Explorer 3.0 or higher, or Netscape 4.0 or higher. You can find version numbers under the browser's Help menu, then under About.

  2. Be sure that you have Acrobat Reader 4.05 or higher. If not, uninstall the old version first, then install the new version. You can get the new version from here.

  3. Try downloading the file first to your hard drive:

    1. Right-click (Windows) or hold down the mouse button (Mac OS) on the link to the PDF file, and then choose Save Link As (Navigator or Internet Explorer 3.x) or Save Target As (Internet Explorer 4.x or 5.0) from the pop-up menu.

    2. In the Save As dialog box, specify a name and location for the PDF file, and then click Save.

    3. Start your Acrobat viewer.

    4. Choose File > Open, select the file you saved in step 2, and click Open

  4. If you are on a Modem connection, understand that some of the course materials can get quite large in size and it may take a while to download each document.

  5. If you are seeing blank screens when you click on a PDF file link, it has something to do with your Internet Explorer security settings being too high. Follow the instructions below for a simple work-around. Follow them carefully:

    1. Open Adobe Acrobat Reader 4, on the File menu, click Preferences , and then click General.

    2. Click to clear the Web Broswer Integration check box, and then click OK.

    3. When you click a link to a .pdf file, you are prompted to save the file in the File Download dialog box. You can save the file, and then double-click to open it, which should open the file in Adobe Acrobat Reader.

    4. If you choose Open file from current location , it should open the file within Adobe Acrobat Reader 4, and not in Internet Explorer.

  6. If you are technically inclined, visit Microsoft's Knowledgebase Adobe Acrobat .pdf Files Appear as a Blank Window or Frame (Q177321) and Using Internet Explorer 4.x, Adobe Acrobat Reader Download of Large .pdf File Stops Before Completion (Q286361) for a permanent fix and other possible solutions.

  7. If you are still having problems or questions please send in a description of the problem with following information. Please try to make your description as detailed as possible:

    1. Operating system (Windows 98, Windows 2000, MacOS 9 ..etc)

    2. Browser name and version (IE4, IE5.5, Netscape 4 ..etc)

    3. Acrobat Reader version (4.0, 4.05, 5.0 ..etc)

    4. Internet Connection (Ethernet, DSL, 56k Modem ..etc)

    5. Send to kws@usc.edu