Can't use subtraction tool on one object... really weird

[Dave Morris]

I've created an object by using text, then converting to paths. In all respects, it behaves like a normal object, post conversion: I can use the node tool to manipulate it, etc. I'm trying to, in effect, punch a hole in that object, and for whatever reason, it can't be done. When I attempt to do this, the path for the "hole" appears, but it is the same color as the rest of the object. Oddly, if I position the same path off to the side of the object, so that there is an opening in the side of the lower object, it will cut it out. But it will not cut it out if the upper object does not overlap with the edge of the lower object. In the same file, I can successfully punch holes in objects all day... as long as long as they are not this particular object. I'm dumbfounded. Very frustrating: hours spent on something that should be quite simple. I just don't understand what I'm doing wrong.

[Alfred]

Welcome to the Serif Affinity Forums, Dave.

The ‘hole’ being the same colour as the surrounding object suggests that either the fill mode is incorrect or you need to reverse the direction of one of the curves.

[iconoclast]

Can't reproduce that. Possibly a screenshot could help us.

[Dave Morris]

If fill mode is incorrect, why would it work for all other objects?

[Old Bruce]

14 minutes ago, Dave Morris said:

If fill mode is incorrect, why would it work for all other objects?

The fill mode (whether Alternate or Winding)  gives an unwanted result in some cases.

[Dave Morris]

So would this explain why it works at the edge and not the center? The fill mode being incorrect. Also, I didn’t change any full mode and other objects work fine. Also, how do I correct the fill mode?

[lepr]

3 hours ago, Dave Morris said:

So would this explain why it works at the edge and not the center? The fill mode being incorrect. Also, I didn’t change any full mode and other objects work fine. Also, how do I correct the fill mode?

Fill mode affects the rendering of the fill of an object.

https://affinity.help/designer/English.lproj/index.html?page=pages/CurvesShapes/fillMode.html?title=Fill modes

http://docs.go-mono.com/index.aspx?link=T%3ASystem.Drawing.Drawing2D.FillMode

When text is converted to curves, the fill mode of the resulting objects is Winding. (That possibly could be changed in future versions of Affinity apps.)

Affinity applies the fill mode of the lowest operand of a Boolean operation to the result of the operation.

Fill mode can be changed with the commands in Layer > Fill Mode.

 

 

[iconoclast]

Could this problem have to do with scaling Artistic Text by dragging with the mouse? As far as I remember, this causes problems in some cases and is already reported as a bug. But I can't remember details at the moment. So I'm not really sure.

[Dave Morris]

On 5/6/2021 at 9:02 PM, anon2 said:

Fill mode affects the rendering of the fill of an object.

https://affinity.help/designer/English.lproj/index.html?page=pages/CurvesShapes/fillMode.html?title=Fill modes

http://docs.go-mono.com/index.aspx?link=T%3ASystem.Drawing.Drawing2D.FillMode

When text is converted to curves, the fill mode of the resulting objects is Winding. (That possibly could be changed in future versions of Affinity apps.)

Affinity applies the fill mode of the lowest operand of a Boolean operation to the result of the operation.

Fill mode can be changed with the commands in Layer > Fill Mode.

 

 

Yup. This did the trick. The original culprit object had been converted from text, which is why it was different from any other objects, and the issue was specific to it. Apparently the "fill mode" (something I'd not messed with at all prior to this - and about which I had no clue) for this object was "winding." Changed it to Alternate; fixed it right up. Thank you Anon2. Well-done.