Help! My Mac Keeps Crashing When Using PowerPoint

Hey there! I’m having a bit of a predicament with my Mac and PowerPoint. It keeps crashing on me, and it’s driving me crazy! But don’t worry, I’ve got some answers for you. Just follow along and we’ll get through this together.

First things first, let’s troubleshoot. If PowerPoint keeps crashing on your Mac, there are a few things you can try to fix the issue. You ready? Let’s dive in.

Check for Updates

Have you updated PowerPoint and your Mac operating system recently? If not, it might be time to do so. Updates often include bug fixes and improvements that can help resolve crashing issues.

To update PowerPoint, open the App Store and go to the “Updates” tab. Look for any available updates for PowerPoint and click “Update” to install them. Simple as that.

To update your Mac operating system, click on the Apple menu in the top-left corner of the screen. Then, select “System Preferences” and go to “Software Update.” If there’s an update available, click “Update Now” and let your Mac do its thing. Easy peasy.

Remove Add-ins

Do you have any third-party add-ins installed in PowerPoint? These add-ins can sometimes cause compatibility issues and make PowerPoint crash. So, it’s worth disabling them to see if that solves the problem.

To disable add-ins, open PowerPoint and go to the “Tools” menu. Then, select “Add-ins” and uncheck any add-ins that are enabled. Restart PowerPoint and see if the crashing issue persists. Fingers crossed it doesn’t!

Repair Permissions

Now, let’s talk about repairing permissions. This step might sound a bit technical, but don’t worry, I’ve got your back.

First, close all open applications, including PowerPoint. Then, open “Disk Utility” on your Mac. You can find it in the “Utilities” folder within the “Applications” folder.

In Disk Utility, select your Mac’s startup disk and click on the “First Aid” tab. Next, click “Repair Disk Permissions” and let the process complete. Once it’s done, restart your Mac and see if PowerPoint behaves itself.

Reinstall PowerPoint

If all else fails, it might be time to reinstall PowerPoint. Don’t worry, I’ll walk you through it.

First, make sure you have a backup copy of PowerPoint files that you don’t want to lose. You don’t want to accidentally delete anything important, right?

Next, open “Finder” and go to the “Applications” folder. Find the Microsoft Office folder and move it to the trash. Empty the trash to completely remove it from your Mac.

Now, reinstall PowerPoint by inserting the installation CD or downloading it from the official Microsoft website. Follow the installation instructions, and you’ll have a fresh copy of PowerPoint up and running in no time.

Alright, there you have it! A few troubleshooting tips to help you tackle that annoying PowerPoint crashing issue on your Mac. Hopefully, one of these solutions does the trick for you. Good luck, and may your slides stay crash-free!

So, you’re having trouble with Microsoft PowerPoint on your Mac, huh? It’s a real pain when it keeps crashing or freezing, but don’t worry, I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve to help you fix it.

Now, before we dive into the solutions, I want you to know that these methods can be applied not only to PowerPoint but also to other Microsoft Office programs like Word, Excel, and Outlook.

Put an end to PowerPoint crashes on your Mac

Let’s face it, Microsoft may not be the ideal choice for your Mac, but many companies use Office or Office 365, so we often have no choice but to work with it. Now, there is an alternative called iWork Suite, which looks and feels nicer, but unfortunately, it’s not fully compatible with Office, and it converts documents from Office format to iWork format, which is less than ideal.

But hey, if you’re using PowerPoint and it keeps freezing or crashing on your Mac, give these fixes a try, and hopefully, it’ll be smooth sailing again.

Check what apps are running

See, PowerPoint itself shouldn’t stress your Mac too much. However, if you have a bunch of other programs open and you’re knee-deep in work, your system might be running short on resources. To check what apps are running, simply press Cmd + Alt + Escape, and the Force Quit Applications menu will pop up. You can also take a quick look at your Dock. Either way, make sure you’re not overwhelming your computer.

Another option is to use Activity Monitor, which you’ll find in your Applications and Utilities folder. This handy tool will show you everything that’s running on your Mac and how much resources each program is using.

Watch those PowerPoint file sizes

Now, in theory, there’s no maximum file size for PowerPoint presentations. You can jam-pack them with huge images, long videos, and any other media you like. However, in reality, the larger the file sizes within your presentation, the harder your Mac has to work to render it. So, always keep an eye on the file size unless you know for sure what kind of computer will be used to run the presentation.

Take a moment to check the sizes of the media files you’re using in your presentation, as well as the presentation itself. It might be just too much for your Mac to handle.

Make sure PowerPoint is up to date

Updates, updates, updates – they can be a pain, but we can’t ignore them. Even if the App Store doesn’t mention an update for PowerPoint, you can double-check by visiting the Microsoft website for instructions on updating Office apps specifically for your Mac. If you’re using a company computer, you might not have the necessary permissions to update. In that case, let your admin know if there’s a newer version available.

However, if you’re using a home computer, make sure you have the latest version of PowerPoint installed. Updating might just be the key to stopping those crashes.

Verify your disk permissions

Ah, those pesky disk permissions. Microsoft Office for Mac has always had a bit of a struggle with them. Even if you’re using an admin account, there’s some setting in your account or in Mohave that can interfere with writing to disk within Office apps. Thankfully, a quick check can sort out this crashing issue.

1. Head over to Utilities and open Disk Utility.
2. Select the drive where Office is installed.
3. Go to the First Aid tab and hit Repair Disk Permissions.

Keep in mind that if you’re using a work computer, you might not have the necessary permissions to do this. But if you’re at home, you should have no problem giving it a go.

Delete com.microsoft.powerpoint.plist

This next solution tackles a common issue where a specific file called “com.microsoft.powerpoint.plist” can cause instability. Now, Microsoft claims they’ve patched it out, but some folks have still experienced crashes that were fixed by removing this file.

1. Before anything else, make sure all Office apps on your Mac are closed.
2. Head to the Go menu, select Home.
3. Open Library, and then Preferences.
4. Within the Microsoft folder, find the “com.microsoft.powerpoint.plist” file.
5. Now, rename it to “com.microsoft.powerpoint.plist.old”.
6. Give PowerPoint another try and see if it still crashes.

If PowerPoint is now more stable, you can either leave the file where it is or delete it altogether. However, if the crashes persist, simply remove the “.old” part and restore the file to its original state. Now, you might not see a Microsoft folder in the Preferences section. Don’t worry, just look for the Microsoft.com files and take it from there.

Oh, and by the way, there’s a website out there that suggests moving other files as well. But in my experience, renaming or removing that one file I mentioned before usually does the trick. But hey, if it doesn’t work for you, feel free to give those other files a go too. You’ll find them all in the same folder as before. Just move them or rename them by adding “.old” to the file name.

• microsoft.DocumentConnection.plist
• microsoft.error_reporting.plist
• microsoft.Excel.LSSharedFileList.plist
• microsoft.Excel.plist
• microsoft.office.plist
• microsoft.office.plist.uaUCk24
• microsoft.office.setupassistant.plist
• microsoft.office.uploadcenter.plist
• microsoft.Powerpoint.LSSharedFileList.plist
• microsoft.Word.LSSharedFileList.plist
• microsoft.Word.plist

Well, those are the methods I know of to stop PowerPoint from crashing on your Mac. Do you have any other suggestions for fixes? I’m all ears!