Why does the blinking I-beam cursor keep disappearing when editing text inside tables in Word 2011?

Anonymous
2015-01-26T19:47:56+00:00

Currently in Word 2011 14.4.7 on OS X 10.10.1 (but the problem has existed forever).

Whenever I edit a Word document containing tables with text in the table cells, once the blinking I-beam cursor is inside table cells, it tends to stop blinking and disappear altogether for entire seconds on end. This makes it very difficult to keep track of where one's cursor actually is. 

Why does this keep happening?

Same thing in text boxes and other "text within a frame" contexts.

Pierre Igot

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  1. Anonymous
    2015-02-12T16:44:29+00:00

    I'm a professional writer/editor and use Word 2011 almost exclusively. I consider myself a power user (I've been using Word since the 1980s). There are many things that work better in the Windows version than on a Mac. For example, on a Mac, vertical text in shaded cells in tables is not even visible.

    But your I beam/cursor visibility problem is a new one. I just finished editing a report with over 30 tables and have no problem seeing the cursor (except if the text is vertical/shaded, which, fortunately, is rare for me). I'm working on a Macbook Pro (Mavericks). Word 14.4.7.

    I just noticed there is a new Word update (14.4.8). Can I ask what version you are using, and if this problem was present for you in previous versions. If it seems limited to 14.4.8, I might wait for the next update.

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  2. Anonymous
    2015-02-12T12:18:51+00:00

    Sure, I've got tons of time to do yet more testing to PROVE that Microsoft Word 2011 is a pile of ****.

    My turn to ask a question: Does anybody out there actually USE Word 2011 for actual WORK? Because it seems to me that anyone who uses this tool seriously would notice all these things, including the unpredictable cursor blinking or lack thereof.

    I have wasted enough time in my life trying to convince Microsoft and its cronies that its products are full of flaws and bugs. I am tired of having to go through the same thing again and again. At some point, someone other than an "MVP" has to take responsibility for these problems and do something about them. If not, it's basically just us users wasting our time and you MVPs choosing, for some reason, to be complicit in this endless torture of end users.

    I mean, Safe Boot to prove that the cursor is still disappearing? Give me a break. Next thing I know, you'll ask me to go to the North Pole with my computer and see if I can reproduce the problem there.

    Microsoft gets away with way too much, and you guys are complicit, by sending users on endless goose chases.

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  3. Anonymous
    2015-02-12T10:51:07+00:00

    Have you tested in another user account? Or after pressing Shift during a restart (Safe Boot)?

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  4. Anonymous
    2015-02-10T13:01:48+00:00

    Even with the faster blink rate, I still get the disappearing act.

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  5. Anonymous
    2015-02-02T14:36:59+00:00

    Thanks for the suggestion. Will give it a try. Suspect it won't prevent cursor from disappearing, but might help make it come back faster.

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