I have a poster design, 36.25" high x 24.25" wide. Has some layers, text, paths, tiled clones.

I try to save to .ps (so I can run Adobe Distiller on it to get something that works at a print shop), but
the save fails after using a ton of memory (500+ M). The error pop up has no useful information.

A simpler design (a few rectangles and some text) works.

Anyone else had this problem before?

More info. I took out all filtered objects and all text. I also manually flattened everything to one layer, and unlinked all clones. Also tried unchecking the "rasterize filter" option. No help.

As background, since direct PDF output is broken (multiple printers cannot print Inkscape PDF files), PS to Distiller is the next best option. Now this is not working.

Can you make the two SVG versions available? With so few information it is difficult to "guess" (I can't recall a related bug report about PS export).

• Does the same file export to PDF (or - do you have any gradients with reflect or repeat mode in the SVG file)?
• Can you test with Inkscape 0.48.1 (has a newer cairo version, which does the PDF/EPS/PS export)?
  

Not sure what you mean by "two SVG versions".

The file exports directly to PDF *but* I have had repeated problems sending such files to printers, so try to avoid it. I had no option this time, but have yet to hear if printing was successful. Needless to say, I don't want to eat the cost of an errant print.

I do have a reflected gradient in the SVG. Looks fine (on my PC) in PDF export.

I use WinXP - is 0.48.1 available for that? Is it reasonably stable?

Thanks!

Kjohrf wrote:Not sure what you mean by "two SVG versions".

These two:

Kjohrf wrote:I have a poster design, 36.25" high x 24.25" wide. Has some layers, text, paths, tiled clones.

or its flattened version

Kjohrf wrote:I took out all filtered objects and all text. I also manually flattened everything to one layer, and unlinked all clones. Also tried unchecking the "rasterize filter" option. No help.

and

Kjohrf wrote:A simpler design (a few rectangles and some text) works.

Kjohrf wrote:I do have a reflected gradient in the SVG. Looks fine (on my PC) in PDF export.

Odd - do you remember this report/comment of yours (read the follow-up comments by Adrian Johnson (Cairo-developer) and me (bug #168610 comment #61 and below), and also “PDF export fails with reflected gradients”).
[Edit] **Note: that's just a guess - without having seen the file (SVG source) to be exported to PS and possibly testing the export on a different platform[/Edit]

Kjohrf wrote:I use WinXP - is 0.48.1 available for that? Is it reasonably stable?

It's not officially announced yet (probably later today or tomorrow - we are waiting for all packagers to finish and upload to sf.net). It's a bug-fix release without any new features and should be at least as stable as 0.48.0 with several crashing bugs fixed (I don't use Windows, so I can't confirm your question about stability on XP myself - but the available package works on XP (and Vista and Windows 7), yes).

Other thoughts:

Kjohrf wrote:(…) but the save fails after using a ton of memory (500+ M).

Could it be that Inkscape (in the cairo-based export routines) still tries to rasterize the content?

• Don't use any reduced opacity or fill/stroke/gradient stop transparencies (those are always rasterized because PostScript doesn't support transparency).
  
• If you have opaque gradients (no reduced alpha value on any stop), use 'PostScript Level 2' on export to PS in 0.48.0 (bug #491590, fixed in 0.48.1)
  
• Verify that none of the layers has reduced opacity (not even hidden ones), or uses a blending mode other than 'Normal'.

If it's not about unexpectedly rasterizing the content (and running out of memory in doing so), does the file that fails to export to PS use any objects with pattern fills?

OK... Made a little progress. The layer opacity was 100%, but there were individual objects that were less than 100%. There was also a couple filtered objects. I "fixed" those things, and then I can generate a PS (not EPS) file and it goes very quickly. Of course it is not the content I want - just to help narrow down the issue (and I did search in Launchpad before bring this all up). There is also a linked PNG image that does have transparent areas, and somes clipped group of objects.

If I change one object to 80% opacity, it fails again. This is with the Rasterize option unchecked.

Now based on your comments, I tried level 2 instead of level 3, with Rasterize checked. Fail.

Running a whole bunch more tests and it is clear that the singular problem is the object that is 80% opaque. The PNG and the filters will work OK.

Now just to check I'll go back to the non-flattened SVG. I change everything to 100% opaque in the name of science... Trying to save as PS Level 3. Hmm. Fail. Remove gradients. Fail. Uncheck Rasterize. Last roll of the dice: get rid of the clipped groups. Success! Back to the original SVG - just remove the clipping and make everything 100% opaque... PS Level 3 with Rasterize checked... The tension mounts... (This takes a quite a few minutes when it fails.) Fail. I think this means there are quite a number of things you can do to cause a file in the PS output.

Kjohrf wrote:If I change one object to 80% opacity, it fails again. This is with the Rasterize option unchecked.

Any reduced opacity or transparency (alpha) value is always rasterized on export to a PostScript-based format - the 'Rasterize' export option only applies to objects with SVG filter effects (including blurs). This also explains:

Kjohrf wrote:Running a whole bunch more tests and it is clear that the singular problem is the object that is 80% opaque. The PNG and the filters will work OK.

Inkscape (nor the Cairo library AFAIU) does have the ability to really flatten a file for PostScript export (convert all transparent/not opaque objects to opaque colors and split (divide) objects where shapes overlap, to get separate regions which can be filled with the different shades due to overlapping transparencies).

~suv wrote:

Kjohrf wrote:If I change one object to 80% opacity, it fails again. This is with the Rasterize option unchecked.

Any reduced opacity or transparency (alpha) value is always rasterized on export to a PostScript-based format - the 'Rasterize' export option only applies to objects with SVG filter effects (including blurs).

Thanks for the clarification.

Anyway, will try 0.48.1 when it comes out offiically, but unfortunately, as much as I appreciate all the wonderful work on Inkscape, and the help from you, I sadly need to move on.

FYI, Still had the same problem after installing 0.48.1.