Trouble staying logged in with the Word Add-in

What's happening?

Over the past year, Microsoft has been slowly transitioning Microsoft Word's built-in browser to a completely rebuilt version. This is the part of Word that displays the side panels that PERRLA uses to interact with your paper.

This new version of Word's browser is installed through a combination of Microsoft Word updates and Windows updates. If you are on the latest version of Word, but not Windows you may still experience this issue.

To fix this it is vital that both Word and Windows are fully updated.

You may need to check and install multiple updates in a row to fully update your computer. Windows will often only show you the next update, not the latest one.

How to tell if you aren't running the latest Word/Windows:

The easiest way to tell if you're using the latest updates for Word and Windows is to right-click inside one of the PERRLA panels.

If you are using the latest version of Word, then you'll see a contextual menu with a number of options, including Refresh & Inspect.

Older versions of the Word panel won't show anything when right-clicking inside a PERRLA panel.

What to do if updates don't fix it for you

Microsoft often slowly rolls out updates to users at different times. It may be that this update has not been released for your computer version yet. In the meantime, there is a way around this problem.

Use the in-panel menu button (in the very top-left corner of the panel) to navigate to different panels, not the PERRLA ribbon tab.

Here are the steps you can follow in your PERRLA papers:

1. Click the References & Citations icon in the PERRLA for Word ribbon tab.
2. Log in if you are logged out.
3. Do not close the panel or click another icon in the ribbon tab. Navigating through the ribbon tab is one way it is logging users out.
4. You can navigate to other panels using the hamburger menu in the top left of the panel (three lines beside "References & Citations").

As long as you keep the panel open and navigate through the in-panel menu button in the panel, you should stay logged in.