MadCap Software Forums

I'm having a strange little issue and was wondering if anyone else had encountered anything similar. It's only started happening recently but is both strange and frustrating.

I've been using Flare 2020 r2 for some time now but lately, whenever I launch the application it does this...

1. Splash pages are displayed indicating that APIs are being loaded...
2. Splash pages disappear and... nothing...
3. When I launch the Task Manager, Flare isn't listed under the Apps but it is shown much further down under the Background Processes list where... it just sits...

The Task Manager says that Flare is "running" but the UI never shows up. I'm running Windows 10 Home Edition and even contacted Microsoft Support as I thought it might be an operating system error but troubleshooting on that side doesn't seem to change anything.

When I try to end the task in the Task Manager, I get an error message saying that access is denied.

Very strange.

Has anyone else encountered anything like this?

Thanks for help/davice.

Patrick

Hello, my friend!

Hmmm.

Some troubleshooting questions:

Are you trying to launch Flare without yet opening a project or by double-clicking a project file?

Does Flare fail to launch when you try to open one particular project or any project?

Have you tried to repair the installation for Flare?

Typically, I'm just clicking on the shortcut icon on my desktop without trying to open a specific project. That or I've tried going through the Start menu and looking under the Madcap applications folder. But I'll try double-clicking on a project and seeing if the file association makes any difference. If it does, I'll be even more bewildered.

I also haven't tried Repairing the Flare installation so I'll also try that.

Thanks!

Sooo... double-clicking on a project doesn't change the behaviour.

And I can't seem to "repair" the Flare installation as in the Apps list, the "Modify" button is greyed-out.

Still scratching my head on this one.

Perhaps the application fell off the side of your screen. Try the following.

1. Open Flare, and make sure you don't click anywhere else (you want the application to be in focus).
2. Press Alt + Spacebar + M, then any key (left arrow is good), then waggle the mouse like mad until the application appears on screen.
3. Left click to drop the app where you want it.

You could also try holding the Win Key and pressing Left Arrow a few times to see if that brings it in to view.

An interesting idea. Gave it a shot but unfortunately it didn't work. I don't think the Flare application itself is launching properly because it's not listed under the Apps section in the Task Manager but is under the Background Processes section. This makes me think that the application partially launches so that some processes are running but that the whole software does not start.

Here's another weird thing... on the advice of Microsoft Support, I created a new user account on my desktop with admin rights. Logging out of my regular account and logging into this new account... FLARE LAUNCHES COMPLETELY NORMALLY!!!

How strange is that?

I do not believe that this is a Flare problem. I think my Windoze is FUBAR'd and I'm going to have to reset (which is a pain because it means re-installing all my applications).

Thanks for the help!

So after re-setting Windows and re-installing Flare, it appeared for a day or two as if the problem was resolved but... nope, it's back again. The UI is not off the side of the screen, it hasn't launched properly.

I've tried a number of troubleshooting methods but this does look like it's a Flare problem after all.

I guess my next step is contacting Madcap Support. *le sigh*