Word/PowerPoint are not suitable replacements for Publisher
I’m writing following the guidance that Word and PowerPoint can be used as replacements for Publisher. This feedback is based on completing a real production document, not theoretical use Having just completed a fairly complex, layout-heavy technical document, I thought it only fair to share how that works in practice. In theory, I can see the logic: Word handles documents PowerPoint handles layouts Therefore, between the two, everything should be covered Unfortunately, in reality, this appears to be more of a theoretical exercise than a practical solution. Publisher was clearly designed for: Fixed, page-based layouts Precise positioning of objects Efficient alignment of mixed content (text, images, tables) Producing consistent, professional multi-page documents By comparison: Word is admirably committed to reminding you that it would prefer everything to flow freely, regardless of whether you want it to or not PowerPoint, while better behaved, does seem to assume every page is a standalone slide rather than part of a structured document Both tools can, with enough persistence, be persuaded into doing the job. However, this involves a level of manual intervention, workaround, and general negotiation with the software that feels somewhat at odds with modern productivity software. To put it simply: They are not replacements in any meaningful, real-world sense. The end result can be achieved, but the process is unnecessarily time-consuming, fragile, and prone to unexpected layout changes—particularly when precision actually matters. Replacing a purpose-built publishing tool with two applications that were never designed for that role gives the impression that this use case has been… optimistically simplified. I would strongly encourage Microsoft to either: Provide a genuine page-layout solution within the Office suite, or Enhance existing applications so they can support fixed-layout publishing without constant workarounds At present, the gap left by Publisher is very noticeable for anyone producing structured documents beyond basic text. I appreciate the direction of Microsoft 365 overall, but in this particular area, the experience feels less like an evolution and more like working around a missing tool. Regards Andy
Cannot install addins
I am a Microsoft 365 Personal user. When I try to add the Claude for Excel Addin (for the Desktop version of Excel), I get an error: "Error loading add-ins. One or more add-ins failed to load. See your add-ins.". However, this is not specific to the Claude addin, since every addin gives the same error. When I click on the My-Addins option and then "refresh", I get another error: "Access denied to catalog." Signing in and out of Office does not fix the issue. Clearing the Office 365 cache did not fix the problem. The issue extends to Powerpoint and Word as well. I cannot add any addins to the web versions of Office either. Interestingly, if I download an XML manifest file, I can use the "Manage my addins" option in the web versions of Office 365 to manually add the addins. But still no luck with the Desktop versions. Anyone have any thoughts on how to fix this? Do I need to manually reinstall Office 365? I also noticed that the "Get Add-ins" button in "Account" settings is disabled.
Functionality to mark a slide complete
I do not believe this functionality alread exists but I'm quite sure I'm not the only one that would love to have it added. Now when working in a larger powerpoint slide deck I start with adding a "traffic light" to my slides that's red, and when the slide is finished I turn it green. Then, before presenting I have to delete all traffic lights before the deck is truly ready. This way I can keep track of which slides still need attention and prevent myself from spending time on slides I shouldn't. Now I believe it would be very nice if it was a built in feature where you can mark individual slides as "complete / final" or "needs attention" with visual feedback of this status in for example the navigation pane. How do others handle this and is there a trick I do not know of?Access to subAddress Property of Hyperlinks in Powerpoint Javascript API
Recently my company has me developing a Taskpane Add-in for Powerpoint using the Javascript API. Right now the API is still missing a 'subAddress' property for the Powerpoint.Hyperlink class. My heart's deepest longing is to add a slide to a presentation with existing slide-to-slide hyperlinks, check those hyperlinks for discrepancies between the slide ID and the text (ie: a Hyperlink reading '13' that now links to slide 14), and finally correct the text to the subaddress ID of the hyperlink in Javascript. It is my burning passion to do this for every hyperlink in my presentation with the push of a button. In the interest of all mankind I would ask that the 'subAddress' property of the hyperlinks be available for use in addition to the 'address' and 'screenTip' properties which now exist. To the microsoft dev who can grant me this boon I offer half my kingdom. Truly there is no dev more favoured than thee.
Stop scrolling across slides
Currently if you slowly scroll to the edge of a slide (to examine/edit the details there), all of a sudden you land in the adjacent slide, defeating the purpose of scrolling. My humble ask: please make mouse scrolling only move inside the same slide. NEVER jump to another slide. If near the edge, show a margin of the next slide but don't jump to it unless the mouse clicks on that margin. Page Up/Down keys should be used to jump between slides, AND jump to the exact same location of that slide -- very useful for quickly going through slides and see if elements stay in the consistent spot (elements could be different and can't be placed using the slide master). Ctrl + mouse drag = pan (feature request) Ctrl + mouse wheel = zoom (existing feature) Mouse drag alone = select (existing feature) Mouse wheel alone = scroll (existing feature -- but don't go across slides!) Page Up/Down = fly through slides (always land in the same location) Left/Right/Up/Down arrows = slow move inside slide (when no element is selected) Now imagine the productivity/experience enabled by this solution...
Font issue Inter in PowerPoint
Hi everyone The font "Inter" in PowerPoint incorrectly displays some special characters (ß, –, —) when exported as PDF. It shows correctly in PowerPoint and only displays as "No Glyph" when exported. As the letter "ß" is commonly used in German, this is a noticeable problem for us. The phenomenon is happening on all checked company devices, in the desktop software and browser version. I deleted the font multiple times and installed different versions (variable and static from Google and GitHub). We only use the light weight, but it also happens in the other weights. Does anyone have any idea why that is and how to fix it? I'm thankful for any hints! Nele Microsoft 365 PowerPoint Version: 16.101.2 (25092825) for Mac Mac Tahoe 26.1 (25B78) Chrome Version 144.0.7559.97 (Offizieller Build) (arm64)Web-Addins stopped working for Office apps version 16.100 for Mac
Dear experts, Since version 16.100, the web add-in functionality has stopped working with the Office apps for Mac (PowerPoint, Word and Excel). In may case, Templafy web add-in is not being loaded. According to Templafy's support page: https://support.templafy.com/hc/en-us/articles/29028257609501-Templafy-Web-Add-ins-no-longer-accessible-on-Mac-after-Microsoft-Office-update-16-99 this seems to be a bigger issue. Clearing web add-in cache or deleting the WEF folder will not resolve the issue. I have also tried with a full clean uninstallation of Office365 apps and re-installation, same issue. Note that New Outlook for Mac is not affected, just PowerPoint, Excel and Word.
Flatten images in Powerpoint (VBA or Script Labs)?
After much searching, I couldn't find a PowerPoint-specific group. If this isn't an appropriate place to post, please gently redirect me. I'm decent in VBA for Excel, less experienced in Powerpoint VBA. CoPilot took me on a long journey before deciding what I wanted to do was not possible in VBA, but good news, it should be possible in Script Labs. After an even longer journey, it finally decided that it is also impossible in script labs. I'd like to get a second opinion... I have two images (already in the correct z-order) in powerpoint, and would like to 'flatten' them into one image (BMP, or JPG if necessary). The top image is created by a working VBA script, and essentially blurs just a selected section of the main image (this is to hide irrelevant information for use in job aids, like showing a login screen but blurring the actual user name of whomever was logged in to take the screenshot). Sometimes the content is actually confidential, which is why I need to flatten the image(s) instead of just grouping. All I need to do is flatten the two images, with the output being a format that I can then use the VBA on a second time (e.g. if I need to blur multiple zones on one image). My attempts with VBA left me with grouped images (not flattened) or a flattened image that the VBA then couldn't use as input for another round of edits My attempts with Script Lab were a complete fail, I don't know enough HTML/JS to troubleshoot Copilot suggestions - and despite multiple prompts and fix-it attempts, couldn't get anything working in Script Lab beyond a simple 'hello world' At the very least, I'd love an expert opinion on whether I should continue to try VBA, Script Lab, or just give up and move on to a bottle of my preferred adult beverage and salty tears. Using o365 enterprise v2509, build 19231.20246 - local powerpoint install Thank you!
PowerPoint: Restore “Align” and “Distribute” tools in PP for iPad (v2.103)
Dears, I am reporting a critical regression in PowerPoint for iPad. In the current release (version 2.103), the essential Align and Distribute tools appear to have been completely removed from the UI. These features were part of the full ribbon in previous versions and are fundamental for precise, professional, efficient, effective, and smooth slide layout. Without them, basic layout tasks can no longer be performed smoothly on the iPad. The removal of core layout tools feels like an unexpected downgrade. This change significantly reduces the usability of PowerPoint on this platform and may even force users to switch to lower-tier apps such as Keynote and others for very basic editing tasks. I am fully aware that iPadOS is often perceived as a lightweight or “consumer-first” environment. Ironically, it is precisely the professional quality of Microsoft’s applications that has made the iPad a serious productivity device for many of us. Please keep this standard high – it is the reason why the iPad can function as a genuine professional workstation rather than a creative toy. I kindly request that Microsoft restores the full ribbon or provides an option to access these tools again. Thank you very much, Marco
