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Scribus => Installation and Setup => MacOS => Topic started by: JohnJR on January 16, 2019, 10:07:52 PM

Title: Signal 11 crashes and now Scribus has gone haywire
Post by: JohnJR on January 16, 2019, 10:07:52 PM
Hi Folks,

I had completed a document using Scribus 1.5.2 using OS X 10.11.6 on my iMac and exported it fine to a printer via pdf/1a.  Recently I wished to make some font changes.  They gave me fits, however I got the text font changed by highlighting text frame-by-text frame and saved the document.  Somewhere at the end of the process before exporting again I experienced two "Signal 11" crashes and noted after this Scribus was behaving erratically but I didn't see anything to react to.  I hadn't actually closed the document but removed it to the Dock and hadn't shut down my computer for the day, but left it on sleep mode.

The next day I reactivated the document (and Scribus 1.5.2) from the Dock and found I had both justification chaos throughout the whole document and sporadic text font reversals back to the old font here and there with no discernible order. A new issue arose; text frames would not select or  be selected only after varying numbers of clicks on them, also the text cursor would appear in them with no selection of that frame, active or not.  Also a single text frame had de-linked itself from its neighbors and remained so, orphaned.  In this un-linked text frame, what I recall is an "overflow box" (a small square with an "x" through it) appeared in the lower left hand corner.  What I take as the overflow text for this frame was added to the text frame preceding it.  I reset the justification to the intended ones, text frame-by-text frame, saved the corrected document, and removed it from the Dock, but again I didn't close it or Scribus.

Opened it again and the same justification and font chaos had returned but in radically different configurations.  I corrected the same issues again text frame-by-text frame and saved the document changes.

I decided that I might correct this or stop it by closing the saved document entirely, quit Scribus, and all other open apps, and shut down (powered down) my computer and started it again from from the power button.  I opened Scribus and opened the saved document--a new set of justification chaoses to be corrected frame-by frame.

Having reached this point after all these justification iterations I decided I would not risk it again and with the correctly formatted document live on my screen I went directly to export it to pdf/1a.  I opened the pdf and the formatting had held, but I caught that the page numbering had went into random chaos in the pdf.

The pagination displayed four characteristics: no page number shown, a line symbol where the number should have been, a partial page number that made no sense, or a complete page number that was on the wrong page.  Only two pages out of forty retained the correct page number.

I deleted the pdf and returned to the Scribus document; the page numbers displayed correctly there (and had been correct in any earlier pdf/1a sent to publishers) so I repeated the export to pdf/1a for a second time. The same pagination chaos reigned in the second pdf, so I deleted it.

I decided to go back into the Document Setup>Sections and just re-affirm the page rules originally assigned and tried a third pdf/1a export, no difference, deleted it.

I decided to try returning to Sections, deleting the original settings and re-entering them.  Sections changed the assigned pages for the pagination to different "To and From" assigned page values and as soon as I completed them re-assigning them to different page values, received error messages inserting page values outside the scope and of the document (nope).  When I returned to the document, the page boxes were not populated with any numbers, the original (correct) numbers had disappeared, the page boxes are blank with the "overflow square x boxes" referred to above added.  These x boxes, and the frames they are in, are immutable to any attempt to select them for any other action, such as re-linking.  Recall to text frame selection issues above.

This is where the blown up document sits.  I tried running the Malware app. and it comes up clean.  For hardware, I ran my EtreCheck app. and it shows no hardware or OS issues, but I have a late 2009 iMac.  The last entry in EtreCheck is however:  Diagnostics Information 2019-01-14 16:15:35 Scribus 2.app Hang [Open].  Clicking on the [Open] revealed a lengthly list of computerese I wouldn't remotely know how to touch.  I will try to attach a screen shot of a small section to give you context, hopefully see below. 

I thought I should investigate just un-installing Scribus 1.5.2 and then installing a new download.  However I could not find any Scribus 1.5.2 and so I have not done either of these two procedures.

I do not mind sending my .sla file of the document if that would help, nor do I mind sending the "Hang computerese" if that would help.  However I remember the attachment feature is finicky and probably not accept attachments of those sizes, please advise.

Thanks and sorry for the long post,

John

[attachment deleted by admin]
Title: Re: Signal 11 crashes and now Scribus has gone haywire
Post by: utnik on January 17, 2019, 12:46:32 AM
hi john

if you put your .sla file (including the used fonts) on a file hosting page and send me a download link, i'll take a look at it.
a new installation of the same scribus version doesn't usually help much. if something went wrong with scribus, you could close the application and remove 'user/your user name/library/preferences/scribus' and let scribus build new preference files.

utnik
Title: Re: Signal 11 crashes and now Scribus has gone haywire
Post by: JohnJR on January 23, 2019, 11:30:53 PM
Hi Utnik,

Thanks and sorry for the delay in responding.  Yes, I will do what you are suggesting and send you the .sla file.  I can tell you that as I recall, I didn't set up the header frames correctly, where the number frames are located, and you had barked at me about it then.  I can't remember the issue.  I can tell you things went swimmingly with the first publication in both print and pub/mobi.  The pdf/1a only scrambled the page numbers (and the indentions) after I converted the body text frames only from Times New Roman to Garamond.

Thanks, I'll send you the file once I come up for air,

John
Title: Re: Signal 11 crashes and now Scribus has gone haywire
Post by: JohnJR on February 01, 2019, 08:41:33 PM
Hi Utnik,

I think I have my .sla file uploaded to one of these "file hosting services", as far as I can tell.  The service I chose is one called Dropbox, which seems to be pretty universal, and I've uploaded it to Dropbox.com.

How to furnish you with the file is not clear to me.

First of all with Scribus.  I think there is a way to email you directly with a link to the file in Dropbox since I have my own sign-in registration, however I can't find it and Mr. and Mrs. Google were no help.  Please advise.

Second of all with Dropbox.com.  It gave me a message that, ".sla files can't be previewed", and a long list of "supported file types", of which .sla wasn't one of them.  Perhaps this is old hat to you and you have methods around this, or perhaps Dropbox is just not appropriate for this and I should choose another service.  Please advise.

Novice using OS X 10.11.6.

Thanks,

John
Title: Re: Signal 11 crashes and now Scribus has gone haywire
Post by: utnik on February 02, 2019, 12:00:47 AM
hi john

dropbox is ok. the missing preview doesn't matter.
when you're logged into your account, you can generate a download link for any file in your dropbox. in german it's called 'freigeben' – in english it could be something like 'release'.

utnik
Title: Re: Signal 11 crashes and now Scribus has gone haywire
Post by: JohnJR on February 07, 2019, 08:40:23 PM
Hi Utnik,

I think I have everything done in Dropbox.com and it even shows me a link.  But now how do I email you the link?  I have looked into "My Messages" and "Members", also I have searched the forum and can find no way to do this.  What do I do?

Thanks,

John
Title: Re: Signal 11 crashes and now Scribus has gone haywire
Post by: utnik on February 08, 2019, 02:44:32 AM
hi john

just click my name on top of the avatar and you should see the clickable text 'send pm'.

utnik