Wrong size and poor results using Export Persona

[RodBar]

Hi. I created manually a huge collection of simulated pixel art. There is a bunch of more than 8 thousand individual pieces that Affinity couldn't manage in one fils, so I have spliced them in files that contains between 400 to less than 600 artboards, each containing one piece.

Despite the files are hardly managed by my old laptop, I tried for first time the persona export because up to date I never had to make so massive amount of files.

So each artboard, a perfect square of 1008 by 1008 pixels containing colored rectangle shapes of 24px side, perfectly aligned by Affinity snap fitting perfectly inside the square as a different image.

I will not upload full size screenshots, but the issue will be clear.

Designer persona shows squares like separated in preview. in outline view they are shown with no space at all between, no matters the magnification. Export directly one by one from designer results in a perfect 1008px square, with no separation between the colored squares, but export persona DOES! it export each artboard in 1009px and with a clear separation of 1 px between squares!!! so is totally unusable to export my more than 8 thousands figures!!!! that is not only frustrating, is very imprecise. Note I "adjusted" one to 1008px to test, but the result is very bad too, so I need your help, pleas as soon as possible.

[Old Bruce]

1 minute ago, RodBar said:

So each artboard, a perfect square of 1008 by 1008 pixels containing colored rectangle shapes of 24px side, perfectly aligned by Affinity snap fitting perfectly inside the square as a different image.

I think the problem may be that the Snap settings could be poorly chosen. When working with Pixels make the snap settings so the Force Pixel Alignment is on and the Move by Whole Pixels is off. Only use Snap to Grid and set up a Pixel Grid, in your case set up a 24 pixel grid.

Make sure to use Pixels as the Unit of Measurement. Make sure your Artboards are aligned to whole Pixels. Do not rely on the transform panel to show whether or not the pixels are in fact integers. If you have 1008.00006 for an x or y location the Transform panel will show this as 1008 without the decimal fraction. While everyone will agree that the Artboard location shouldn't matter (I think that it really shouldn't matter), it does matter.

[RodBar]

Thanks for your answers Bofg and Old Bruce, I really appreciate that.

But I think the artboard can't be the issue, because I reviewed with the strongest magnification possible and the outline shows total coincidence between the 24by24px fake vector pixels done with rectangular squares shapes... at the same time, considering I already did the more than 8 thousands totally different pixel arts (8448 indeed)... is virtually impossible to start from scratch again. 

The second factor I consider to discard errors in drawings for themselves is I already have sacrificed myself exporting "some" individually from designer persona (288 to be precise, but is frustrating and painful) and all of them look perfect, with no separation or lines between pixels at all.

[Pšenda]

1 hour ago, Old Bruce said:

Make sure your Artboards are aligned to whole Pixels. Do not rely on the transform panel to show whether or not the pixels are in fact integers. If you have 1008.00006 for an x or y location the Transform panel will show this as 1008 without the decimal fraction

... therefore, it is a good idea to set the maximum number of decimal places in Preferences.

 

1 hour ago, Old Bruce said:

While everyone will agree that the Artboard location shouldn't matter (I think that it really shouldn't matter), it does matter.

I may be the only one with the application designers, but I disagree. The current behavior of the application allows the user to choose exactly what he needs. If need pixel perfect output, it sets the position (and of course the size) of objects and artboards for the whole pixel. If he needs something else, the application does not limit him in any way by aligning the position of artboards. It would be as "smart" as if the size of the artboards were always cropped to whole pixels, because "no one will ever" need it.

 

 

1 hour ago, RodBar said:

because I reviewed with the strongest magnification possible

"Review" will not help - you need to verify the position in the Transform panel (of course with the appropriate display accuracy settings in Preferences).

 

1 hour ago, RodBar said:

is virtually impossible to start from scratch again. 

There is no need to "start" from the beginning, just set the position of individual artboards using the Transform panel to whole pixels.

[RodBar]

Hi Pšenda, thank you for your attention.

Well, I did the experiment, applied in one artboard what OldBruce recommended. Note all "vector pixels" were created from the beginning writing 24 by side in the transform tool. I did the grid, I carefully replace each pixel inside the grid, and did a exportation test. No changes, the Export persona added "gaps" between the pixels, meanwhile the individual export from Designer Persona creates the PNG perfectly as expected. A side by side sample 😩

 

[RodBar]

Just in case, artboard and pixel values (from the beginning, that never changed)

[Pšenda]

Although this has already been mentioned in all previous posts, for sure still a picture.

[RodBar]

AMAZING! first perfect result from Export persona!

I'll have to fix 8447 artboard position only, but will be lot less effort than redraw. THANKS A LOT TO ALL BofG, Pšenda, Old Bruce. I'll drink a Pisco Sour in your honor this evening 😃🥂. Cheers!!!

[Pšenda]

20 hours ago, RodBar said:

I'll have to fix 8447 artboard position only, but will be lot less effort than redraw.

Repairing/inspecting so many artboards positions may not be easy. Therefore, I would try export to SVG/EPS, and the correction in a text editor. It could end up being easier and faster.