Finder can't find "Kind:Keynote Presentation"

[jsx97]

Sonoma 14.7.1.

When I type “pages” in Finder search field, a drop down menu appears in which I can select “Kinds: Pages Document”, and then Finder will show me all my Pages documents. Okay.

But if I type “keynote” there and then select “Kinds: Keynote Presentation”, it shows me an empty window, like if I don’t have any Keynote files, though I have dozens of them and I work with them every day.

There is a workaround: type “Presentation” and then select “Kinds: Presentation”. In this case, the Keynote files are found successfully.

But I would prefer to fix the “Kinds: Keynote Presentation” queue.

• Do you have the same issue on your Mac?
• How it can be fixed?

[RunningBoris]

I have no idea how to fix this, or what normal behavior is. But here is what mine shows:

If I type “pages”, I get the same result as you, it shows me my Kinds: Pages Documents. Finder shows me a bunch of files, but not just Pages files.

If I type “keynote” I get this, it doesn’t show me “Kinds” at all. However it does display my Keynote files I have saved, as well as a ton of other stuff that is not related to Keynote.

[jsx97]

@RunningBoris

If I type “keynote” I get this, it doesn’t show me “Kinds” at all.

Weird.

I’ve also asked Gary at macmost.com, and for him it works correctly. When he types “keynote” and then selects “Kinds: Keynote Presentation”, Finder shows him his Keynote files.

Rebuilding the Spotlight index using Onyx and using this one: https://www.reddit.com/r/MacOS/comments/1125776 instruction didn’t help.

[KVZ]

Is your search scope correct?

Katie

[jsx97]

Hello, Katie. Yes, I tried to search “This Mac” instead of my almost-everything_ folder, and it didn’t help.

The Keynote and Pages files are often located in the same folders:

~/
|- almost-everything_/
   |- foo/
      |- bar.pages
      |- baz.key

… Which means that if Finder can find Pages files by “Kind: Page Document”, it should be able to find Keynote files by “Kind: Keynote Presentation”. But sadly, it doesn’t find the latter ones.

[rms]

It is Apple’s Spotlight app/service that does the “finding” (searching), not Finder. Finder calling Spotlight. I recommend, as suggested above, you rebuild your Spotlight index as a first step.

Rebuild the Spotlight index on your Mac – Apple Support (UK)

[jsx97]

Thanks, yes, I tried it yesterday. Didn’t help.

Since Finder successfully finds “Kind: Presentation”, I’m not sure the problem is indexing. Probably a different one.

[KVZ]

And, you’ve checked the category inclusions / exclusions, and the Search Privacy exclusions, in System Settings > Spotlight?

Katie

[jsx97]

This seems to be so.

[KVZ]

A strange thing (maybe) is that you have “Presentations” checked, and cannot search for Keynote Presentations, while I have “Presentations” unchecked and can search for Keynote Presentations.

(The reason mine is unchecked is part of the plot that is lost to me; it just is.)

Katie

[jsx97]

Probably because presentations are also considered documents, alongside with e.g. Pages documents and PDFs. Try to uncheck “Documents”.