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Error message in Word and PowerPoint for macOS in Catalina and Big Sur caused by previous MathType installation

TechNote 179

Applicability

Computers upgraded to macOS Catalina or Big Sur when MathType for Mac was installed on macOS Mojave (or earlier).

Issue

Crashes related to MathType installation files when opening PowerPoint or Word.

This error message can appear when you open PowerPoint:

ppt_error.png

This error message can appear when you open Word or you click in the remnant 'MathType' tab in Word:

word_error1.png
word_error2.png
word_error3.png

Solutions

To remove the files and solve the problem you have to download the uninstaller for MathType and run it.

Tip

MacOS sometimes prevent the opening of certain files from "unidentified developers". Follow the process below to open and run the uninstaller properly:

  1. Download and unzip mt7-uninstaller-v2.0.0.tar.gz

  2. If you try to open the file by double-clicking on the icon, you will not be able to do so as it will indicate that Wiris is an unidentified developer (although you can fully trust the security of the file).

    unidentified.png

  3. Instead, open a terminal and run the uninstaller with admin privileges:

    1. Launchpad → Utils → Terminal

    2. Run sudo [path-to-uninstaller]/mt7-uninstaller

      Note the "[path-to-uninstaller]" part must be changed to right path.

  4. The terminal will then open and you may be required to enter the system password to continue.

  5. Once the process is finished, the files will have been deleted and the error will not appear again.

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We hope this has been helpful. As always, please let us know if you have questions about this or if you have additional techniques that work. We'd love to hear from you.

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