MATLAB: Does the help window cause MATLAB to hang, and why do right-click and Ctrl+C not work in the help window

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Hi, I am having trouble with two bugs in the MATLAB help (documentation) window. I am using Windows 8.1 64bit and MATLAB 2013b 64bit. These bugs does not appear in Windows 7.
  1. In the help window, whenever I press Ctrl+F, the whole MATLAB program semi-freeze. The core (command and editor window) will still run but the GUI (tabs and toolbars) won't respond to mouse clicks.
  2. Right click does not work in help window. It is supposed to pop up the right-click menu, but it doesn't. Nor does it copy text when press Ctrl+C.
Could any Windows 8.1 user confirm the same problems?

Best Answer

Hi, MathWorker here!
The broken behaviors of Ctrl+F and Ctrl+C in the MATLAB help browser are unfortunately due to a compatibility issue with certain versions of Internet Explorer, in particular IE11 and sometimes IE10. Downgrading your version of Internet Explorer to IE9, which MATLAB R2013b was tested more extensively on, is one way of working around the issue.
You can also work around the Ctrl+C issue by using Ctrl+Insert and Shift+Insert to copy and paste text.
Our documentation can also be accessed via the web from here: http://www.mathworks.com/help/
I apologize greatly for the inconvenience! The developers for the Help browser are aware of the issue and actively working on a solution.