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Fix Acrobat Reader Crashing When Adding Comments or Tagging Text
Question details
Users experience unexpected application crashes in Adobe Acrobat Reader when attempting to add comments or tag selected text after a recent update, alongside missing file-name search suggestions.
- Product
- Adobe Acrobat Reader
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Adding comments, tagging text, or searching for file names within PDF documents after updating the application.
- Observed behavior
- The application crashes immediately during commenting or text tagging, and search suggestions only appear after manually typing the entire word and pressing Enter.
Save any open documents to prevent data loss in case the application crashes again, and note down your device's current language and regional settings for troubleshooting.
Adjust System Language and Locale Settings
Change your device's language and region to a widely supported locale, as the crash is linked to unsupported language settings in the new update.
Adobe has acknowledged that this specific crashing issue during commenting and tagging is often triggered by unsupported languages or locales in their latest update. Temporarily switching to a primary locale like English (US) can bypass the bug until an official patch is released.
Navigate to your computer's main Settings menu and locate the 'Time & Language' or 'Language & Region' section.
Temporarily set your display language and regional format to English (United States) or another standard supported locale.
Reboot your system to ensure the new language settings are applied globally across all applications.
Launch Adobe Acrobat Reader, open a PDF, and attempt to add a comment or tag text to see if the crash is resolved.
Check for Acrobat Reader Updates
Install the latest patches from Adobe, as developers frequently release minor updates to fix known bugs like commenting crashes.
Revert to a Previous Version of Acrobat
Uninstall the buggy update and install an older, stable version of Acrobat Reader to restore reliable commenting and search functionality.
Use WPS Office for Stable PDF Commenting and Editing
Since Acrobat crashes are currently tied to unresolved update bugs regarding language locales, consider using WPS Office. It includes a robust, highly stable PDF reader and editor that allows you to easily highlight text, add comments, and tag documents without unexpected software crashes.
- 1. Download WPS Office: Visit the official WPS website and download the free installation package for your operating system.
- 2. Open your PDF document: Launch WPS Office, click on 'Open', and select the PDF file you wish to review.
- 3. Add comments effortlessly: Navigate to the 'Comment' tab to stably highlight, tag text, or insert text boxes without software interruptions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does Acrobat crash specifically when I add comments?
Recent updates to Acrobat introduced a software bug related to unsupported language or locale settings. When the application attempts to process text input or tags in these locales, it fails and crashes.
Will reinstalling Acrobat fix the file-name search suggestion issue?
Reinstalling the exact same version might not resolve the search suggestion bug if it is hardcoded in the latest update. Waiting for a newer patch from Adobe or rolling back to a previous version is more effective.
Can I recover my PDF comments if the app crashes while typing?
If Acrobat's Auto-Save feature was active, you might be prompted to recover the file upon reopening. Otherwise, unsaved comments entered right before the software crash are unfortunately lost.
Does changing my system language permanently fix the Acrobat crash?
Changing the system language to a supported one like English (US) acts only as a temporary workaround. A permanent fix relies on Adobe deploying a patch that fully supports your preferred system locale.
