J_Lop

Q: Messages stopped working displays a blank screen

My messages stopped working on my MacBook Pro. Yosemite 10.10.4 Messages Version 8.0. When I launch Messages, It prompts me to log into my iCloud account. After logging in the screen that would normally contain my conversations is blank. If somebody send me a text it will pop up in my notifications, but I can not go the application screen to view or respond. My icon at the bottom of the page is indication I have unread messages by having a number in it. Would anybody have a suggestion how to fix this other than maybe updating to the next OS which I am trying to avoid? Thanks in advance!

Posted on Mar 1, 2016 7:11 AM

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Q: Messages stopped working displays a blank screen

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  • by Eric Root,Helpful

    Eric Root Eric Root Mar 1, 2016 11:58 AM in response to J_Lop
    Level 9 (72,578 points)
    iTunes
    Mar 1, 2016 11:58 AM in response to J_Lop

    Might be a corrupt .plist.

     

    Do a backup, preferably 2 backups on 2 separate drives.

     

    Quit the application.

     

    Go to Finder and select your user/home folder. With that Finder window as the front window, either select Finder/View/Show View options or go command - J.  When the View options opens, check ’Show Library Folder’. That should make your user library folder visible in your user/home folder.  Select Library. Then go to Preferences/com.apple.iChat.plist.  Move the .plist to your desktop.

     

    Restart the computer, open the application and test. If it works okay, delete the plist from the desktop.

    If the application is the same, return the .plist to where you got it from, overwriting the newer one.

     

    If that doesn’t work, repeat the above but delete the com.apple.imagent.plist

     

    Thanks to leonie and Ralph Johns (UK) for some information contained in this.

  • by J_Lop,

    J_Lop J_Lop Mar 1, 2016 12:00 PM in response to Eric Root
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Mar 1, 2016 12:00 PM in response to Eric Root

    Deleting (Moving to the desktop) the apple.iChat.plist file solved the problem. Thank You!

  • by Eric Root,

    Eric Root Eric Root Mar 1, 2016 12:07 PM in response to J_Lop
    Level 9 (72,578 points)
    iTunes
    Mar 1, 2016 12:07 PM in response to J_Lop

    You are welcome. Glad it worked.