Problem: Excel Preferences settings keeps reverting to default

Question

Every time I shut shut down the program Preferences goes to default and I lose my setting. I tried swapping out the .plist and then did a new download and install - but still have the problem. I see where people often have this problem with printers, but I am talking about the basic program settings.  I am using Sierra OS, but had the problem before that install.

Answer 1

I have the same problem.... did someone find a solution... ?

Answer 2

The "Microsoft Community Team" prompted me to comment if my question had been answered.

• No it has not.
• I fail to understand why I should pay Microsoft $99 to call them directly. The should want to know what causes these problems to improve their product - but then Mac users always get the short end!

Answer 3

I thought I was pretty clear on this, but I'll try to be more specific if it will help:

1. When ever I close Excel or reboot my Mac Pro 15'' with retina display, my changes in the preferences settings revert back to default.
2. This problem began in Yosemite and continues in Sierra OS. I am running 15.28
3. I have tried changing out the .plist and done a complete reinstall with no change
4. I called Microsoft and they repeated the above, which I had already done, again with no change. This was with a "level 1" technician.  To go to a "level 2" technician I was asked to pay $99 - what a joke, that's practically what the software cost. 
5. I won't list all my preferences changes because there are over twenty.  The ones that drives me crazy are - the (default) indicator going "down" after each entry, and also I have all the "Auto Completes" turned off, and these just keep coming back.

Thanks for looking into this

Answer 4

Nobody can offer anything meaningful unless you provide an explicit description of the issue, including which specific "Preferences" you're referring to... Some Preferences are worksheet-specific, some are workbook-specific, some are global. Without knowing what you're trying to accomplish & how you're going about it you'll most likely get nothing but wild guesses or no response at all.

It's also a good practice to indicate the present update level of your Office 2016 installation (it should be v15.28 or later/.

Answer 5

If you are talking about when you first Open a new Document, You only see window cover 1/3 the Screen starting at top left corner.  Forget about it. This Defect, Bug, whatever you want to call it has plagued Excel Mac since at least the days of Excel 5.0.1.A  (circa 1995).

It is something Microsoft has gazillions of request to fix, and yet, Microsoft has decided it is just an annoyance that people can put up with, and not worth the effort. Excel 2016 has been "improved"  In that now you can option click the green stoplight button, and it will fill the screen. 2011 and previous you had click on the grab corner and pull to right and down every time. Whether on a new document or a Saved document.

In 2011 Someone came up with the idea of creating a Template file set like you wanted, remove the extension  and place file in the startup folder within the Office2011 /Startup Folder. 

But this is broken in 2016 so you can't even do this.

The reason that Word can keep its setting is that it has a Normal.dotm Template file, which Word reads first, before opening a new or saved document.  In the beginning, this could have easily been added. Template could have been named Normal.xltm, and worked the same as in Word. However; back in the beginning if everyone has read the history between Apple and Microsoft. Microsoft in those days was making every effort to kill off Apple. Today, it is just blind neglect although not as open as then. It is still around. (You'd think after Apple just celebrated 40 years as a company Microsoft would get the hint.)

Anyway write back and let use know if it is something else. And we will see if we can figure it out. 

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