nancy629

Q: Using MAC book Pro with El Captain  When I open contacts, they are not there until I click around and finally click on green circle and they show up

Using MAC book Pro with El Captain.  When I open contacts, they are not there until I click around and finally click on green circle and they show up

MacBook Pro (15-inch Late 2011), OS X El Capitan (10.11), Contacts

Posted on Aug 27, 2016 3:27 PM

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Q: Using MAC book Pro with El Captain  When I open contacts, they are not there until I click around and finally click on green ... more

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  • by sarah_s1,

    sarah_s1 sarah_s1 Aug 28, 2016 1:02 PM in response to nancy629
    Community Specialists
    Aug 28, 2016 1:02 PM in response to nancy629

    Hello nancy629,

     

    Thank you for using the Apple Support Communities!

     

    It is my understanding you are not able to see your contacts until you click inside the app.  I have a couple suggestions that hopefully will help you.

     

    The first thing I would do is backup everything that is on the computer.  Nothing I am going to suggest should cause any data loss, but it is always a good idea to have a backup.  Your computer has software on it called Time Machine.  It is fantastic software for backing up your computer.  Information on how to use Time Machine is available here:

    Use Time Machine to back up or restore your Mac.

     

    It is important to try to isolate what is causing this to happen.  The first thing to do to help isolate what is causing the problem is to start the computer in what is called Safe Mode and see if the problems still occur.  


    Starting up in safe mode

    1. Choose Apple menu > Shut Down.

    2. After your Mac shuts down, wait 10 seconds, then press the power button.

    3. Immediately after you hear the startup tone, hold down the Shift key.

    4. You should press the Shift key as soon as possible after you hear the startup tone, but not before.

    5. Release the Shift key when you see the gray Apple logo and progress indicator.

     

    Once the computer is running in safe mode, see if you can duplicate the issue.  If the issue does not appear, go ahead and try restarting normally again.  If the issue is gone, it may have been caused by a cache file or directory issue that starting in safe mode fixed.

     

    If the issue returns, you are going to want to check login items.  You can find login items by clicking on the Apple Logo in the upper left corner, then click on System Preferences > Users & Groups.
    Follow these instructions to remove the login items:
    OS X El Capitan: If you think you have incompatible login items

     

    Remove the log in items, restart the computer, and see if the issue continues.

     

    Have a great day!