Expand Stroke on Affinity Designer 2.5 macOS

[alfanzed]

I am using Affinity Designer 2.5 on a Mac Mini M1 running Sonoma 14.5

expanding strokes sometimes it will deform the object, especially on rounded strokes

>>1.00<<

expand.afdesign

Edited May 29, 2024 by alfanzed
change video attachment format to mp4, added .afdesign file to attachment

[Judyb]

I'm having the same issue, it also happens with the contour tool. 

[MEB]

Hi @alfanzed, @Judyb,
Welcome to Affinity Forums
When reporting issues with expanded curves please add the file with the problematic object so we can analyse and check it against app fixes. These are sometimes very specific issues difficult to reproduce with another object re-created from scratch.
Thanks.

[alfanzed]

40 minutes ago, MEB said:

Hi @alfanzed, @Judyb,
Welcome to Affinity Forums
When reporting issues with expanded curves please add the file with the problematic object so we analyse and check it against app fixes. These are sometimes very specific issues difficult to reproduce with another object re-created from scratch.
Thanks.

just edited the thread and added the .afdesign file

thanks

[Ldina]

@alfanzed I downloaded your afdesign file and it behaves the same way on my Mac. I think at least part of the issue is the fact that you have very small strokes that you are expanding (in absolute pixel terms). When the stroke is expanded, the nodes snap to a whole pixel location on the pixel grid. With a very small scale stoke, this results in nodes being moved to the closest available pixel location, so you get that jagged appearance. If after the stroke is expanded, you disable "Force Pixel Alignment" in the toolbar, you can move the node and handles as desired to resmooth the curve. If Force Pixel Alignment is left on, your nodes are automatically snapped to a grid. I tried turning Force Pixel Alignment OFF before expanding, but the algorithm seems to turn this on by default, so the result was the same. You CAN reposition nodes and handles after expanding with Force Pixel Alignment turned off, but that's not an ideal solution. 

I took your original unexpanded stroke and scaled it up MUCH larger. When expanding it, the expanded stroke looks good and smooth because those nodes have many more pixel locations to choose from when they are created as 'nodes" on the curve. So, less distortion. That's what leads me to believe the distortion is due to the low resolution and size of the stroke. 

Perhaps the developers can look at allowing the user to turn off Force Pixel Alignment when expanding. However, this could potentially lead to misaligned pixels and perhaps other issues. I'll leave that to others and the developers to consider.

[Judyb]

I’ve been using the iPad version since the day it was released, before we had the contour tool we had to use the expand stoke feature, in my case it’s a very important tool for my business (I design stickers) as it’s how I create accurate cut lines. I was able to make 5mm scripts with 0.7mm smooth clean cut lines (created with the expand stroke feature before the contour tool was available) , I don’t believe size it’s the issue. It used to take only a couple of seconds to create a clean smooth line, now adjusting every node to have a feature we had before can easily take 5-10 minutes depending on how intricate the design is, which is not ideal in my case. 
After the 2.5 update there are a lot of nodes on curves deforming them, it’s happening in both iPad and macOS versions.  
In my case that I use this feature to make cut lines, the cutting blade will stop on every node and turn, go to the next node and do the same, with all those extra nodes the stickers are all deformed. 

[Dazmondo77]

Wow that's really bad - I learned my lesson around five years ago with updating as soon as an update is available, luckily 2.4.0 works as normal - may have to try the 2.5.2 beta to see if this has improved?

[tudor]

A possibly related bug: in the attached file, expanding the stroke of the curve shown below makes it disappear (I'm on macOS Sonoma 14.5).

expand stroke.afdesign

[alfanzed]

8 hours ago, Ldina said:

@alfanzed I downloaded your afdesign file and it behaves the same way on my Mac. I think at least part of the issue is the fact that you have very small strokes that you are expanding (in absolute pixel terms). When the stroke is expanded, the nodes snap to a whole pixel location on the pixel grid. With a very small scale stoke, this results in nodes being moved to the closest available pixel location, so you get that jagged appearance. If after the stroke is expanded, you disable "Force Pixel Alignment" in the toolbar, you can move the node and handles as desired to resmooth the curve. If Force Pixel Alignment is left on, your nodes are automatically snapped to a grid. I tried turning Force Pixel Alignment OFF before expanding, but the algorithm seems to turn this on by default, so the result was the same. You CAN reposition nodes and handles after expanding with Force Pixel Alignment turned off, but that's not an ideal solution. 

I took your original unexpanded stroke and scaled it up MUCH larger. When expanding it, the expanded stroke looks good and smooth because those nodes have many more pixel locations to choose from when they are created as 'nodes" on the curve. So, less distortion. That's what leads me to believe the distortion is due to the low resolution and size of the stroke. 

Perhaps the developers can look at allowing the user to turn off Force Pixel Alignment when expanding. However, this could potentially lead to misaligned pixels and perhaps other issues. I'll leave that to others and the developers to consider.

unfortunately, I have to stick with this small stroke. I make 32px icons LoL.

But everything is great in 2.4.2 btw

6 hours ago, Judyb said:

yep so do I, on my mac I can just reinstall the 2.4.2 and run great

how to roll back the iPad version btw?

5 hours ago, Dazmondo77 said:

Wow that's really bad - I learned my lesson around five years ago with updating as soon as an update is available, luckily 2.4.0 works as normal - may have to try the 2.5.2 beta to see if this has improved?

yep, just roll back to 2.4.2 on my Mac. the problem is how to rollback the iPad version LoL

1 hour ago, tudor said:

A possibly related bug: in the attached file, expanding the stroke of the curve shown below makes it disappear (I'm on macOS Sonoma 14.5).

expand stroke.afdesign 11.03 kB · 2 downloads

that's weird,

when I tried to resize the stroke with the width tool, I could expand the stroke

[Judyb]

@alfanzed I’m not sure if we can remove app updates on the iPad. If you figure it out please let me know. 

[walt.farrell]

10 hours ago, Judyb said:

@alfanzed I’m not sure if we can remove app updates on the iPad. If you figure it out please let me know. 

No, you cannot revert to an earlier release on the iPad.

By the way, if you want to "tag" someone so they are notified you've mentioned them, you need to:

• type an @ sign
• start typing their name, then choose the right one from the dropdown list.
• then you'll get something like this: @Judyb 
• at that point, depending on the notification options they've chosen, they will be notified you mentioned them.

[MEB]

Hi @Judyb
Thank you for your feedback. Much appreciated.
I'm really sorry this update has broken your workflow/daily work. I suggest you to to revert to the previous version 2.4 (which you can download from here) to continue your work - at least on macOS- until we have this fixed (if you haven't done it yet).

Could you please share the exact file(s) you have shown above so that we can add it to our log/report for checking and testing against the new code fixes? The files before expanding that is, as well as the one created with the contour Tool where the curve paths were segmented/straightened.
I've prepared a Dropbox upload link for you to send it directly/privately to us. All files will be deleted after they have been checked/tested.

Thank you very much and apologies for the inconvenience all these issues are causing you.

@tudor
Thanks for the file. It will be added to a report dealing with a similar issue (disappearing objects after expanding)

[Dazmondo77]

I've not found anything regarding this getting fixed in 2.5.2 does anyone know anything?  

[seanray]

It is sad that i have to revert to 2.4.2 version because of this bug. 

[Judyb]

@MEB 

I am frustrated that it has been almost two months since the update that caused the app to lose important features, and the issue still hasn't been resolved. The app is now useless for sticker designers, and I have to resort to using a different app to achieve a clean offset. Even with the expand stroke feature, the new curve is not as clean and smooth as it used to be. I am concerned about the reliability of Affinity for small businesses if features stop working after every update. Please prioritize fixing the issues caused by the last update before working on new ones. Can we please get an update on the progress of fixing these problems?

[wwrye888]

What's taking so long for a fix for this? Never had this issue expanding stroke on basic paths before and expand stroke being accurate is an extremely important feature.

I'm on 2.5.5 and expanding stroke is broken due to the super jagged expanded version

I've attached a pic showing the difference between the non expanded and expanded stroke paths, the green layer behind is not expanded yet and should be the path the expand stroke version should expand to, but its super jagged and not even made with smooth node types 

[Judyb]

@MEB

It’s been six months since the 2.5 update was released, and it broke the Contour Tool and Extend Stroke feature, six months. How much longer will it take to fix this? These aren’t new features, they worked perfectly before the update. Yet here we are, with a new version full of additional features, while this critical issue remains unresolved.

Why hasn’t this been a priority? I’ve seen countless complaints about the same problem. Can we at least get an update on when this will be addressed? It’s frustrating to see new features being prioritized over fixing something that was already functional.

I’m still using the app, but I’ve had to rely on other apps just for the offset feature, which is crucial for creating cut lines for my sticker business. Please prioritize this issue. 

[Judyb]

To make matters worse, I took a look at the 2.6 beta version, and this issue still hasn’t been resolved. This is incredibly disappointing, it feels like these essential tools are being ignored despite the amount of feedback you’ve received. 

[loukash]

14 hours ago, Judyb said:

this issue still hasn’t been resolved. This is incredibly disappointing

Agreed.
As it stands, in spite of all the goodies in v2.6 beta, I'll stick with v2.4.2. 

[norbinw]

But you will get split sheets in Publisher in 2.6 😇 That's what they are pushing hard.

You can even create a basic rectangle shape, then play a bit with the contour tool, use force open option, and randomly when baking appearance, nodes appear. I've posted a video on a thread a while ago, good to know the problem only got worse.

Edit: 1 year and a few months already! Serif you never disappoint to disappoint

[loukash]

2 hours ago, norbinw said:

But you will get split sheets in Publisher in 2.6 😇 That's what they are pushing hard.

And I will get all the 2.6 goodies, should I need them because the last beta is usually identical to the final release.
I just won't update the regular release until this disaster is fixed.

[Judyb]

5 hours ago, norbinw said:

But you will get split sheets in Publisher in 2.6 😇 That's what they are pushing hard.

You can even create a basic rectangle shape, then play a bit with the contour tool, use force open option, and randomly when baking appearance, nodes appear. I've posted a video on a thread a while ago, good to know the problem only got worse.

Edit: 1 year and a few months already! Serif you never disappoint to disappoint

I have an existential crisis every time that I need to make those cut lines. I even thought about leaving the whole Affinity suite, but let’s be real the Designer iPad app is way too good (Adobe could never). That contour tool, though? It’s seriously testing my patience. 

[norbinw]

It's GOOD! It is! Too bad the support is abysmal p**p!!! I've never said it's a bad app, only that management is cr@p AF (communication to forum mods, to coders, software decisions)! These extra nodes are already almost 1 and a half year old, not fixed. The thumbnails bug is half a year old already and going strong. If only they would release small patches to fix bugs, instead of one yearly fix.

[alfanzed]

@MEB 

It's been 6 months since this thread was posted btw

[crucco]

... 8 months now. Affinity team, please fix asap!