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Fix Mendeley Cite Crashing Microsoft Word for the Web
Question details
The user needs to resolve an issue where Word for the web stops responding or crashes when launching the Mendeley Cite add-in.
- Product
- Microsoft Word for the Web
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Attempting to insert or manage citations using the Mendeley Cite add-in while working on a document in Word for the web.
- Observed behavior
- Word for the web stops responding or crashes completely whenever the Mendeley Cite add-in is opened, and the issue persists across multiple browsers, networks, and device setups.
Ensure you have manually saved your current document and exported a backup of your Mendeley citations from the desktop app before modifying any add-ins.
Isolate the Add-in and Contact Mendeley Support
Disable the add-in to confirm it is the root cause of the crash, then reach out to Elsevier support for a specialized fix.
Since this issue persists across different browsers and networks, it is likely a compatibility or script error originating directly from the Mendeley Cite add-in rather than your local environment.
Open Word for the web, navigate to the 'Insert' tab, click on 'Add-ins', and remove or disable the Mendeley Cite add-in from your active list.
Restart your browser, reopen your document in Word for the web, and type or edit text to verify if the crashing issue has stopped.
If Word works normally without the add-in, the issue is confirmed to be with Mendeley Cite. Contact Mendeley Support via the Elsevier Service Hub for further troubleshooting.
Try WPS Office for Stable Academic Writing
If Word for the web continues to struggle with heavy academic add-ins, consider switching to WPS Office. It provides a lightweight, highly stable desktop environment tailored for large documents and dissertations without the browser-based crashes.
- 1. Download WPS Office: Visit the official WPS website and install the free WPS Office suite on your computer.
- 2. Open Your Document: Launch WPS Writer and open your existing .docx file to continue your academic work.
- 3. Manage References: Utilize the built-in 'References' tab to manage your footnotes, endnotes, and bibliographies reliably.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does Mendeley Cite keep crashing my Word document on the web?
Web browsers allocate limited memory to individual tabs. If you have a large document with numerous citations, the Mendeley Cite add-in can exceed these memory limits, causing the browser tab running Word for the web to freeze or crash.
Can I use Mendeley Cite with the desktop version of Word instead?
Yes. The desktop version of Microsoft Word is generally much more capable of handling heavy add-ins and system resources. Installing Mendeley Cite on your desktop app often bypasses the crashing issues experienced in the web version.
How do I safely back up my Mendeley citations?
Open your Mendeley Reference Manager or Mendeley Desktop app, select all your references, and choose the 'Export' option. Save them as a .bib or .xml file on your local drive to ensure you do not lose your library during troubleshooting.
