Word 2004: New bug with blinking I-beam cursor

Posted by Pierre Igot in: Macintosh
June 19th, 2004 • 5:16 am

Word 2004 introduces a new bug that didn’t exist in previous versions of the program. Sometimes when editing text, if you use the Left and Right cursor keys (with or without modifier keys such as the command key or the option key) to move the blinking cursor (a.k.a. I-beam cursor), the cursor will disappear and only reappear when you stop hitting the cursor keys. In other words, while you are hitting the cursor keys, you cannot see where the cursor is, which means that you are effectively shooting in the dark when it comes to the exact position of the cursor.

I haven’t been able to reproduce the bug reliably yet, but it occurs often enough. I don’t know if it has to do with the blinking cursor being in its “off” blinking state when you start hitting the cursor keys. It’s possible, but it’s not the only factor, because I cannot reproduce the bug simply by “catching” the cursor while it’s in its “off” state.

As I said, the problem didn’t exist in Word X. Interestingly, however, there was a very similar bug — this time 100% reproducible — in the formula bar in Excel X, which has been eliminated in Excel 2004.

It’s rather annoying.


One Response to “Word 2004: New bug with blinking I-beam cursor”

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