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Since upgrading to Catalina many messages in mail show a question mark in a box instead of images (I presume). All these emails rendered correctly previously. Any suggestions? Thanks
iMac 27″ 5K, 10.15
Well the safe mode proved that I had the equivalent of an extension conflict. (Remember Conflict Catcher? Great software in it's day). I went for the obvious in Startup Items and removed FontAgent Activator. Problem solved. Now I have to contact FontAgent and see if they have a solution... I do have the latest version to keep organized about 15,000 fonts or so.
Thanks for all you folks who added suggestions.
Welles
Well the safe mode proved that I had the equivalent of an extension conflict. (Remember Conflict Catcher? Great software in it's day). I went for the obvious in Startup Items and removed FontAgent Activator. Problem solved. Now I have to contact FontAgent and see if they have a solution... I do have the latest version to keep organized about 15,000 fonts or so.
Thanks for all you folks who added suggestions.
Welles
Hi Welles Goodrich,
If we understand correctly, it sounds like you are not able to preview attachments in your emails.
Look at the article View, save, or delete email attachments in Mail on Mac, the first section, "View email attachments" goes over a couple of different ways to view these.
Should it not be email attachments you are referring to, then let us know more about where you are seeing the question marks.
Have a great day!
Hello Welles,
It seems we're not quite on the same understanding as to what's happening, as you mentioned now that text is not rendering and images do not have any issue. You also reported in your first message that the opposite is happening. What exactly is happening at this time, and for what content exactly are the question marks showing in your emails? The more details you provide, the better equipped we'll be to assist.
If you use another device, or even accessing your emails from their respective email provider websites, what occurs?
While the latest for compatible models is macOS 12.3.1, the latest for your current version is macOS 10.15.7. While it's not necessary to update to macOS 12.3.1, we do recommend making sure macOS 10.15.7 is currently installed. This link will show how to first back up, then Update macOS on Mac.
Cheers!
Welles,
Thanks for providing that clarification.
To help with troubleshooting the issue further, let's see if the emails appear as expected when booted into safe mode. Safe mode will prevent your Mac from loading certain software, login items, and system extensions not required by the macOS, which may be able to help narrow down the cause of the issue.
For help with booting into safe mode, check out the steps below:
Intel processor
1. Turn on or restart your Mac, then immediately press and hold the Shift key as your Mac starts up.
2. Release the key when you see the login window, then log in to your Mac.
3. You might be asked to log in again. On either the first or second login window, you should see ”Safe Boot” in the upper-right corner of the window.
You can find these steps, and additional steps to take depending on if the issue does or doesn't occur while in safe mode here: How to use safe mode on your Mac - Apple Support
Keep us updated on the results.
Take care.
Thanks for your response, Dorain.
Further investigation since I initially posted my question has proven that it is text that doesn't render, not attachments or embedded images. I remember some issue like this way back, maybe as long ago as some version of OS9 but I haven't been able to solve it.
All the emails that are affected are from people and sources that I have been receiving from for years. This glitch is only affecting about 10% of my emails. Some come from lists some from individuals. Very peculiar.
W
Hi Bruno,
I said in my initial post I was guessing that the issue was with images. I said in my second that further investigation proved that the issue is with text, but only a few select people.
10.15.7 is installed. Unlike many folks I don't install the latest versions of the Mac OS because they will kill old software that I still like. I've been using Macs since the Mac Plus and am familiar with all the operating systems. A lot of the 'new whiz bang' changes leave me cold. They seem to limit Mac users if favor of iOS users. We used to be able to thoroughly customize our machines but are entering a period of Mommy Mac it seems to me. I rather tired of the relentless change for money's sake that is the province of all the tech companies.
You did have one suggestion that was obvious once it was presented and I thank you. I looked at my email (all of my mail comes through the Apple servers) in my old iPad and the text render's properly. At least I have a work around.
I've been doing stuff like cleaning font caches and turning off FontAgent's Activator and so forth but haven't had success yet.
Onward.
Thanks, Chris. Safe mode is a good thought. I'm in the midst of a project and will try that later tonight.
W
Many messages in Mail.app show a question mark in a box
