Visual Basic for Application - Run-time error '53'

Question

Hi. I just bought a new Mac to help me with my PhD studies. Yesterday, I transferred all my files etc from my MacBook Pro to my new Mac. I went onto my university website and downloaded Microsoft, with all the apps (Word, Excel etc) on my new Mac. I did the same to other applications that I use, like Canva, Adobe etc.

But, every time I try to open a Microsoft document, it greets me with the following:

Visual Basic for Applications

Run-time error '53':

File not found: /Library/Application Support/Adobe/MACPDFM/MacPDFM.framework/Versions/A/MacPDFM

II thought hmm how strange? So I uninstalled the Microsoft documents, then redownloaded. Same thing happened with the code. So I uninstalled and then downloaded directly from the App store. Same thing again. So I uninstalled it, and redownloaded oncemore from my university. SAME CODE.

I uninstalled and reinsalled Adobe as well. I have spoken to my university, and IT and Apple, no luck.

When I follow the code, it opens on the terminal. and says the following:

Last login: Tue May 28 16:28:43 on ttys000

taylamounter@iMac ~ % /Library/Application\ Support/Adobe/MACPDFM/MacPDFM.framework/Versions/A/MacPDFM ; exit;

zsh: exec format error: /Library/Application Support/Adobe/MACPDFM/MacPDFM.framework/Versions/A/MacPDFM

Saving session...

...saving history...truncating history files...

...completed.

Deleting expired sessions...none found.

[Process completed]

I AM SO STUCK!! I really need access to Microsoft on the new Mac, I have deadlines approaching but I am not getting anywhere. For clarification, it is ALL the microsoft apps that this message pops up with!

Please help?!

Answer 1

This is not a Word issue, so re-installing Word won't fix it. Instead, please try these steps:

1. Close Word.
2. While pressing the Option key, click on Go in the macOS menu bar and choose Library. Your hidden user library folder opens.
3. Open ~/Library/Group Containers/UBF8T346G9.Office/User Content/Startup/Word.
4. Move the linkCreation.dotm file to the trash.
5. You'll get similar messages in Excel and PowerPoint, so while you have the Startup folder open, check the Excel and PowerPoint folders and delete the SaveAsAdobePDF files in those folders.
6. Restart Word to test.

Answer 2

I just had this error re-occur for me as well. Same thing, couldn't find linkCreation.dotm in the folder listed above. I used the "find" command in the terminal and found it in this location:

/Library/Application Support/Microsoft/Office365/User Content.localized/Startup/Word/linkCreation.dotm

It didn't show up through finder though. I had navigate to that folder using the terminal and remove the file that way. But that worked for me.

Answer 3

This worked, thanks!

Oddly though, linkCreation.dotm wasn't showing up even with Terminal.

Answer 4

I have a Macbook Pro M3 with this issue. The first time I followed instructions to remove the linkCreation.dotm and SaveAsAdobePDF files from the Library path given, I found these files and removed them, and it stopped giving the error 53 ... for a while. Then it started doing it again; maybe it was after updating the Mac OS again, I'm not sure. But once again, Error 53 pops up EVERY TIME I open Word or Powerpoint. Excel also has an error message but it just shows in the Excel frame above the spreadsheet and can be X'd out.

Now when I open the folders ~/Library/Group Containers/UBF8T346G9.Office/User Content/Startup/Word and /Powerpoint, there are no files visible. So what I do is something I read elsewhere: to open the Tools > Templates and Add-ins menu option in Word and uncheck the linkCreation.dotm add-in which is ALWAYS THERE and CHECKED. In Powerpoint I open the Tools > Powerpoint Add-ins menu and uncheck the SaveAsAdobePDF option which is ALWAYS THERE and CHECKED. This stops Error 53 as long as Word / Powerpoint stay open. The error comes back the next time I open a file after quitting the apps.

What else can I do to stop this behavior? Why is a bug like this still around after so many years??

Thank you!!

Answer 5

I just had this error re-occur for me as well. Same thing, couldn't find linkCreation.dotm in the folder listed above. I used the "find" command in the terminal and found it in this location:

/Library/Application Support/Microsoft/Office365/User Content.localized/Startup/Word/linkCreation.dotm

It didn't show up through finder though. I had navigate to that folder using the terminal and remove the file that way. But that worked for me.

This was helpful for me. I could find the linkCreation.dotm and SaveAsAdobePDF.ppam files, but they have 644 permissions and won't let me delete them. The su command doesn't recognize my user login, how did you remove them?