Some paths not printing

[Mr-914]

When I try to print this artwork, the line indicated doesn't print.  It also disappears if I save as a PDF.  Any clue as to why?

 

[Hangman]

Hi @Mr-914 and welcome to the forums,

Are you able to upload your Affinity file so we can take a look to determine what may be causing the problem?

[Mr-914]

No problem.  Here it is.

Unicorn Invitation_copy.afdesign

[GarryP]

When I exported the document to PDF, using the export settings as they were when I opened the document, I found that there was another curve which wasn’t exported – see attached image. (I didn’t do a comprehensive ‘spot the difference’ so I might have missed something else.)

This might not help with figuring out what the problem is but I thought I’d mention it in case someone could find a connection.

I’ve checked all of the things I can think of off the top of my head – Effects, Blend Options, Rasterisation in export, Include Layers, etc. – but can’t seem to get the curve to export as expected except when I reset the Pressure curve on the line I highlighted, but that doesn’t make a difference for the original problem curve.

[Return]

I also cannot think of anything why it wouldn't export/print.
There's a way to make them export though.
Select all the curves of the unicorn and go to Menu>Layer>Geometry>Merge Curves.

[Hangman]

This happens when the opposing node handle for a node is missing... Holding Cmd (Ctrl) and dragging the existing node handle until the opposing node appears tends to fix the problem...

[Return]

Ah yes, but clicking Alt will convert to sharp node on windows.
If I convert those endnodes to smart and adjust it's curvature it will also export.

[Hangman]

I've edited the post as I should have said Cmd (Ctrl) Drag rather than Alt Drag as that will keep the node as a smart node...

[Return]

For one curve(the nose) this isn't working as there is no handle to select but changing to smart or smooth the handles appear and then it will work.
Alt on a handle does also work on windows but Alt on a node converts to sharp node.

[Dan C]

On 10/8/2023 at 9:29 AM, Hangman said:

This happens when the opposing node handle for a node is missing

As I understand it, an Open Curve will only display 1 node handle for the Start & End node and this is expected behaviour.

If the Start / End node is set to Smooth or Smart, then an opposing node handle will only be shown when moving the visible node handle and will not remain visible once the transform has been completed.

Therefore I don't believe that a node handle is 'missing' in the users file - as there are multiple actions that I have found that will fix the issue with the users curve in the file, that don't involve directly editing the node.

For example, simply using Flip Horizontal on the entire curve object then allows it to export, but using this command twice to return it to it's original position shows the issue return -

 

I haven't seen this occur previously - converting/transforming the end node, editing the node handles or flipping the Curve allows the object to export, but I cannot see a clear cause for this in the file. Therefore I will be logging this with our dev team now, though in the meantime using any of the above options should resolve this for you.

I hope this helps

[Hangman]

Hi @Dan C,

Thanks for the clarification re nodes...

Another oddity is that you can't copy/paste those two lines, they simply don't get copied and when exporting the issue appears to affect all vector-only formats, raster formats are fine...

[Dan C]

No problem at all!

5 minutes ago, Hangman said:

Another oddity is that you can't copy/paste those two lines, they simply don't get copied

Unfortunately I'm not seeing this behaviour here, both on macOS and Windows with 'Copy items as SVG' enabled or disabled - I'm able to Copy, Paste and Duplicate the Curves using the Edit menu options or the relevant keyboard shortcuts. However the copied/duplicated objects are displaying the same issue when exporting to vector formats.

Am I misunderstanding your report, or are you completely unable to duplicate these layers currently?

[Hangman]

I ran a quick test copying the entire graphic to an earlier version of Designer using 'Copy as SVG'. Doing so copies all the 'Texture Line Style' curve layers as curve fill layers. All layers copy apart from the two with issues. When you attempt to copy those two layers individually, no layers are pasted.

Pressure also appears to have an impact... changing the pressure setting for the two lines in question fails the export when using the both default Pressure and Velocity settings but works when using either None or Velocity (Inverse) though I suspect that's just another variation of your tests where Flip Horizontal also works...

[Dan C]

Thanks for confirming - I've updated the development log to include this info

[Hangman]

Thanks @Dan C, it will be very interesting to understand the exact cause of this particular issue once it's been tracked down

[Old Bruce]

I made new lines using the pen tool that were 5 and 4 nodes and all sharp nodes. I just chose the pen tool and clicked 4 or 5 times. Then I selected one of the problem curves and the corresponding new curve and dragged the new curve onto the old curve so the nodes would snap to the old curve. This new curve would show up in the export panel.

[Affinity Info Bot]

The issue "[User File] Curve objects do not export to PDF / print until node has been edited or object Flipped" (REF: AF-640) has been fixed by the developers in internal build "2.3.0.2106".
This fix should soon be available as a customer beta and is planned for inclusion in the next customer release.
Customer beta builds are announced here and you can participate by following these instructions.
If you still experience this problem once you are using that build version (or later) please reply to this thread including @Serif Info Bot to notify us.