#Illustrator Files
9 messages in this thread
All:
I've got a customer who is sending in some fairly complex Illustrator files
of late.
The file runs fine his laserwriter IInt (and mine as well). It bombs out on
the L300/RIP2 with an error involving the "fill" operator. If I save it as
an Illustrator 1.1 file, import it into Freehand the file runs fine.
This manuveur has worked fine so far, but I'm a bit leery about doing this,
since something subtle might get lost. Anyone have any ideas what the
problem might be? If there are too many points on a path (the usual
Illustrator bugaboo) why would Freehand be able to handle it? (I did the
import into Freehand primarily because I thought I was going to have to
split the path and feel a lot more comfortable working in Freehand than
Illustrator — I was surprised when, in fact, the file ran without me
having to touch it).
–jon
Jon,
You're probably correct that it was too many points on a path that caused
the problem if you got a "limitcheck…fill" error. Did you try increasing
the flatness in Illustrator? I've found that that often solves the problem
without noticeable changes in appearance.
FreeHand automatically ups the flatness if it runs into a flatness error.
(This doesn't help if the FreeHand file is placed into another program,
however.)
^Steve^
Steve:
I'll give the flatness fix a try today.
It's interesting that Freehand ups the flatness automatically. Hopefully,
Adobe will do the same on the next revision.
thanks for the suggestion.
–jon
Jonathan,
Adobe's solution to the flatness problem is automatic splitting of paths
(introduced with version 1.8). In fact, some art works best with flatness
changes, some with splitting of paths. And sometimes you can just remove
unnecessary points in a curve. It's good to know all the techniques and use
the one that's most appropriate.
^Steve^
Steve:
Tried using the split path option in the resolutions box and the file (a
map of the world) was chopped at several wrong places. The entire Suez
Canal was mistakenly filled, as was most of the Gulf of Mexico. I'm going
to play with the flatness tomorrow. How high would you suggest going?
–jon
Jonathan,
What you can get away with in flatness depends a lot on where the object
is. If the path is obscured, you can probably push it up to 10. Otherwise,
you can probably go up to 4 or 6.
^Steve^
Jonathon –
Sounds like you may have to change the Split Path Resolution which was
instituted in Version 1.8.3 for situations such as this. You'll find it in
your Preferences dialog box. See the 1.8 update notes that came with the
update.
-Tom-
Tom:
Update notes? Update notes?
Why would anyone read the documentation that comes with a program <g>?
My problem is with a 24-hour shop, documentation has a horrible habit of
taking long walks, sometimes never to appear again. I'll look for the split
path option in the Preferences menu. Thanks for the suggestion.
–jon
Jonathon –
You have docs available for public consumption? I'd suggest keeping them
under lock and key for situations such as this. Unless you're also a
training center…
🙂
-Tom-