Affinity Publisher won't export tagged PDF but DOES export individual tagged pages as PDFs

[Calenmir]

Hello everyone!

I'm a fairly new Windows user of Affinity 2.6.0, and am trying to export a 20-page tagged PDF, including alt text and reading order, for accessibility reasons. I can export untagged PDFs no problem, but when I try to export with the tagged PDF checkbox selected, it does one of three things: 

• Infinitely loads the preview
• Crashes
• Gives an error message after trying to export

Of those, crashes are by far the most common outcome. Also, I don't remember the contents of the error message and am not sure I could replicate it, but it basically just said it couldn't actually export the PDF.

Based on the posts I found from users who encountered similar problems, one thing I did to try to figure out the problem was to export each page of the document. Every single page of the 20-page document successfully exported as a tagged PDF. Yet when I try to export the full thing as a tagged PDF, it crashes.

A few things other things I've tried include deleting a table (still crashed), checking for font issues (font manager isn't detecting problems and all the fonts are installed), and unchecked the setting for hardware acceleration (still crashed).

Note that I created this document from a template created by a collaborator, and it does include master pages with complicated designs (and is set up as spreads, though exporting as pages or spreads both have the same pattern of crashes). Still, I'm not sure why this would cause Affinity to crash when trying to export the whole thing as a tagged PDF, without causing those individual pages to crash. I also do have some illustrations, but again, not sure why those would cause the whole document to crash, but each individual page to be fine.

Thank you for your help and patience, and please let me know what else I should try troubleshooting.

Edit: as soon as I typed this, it occurred to me to try removing all the masters. Still crashes.

Edited March 11 by Calenmir
Updating with additional troubleshooting I tried

[Hangman]

Hi @Calenmir and welcome to the forums,

As you've read in the forums, there have been issues exporting Tagged PDF files, but of the reported bugs, these should all now be fixed in version 2.6.2.

The first thing I would recommend is installing version 2.6.2 and seeing whether your file exports without the error or the crash. If that doesn't resolve the issue, could you save your Publisher file using Save as Package to a new empty folder, zip up the folder contents, and upload the zip file so we can determine what is causing the export issue?

[Calenmir]

Suddenly things are making more sense, as when I use the "check for updates" option it's telling me that 2.6.0 is the more recent version. I will work on figuring out why Publisher doesn't want to update. Thanks for the advice, and I'll report back once I can test out 2.6.2!

[Hangman]

Hi @Calenmir,

Just to mention that the 2.6.2 is currently in Beta, so you'd need to join the Beta Program to download and test your files in the Beta... Note: you can run the Beta alongside the 2.6.0 Retail release version...

[Calenmir]

That explains some things. Thank you, I'll go look into that right now!

[Calenmir]

Ok, some updates.

The good news: I was able to download the beta for 2.6.2! Aside from having to redo some running headers, the document opened up just fine.

The less good news: I have a picture of the error message I mentioned before:

That popped up when it let me try to export, now it's just crashing again. When I went to do the package, it did give me a message about a missing font named "Minion Pro", but that's not a font I actually used in the document, so I'm not sure what's up with that. Regardless, I've attached the package as a ZIP file, and would be immensely grateful for any help.

Oh, one more thing: this package/file is safe for work, but it is a horror product, and the template design involves quite a lot of tentacles. Figured you'd want a heads-up, especially if you have any phobias around those

Edit: following up on the font thing, I've noticed a correlation between list-based paragraph styles in this template and Affinity thinking the font is MinionPro. I'm not sure if that's what's actually causing the issue, but I reached out to the template creators to see whether they did in fact use this font in the template, but neglected to share it with end users.

AffinityHelpPackage.zip

Edited March 12 by Calenmir

[Hangman]

Hi @Calenmir,

Many thanks for the file...

It is quite odd, like you say, individually the pages export without the error or crash but collectively they don't...

The error itself is caused by the text frame on Page 9, though for no obvious reason. In the attached file I've simply replaced the text frame on Page 9 and it seems happy when exported as a Tagged PDF...

Minion Pro Bold is used in the Bolded Character Style. Several other Character Styles are based on Bolded, so if you want to remove it you'd need to see what impact it has on any of the other Character Styles before doing so...

Let us know how you get on with the attached version, (you may need to relink the graphics) and whether it now exports without the error or the crash.

Sweet Dreams v1.afpub

[Calenmir]

It worked! Thank you so much!!!

[Hangman]

That's no problem at all, I'm glad that resolved the issue and many thanks for confirming...

[Calenmir]

I return with terrible news: the crashes have resumed. All I did was a final pass with some light text edits and move one frame in the reading order, but I'm now once again unable to export tagged PDFs. I will try redownloading the version that was working, but this is getting absurdly frustrating.

[Hangman]

Hi @Calenmir,

That is all very strange...

Could you upload a revised .afpackage file where you've made the light text edits, and moved one frame in the reading order, then I'll see if I can figure out what is going on and causing the renewed crashes...

I completely understand your frustration as this clearly shouldn't be happening...

[Calenmir]

Can do! At this point, I did successfully rule out the text edits; I could make those and export a tagged PDF just fine. However, as soon as I move that one text frame to the proper place in the reading order, the crashes resume. I don't know what that means or if there's a workaround, but that's what I've got so far

AffinityForum_ReadingOrderProblems.zip

[Hangman]

Hi @Calenmir,

I'm not entirely sure what's going on but the issue with your updated file appears to be the same text frame as before with the possible addition of the 'Mystery at a Glance' text frame on Page 8...

Let me know whether the attached version now exports without issue? Again, you may need to relink the graphics...

Sweet Dreams v1 point forum revised.afpub

[Calenmir]

OK, seems like this is working, even when I add the master pages back in + rearrange the reading order such that they're in the correct order. one question though: I'm seeing the images have alt text, but they're not showing up in the reading order. Does this mean the exported document won't have alt text? Or will that still be included?

[Hangman]

Selecting the respective layers on the page or in the Layers panel shows the Alt text in the Tags panel so it should be included on export... It isn't shown when selecting the respective object in the Reading Order Panel, which feels like an oversight...

If you exported the file as a Tagged PDF, you can quickly check that the Alt text is being read in a screen reader, e.g., Acrobat Reader or similar...

I did note that the updated file I sent you had lost its Articles in the Reading Order Panel so I've recreated those in the attached version of the file...

Sweet Dreams v1 point forum revised.afpub

[Calenmir]

Okay so this is interesting: the version you uploaded with articles crashes. So does the previous file as soon as I add even a single article to it. I wasn't able to test whether alt text also causes issues, because for some reason it's not letting me add images with alt text as objects to the reading order (on the file before this one). If the alt text is included in the exported PDF I'm fine with not having the articles, but I thought you might want to know given how invested you've gotten in the ongoing saga

Edit: was able to confirm the alt text got imported, but it's possibly also reading the master pages as images lacking alt text. I will try to figure out if I can flag those as decorative
Edit 2: Marked the masters as decorative, they may still be showing up, but at this point I'm not sure I care

Edited March 13 by Calenmir

[Hangman]

Hi @Calenmir,

Many thanks for the update...

I've just removed all the Articles from the updated file I sent you, and lo and behold, it exports. So there is definitely an issue with Articles, which I'll try to get to the bottom of.

In theory, it shouldn't be reading the Master Page images, but if they are still showing up when marked as decorative, that should exclude them from the reading order or again, in theory, you should be able to deselect them in the reading order panel to exclude them...

Leave it with me and I'll do a bit more digging and come back to you once I have some definitive answers... I can understand just how frustrating this is...

Edit
Again, another odd one... The error/crash concerning the Articles is caused by the Keys text frame on Page 15 which links to the text frame on Page 16 but only when it sits inside the Running the Mystery Article...

When either removed from that Article, placed in its own Article, or the two text frames are unlinked, as per the attached v2 Revised file, the file exports without the error or crash...

Let me know if this is the same for you...

Now the mystery is understanding why linking those two text frames causes the error/crash...

Sweet Dreams v2 point forum revised no articles.afpub

[Calenmir]

Update: putting the Doomsday Clock in its own article did avert the crash when exporting all spreads. However, it still crashed when exporting all pages. Leaving it outside articles altogether (which unfortunately also makes the reading order wrong), similarly let me export as spreads but not pages. The good news is that I can work with having a PDF just as spreads as long as it has alt text + the right reading order, which it should now.

In general I don't have as much time to test things today due to deadlines, though I'll circle back when I can. In the meantime, I'd like to throw a hypothesis at you: any linked frame inside an article can cause a crash, but it's most likely to happen when it's either the first or last in an article. This is based on the frame on page 7 malfunctioning until it was unlinked, and also the frame I tested earlier was a completely different frame than the page 7 or Keys one, but IIRC it was also a linked text frame

[Hangman]

Hi @Calenmir,

Thanks for the update, I'm still running various tests with your file trying to figure out the cause of the issue so thanks for the additional info with your hypothesis... Once I can point to something specific and repeatable I'll update the thread...

[Hangman]

Hi @Calenmir,

A quick update...

The file will crash under very specific circumstances, i.e., when a Single Running Header is sandwiched between a Linked Text Frame and a Tagged Image inside an Article and Area is set to All Pages when exporting to a Tagged PDF file... 

The order within the Article in the Reading Order Panel needs to be

• Linked Text Frame
• Running Header
• Tagged Image

This explains why unlinking text frames in earlier tests prevented the export error or crash, and why moving certain objects to their own Article didn't cause the problem...

I've managed to replicate the issue with my own test file to confirm it's not unique to your file... It's important to note that sandwiching two Running Headers between a Linked Text Frame and a Tagged image won't cause the error...

When you look at the Reading Order Panel for your file you'll see only one instance where this pattern occurs, i.e., in the Reading the Mystery Article...

If you move the Running Header that sits directly below the Mother Duckie tagged image, so it appears above it, the file exports as All Pages... Hopefully, that is all that is required.

To further prove the point, with two Running Headers sandwiched between the Running the Mystery Linked Text Frame and the Tagged Image, move the Gummy Bear tagged image in the Threat Playbooks Article so it appears above the second Running Header and you'll see the same error or crash on export.

Let me know whether that resolves the issues for you or if there are still additional problems not covered by this approach?

Someone from the Serif moderation team should pick up this thread and log it as a bug...

[Calenmir]

I was able to replicate what you described: moving the header let me export pages, and moving the Gummy Bear caused a fresh crash. Thank you so much for figuring this out! I hope the mod team is able to fix this bug now that you've honed in on the issue

[Hangman]

5 hours ago, Calenmir said:

I was able to replicate what you described: moving the header let me export pages, and moving the Gummy Bear caused a fresh crash. Thank you so much for figuring this out! I hope the mod team is able to fix this bug now that you've honed in on the issue

That's no problem at all, I'm glad there is at least an easy workaround in this instance, but yes, hopefully the team at Serif will fix this quite quickly as I can see how this could cause issues for long form documents where it may not be possible to change the Reading Order...

[Affinity Info Bot]

The issue "A Running Header Sandwiched Between a Linked Text Frame and a Tagged Image Fails to Export to a Tagged PDF File" (REF: AF-6291) has been fixed by the developers in the latest beta build (2.6.3.3273). The fix 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 @Affinity Info Bot to notify us.