I am using Inkscape on a different computer from normal, and for some reason the text I write disappears whenever I attempt to use the flow into frame option. I use this technique all the time to make speech bubbles, and for some reason it has suddenly stopped working properly.

There really is no way to determine why it works on one computer and not on another, much less fix the problem. If you have to use this "not your normal" computer for awhile, you might try posting the exact steps you take in making the speech balloons. Maybe there is a slightly different way to do it, that will work on this particular machine?

What version of inkscpae is on the other computer where it doesn't flow to frame? I think something about flow changed between 0.45 and 0.46.

I'm running the copy off a jump drive, latest version.

Resetting the font in the text and font window seems to work at times, and other times it doesn't.

My steps are:

1. Type out the text I wish to have in the bubble.

2. Make a randomly shaped ellipse with the ellipse tool.

3. Select both and use Alt-W to flow text into the frame.

4. Reshape the ellipse to fit the text as I want it.

That's all I do, really.

I'm using a laptop with a very bugged up supersensitive touchpad that goes crazy clicking on things even when you just touch the keys near it. I use a separate mouse on USB but the touchpad still reacts anyway. That might have something to do with it.

Do you have the same problem when you flow the text using the drop down menu to flow it instead of the keyboard short cut?

Yes.

Shutting the program off and then turning it back on doesn't change it. The problem even preserved itself from one computer to another until it randomly fixed itself for awhile and then showed up again.

I almost wonder if it's not some kind of memory problem.

Well if you want to post a file with some disappeared text, might be able to figure it out. Unless it's some problem with the fonts on the second computer.

It might be. I have to use the Text and Font window to set the font in the first place on this computer anyway. And the weird thing is that when the text vanishes, it claims that the "linked flowed text" contains zero characters.

Which is why I think it might just be a memory problem of some sort.

Big time Bump. It is 2016. I am using Inkscape 1.1 version 0.91? on a skylake machine running Windows 10. And I am still having this exact same problem. Its so frustrating to see people online flowing text into the frame like it's nothing. Then I do it and my text just disappears. Um, what do I do? Or, who is going to fix it?

Are you talking about flowed text showing in the Inkscape canvas, or in some kind of viewer, or in a browser?

Flowed text is known not to show up on the internet (in browsers). The reason is because flowed text is not an SVG standard, and the current plans do not include making it a standard. The developers have kept it in Inkscape because it really is so useful. But if the file is destined for the internet, you should either convert back to regular text (Text menu ) or convert to path (Path menu > Object to Path) before uploading.

So the people you see flowing text into a frame on the internet must not be using Inkscape. Unless you're talking about videos? As far as I know, you can see flowed text in a video, because the video creates its own image, in a non-vector format.

There are a few things you can check though. (I've learnd a lot since 2009!).

1 -- Check the font size. If the font you're typing is larger than the text box, nothing will show up in the text box.
2 -- There could be some kind of issue with transparency. Check this tutorial I wrote to help people find all the possible ways where transparency is causing a problem. http://forum.inkscapecommunity.com/inde ... article=18

mcndjxlefnd, what is your workflow? Is it the same as the op, who typed the text first, and then flowed it? Or did you drag out a text box and start typing?

As soon as we have all the necessary facts, I'll search the bug tracker to find out if this has been reported (officially) or if it's been worked on. But first we need to make sure it's not "user error" (as they say )

TLDR: Your text must be smaller than the text box and contain spaces.

When doing "Text" -> "Flow into frame" if the text contains a string of characters unbroken by a space and longer than a horizontal line of the area you are flowing into, that entire character string and all characters after it will be deleted. If this happens to be the first word, it will also prevent you from typing further characters.

This also happens vertically. All text that extends further vertically down than the space you are flowing into will be deleted. If there is not enough vertical space for one line then it will delete all text and prevent you from typing further characters.

On Inkscape 0.92.4, Windows 10 build 17763

OMG we have been trying to figure this out for ten years now and you just showed up with a single post and boom it's solved! To be honest I think people were getting ready to scrap the whole program you may literally have saved Inkscape.