After a recent software upgrade, opening almost any PDF file I have freezes the entire computer for 15 seconds. The problem is worse for larger files, but present even for tiny files.
The problem is specific to hyperlinks and internal links created by the very common LaTeX package hyperref. This is the default way to create links in LaTeX, and the majority of all files I have to deal with in my work use it. This means I'm spending a significant amount of time every day staring at a frozen computer.
The bug can be consistently triggered using the following simple code:
\documentclass[11pt]{article}
\usepackage{hyperref}
\begin{document}
\hypersetup{pdfborderstyle={/S/U/W 1}}
\url{www.google.com}
\end{document}
Apparently the bug is not specific to Preview, but has to do with the PDF rendering engine on OSX, which all PDF viewers must use. I run into the exact same problem opening the file with Skim. I've tried the usual advice of deleting random cache files in ~/Library given in other questions, but nothing changed.
According to the discussion on the LaTeX StackExchange, this is a known OSX bug and there is no intent to fix it in the near future. I think this is outrageous, but if it won't be fixed, is there a reasonable workaround?
Best Answer
As of the latest OS X update (4/23/19), this problem has been resolved.