FAQ¶

Does this work with all versions of Prism?¶

refractions supports Prism 9 and later (modern .pzfx format). Prism 8 support is best-effort — older .pzf files may need to be re-saved as .pzfx first.

Do my colleagues on Windows need Refractions?¶

No. Refractions keeps the Office file as a real OLE-embedded Prism document — that's true for .pptx, .docx, and .xlsx. Colleagues on Windows can double-click any chart to open it in Prism and edit, exactly like before.

Does Refractions work in Word and Excel too?¶

Yes. The task pane runs identically in PowerPoint, Word, and Excel on Mac. The scope differs by host: in PowerPoint it's the current slide, in Word it's the whole document, in Excel it's the current sheet. Outlook for Mac is not supported (it doesn't use the add-in sideload mechanism).

Can I create a brand-new Prism chart from Refractions?¶

Yes. From the chart list in the task pane, click Insert new Prism chart. Refractions creates a fresh pre-allocated .pzfx, opens it in Prism for you to fill in, and embeds the result into your document on Update — same flow as editing an existing chart.

What happens if I get a new Mac?¶

If you've used all your license seats, email [email protected] with the license key and the hostname of the Mac you want to deactivate. We'll free a seat within one business day.

Is my Office data sent to the cloud?¶

No. All processing happens locally on your Mac. The only network call Refractions makes is a license validation check against https://refractions.app/api/validate-license/, which sends only:

The license key
A SHA-256 fingerprint of your hostname and primary MAC address

No document content, no chart data, no personally identifying information.

What's the refund policy?¶

If refractions doesn't work for you, email support within 30 days for a full refund.

Can I install refractions on multiple Macs with one license?¶

The Individual tier covers 1 Mac. The Lab tier covers 5 Macs. Need more? Email support about volume licensing.

Does refractions work without an internet connection?¶

Yes — for up to 7 days after the last successful license validation. You only need internet access for activation and the periodic re-validation.

How do I uninstall?¶

Quit Refractions from the menu bar icon (Quit Refractions).
Drag /Applications/Refractions.app to the Trash.
(Optional) Run /Applications/Refractions.app/Contents/Resources/setup/uninstall.sh before deleting the .app — that removes the localhost cert, the sideloaded Office manifests, daemon logs, and the license cache. Without it, those bits linger but are harmless.

Your PowerPoint, Word, and Excel files are not modified by Refractions at install or uninstall time.