Quark6.0 quits unexpectedly importing PDFs

[BradyLS]

We have a Mac running OS 10.2.6 and QuarkXPress 6.0. Lately, it crashes whenever a PDF file (and any file, not any particular one) is placed into an image window.

I've tried:

1. Importing different PDF files

2. Creating new documents and placing different PDF files

3. Deleting the prefs for Quark 6 in the User > Library > Preferneces > Quark 6 folder

4. Replacing the QuarkPDF.dylib and PDF Filter.xnt with those from a copy of Quark 6 which _will_ import PDFs without crashing

5. Even tried swapping Script folders with those from a copy of Quark 6 which will import PDFs.

Still no luck. Nothing that I've seen at the Quark website addresses this. The closest I've come to it is:

1. Keep Library windows closed (Quark4.1 PDF Import solution to a similar problem)

2. Install the 6.1 upgrade patch to be able to import/export PDFs.

I tried solution 1, but that wasn't really the problem (I have version 6.0 and it's not a problem on the good copies we have. But, what the heck, I tried...)

Tried solution 2, but we already have copies of Quark 6.0 which import PDFs with no problem, even with Font Suitcase X1 running, so upgrading and patching doesn't sound like a proper solution.

I appear to be coming up against the "reinstall wall." But before I do that, is there anything else I might try?

If I have to resinstall, can someone point me to an "Uninstall Quark 6.0" document so that I can do it properly?

Many thanks in advance!

Brady

 

[DenverDan]

Quark has just released a Quark 6 PDF patch Xtension. You can download it from the Quark web site. It's easy to install and comes with a PDF read me file with instructions.

Some corrupted font may cause this problem. And perhaps nested folders with fonts in a Library/Fonts folder may also cause the problems you have experienced.

 

[BradyLS]

Dan!

Thanks for the reply. I should ask, is the patch for 6.0 strictly? Or is it the 6.1 patch? We're not to 6.1 yet. We have 5 working copies of 6.0 and only one computer is experiencing the problem at the moment.

I'd considered a corrupt font issue, but the problem on the afflicted machine exhibits it whether importing different PDFs or creating a new document and inserting new PDFs.

BTW, we installed Font Suitcase X1 within the last week and now everyone has the same configuration for fonts. I would expect the problem to repeat itself on our other, similarly configured machines, but it hasn't (yet?)

Still, I appreciate the response and I'll look into the patch for 6.0 as you suggest.

Brady

 

[jimoblak]

BradyLS said

so upgrading and patching doesn't sound like a proper solution

Are you sniffing toxic printing inks? ...sitting too close to your monitor?

Patches are released to fix bugs. Why in the world would you not want to fix bugs?

- - picklefish - -
Why is everyone in this forum responding to me as picklefish?

 

[BradyLS]

Have you read both of my posts all the way through?

I have 5 copies of Quark 6.0 in my office. Only one copy is unexpectedly quitting when importing PDFs into picture boxes. The patch that DenverDan is suggesting applies to Quark 6.1 to address a Quark 6.1 problem. I'm really not enthused right now about upgrading into a problem to fix it with a patch.

Or can I apply the 6.1 patch to 6.0 on it's own? (I'm doubting that, but I really don't know. What do you think?)

Dan also suggested it may be a problem of embedded font folders in the various Library > Fonts folders. I just reorganized the fonts on my 5 computers to be managed by Font Suitcase X1 within the last week. There are no font folders being managed by the system within any of the Library > Fonts folders. Suitcase manages the rest, which admittedly do have embedded folders, but they are all outside the Library > Fonts folders (but still within the <Harddrive> > Library folder. This is for all 5 computers.)

If it's a corrupt font that is causing the problem, I'll need to ascertain that. But for now, that doesn't appear to be the case, because the application quits no matter what kind of PDF I place into a picture box. And no matter whether it's a picture box in the document I desire to place them in or a brand new one.

Here's another clue: I can imbed the desired PDFs in a fresh file in one copy of Quark 6.0, copy the file to a common folder on the network, download the copied file to the desktop with the problem copy Quark, and have the problem Quark open the file, reestablish links to the desired PDFs, and display and print the PDFs with no problem at all. I can even copy and paste the picture box with the PDF into the document that needed it in the first place. I think this may eliminate the underlying problem being with fonts.

Clearly, something is happening when a PDF (any PDF) is being placed in a picture box. And during that specific operation. Something about the way the application imports PDFs in my problem copy of Quark is not working right. (Whereas it is working right on my 4 other copies.) I'd rather re-install Quark to eliminate that problem if I must to avoid an unnecessary upgrade and a patch-- especially since the upgrade is known to be problematic.

Can anyone else offer anything else to consider or try?

Many thanks again!

Brady

 

[BradyLS]

Update: I re-installed Quark 6.0. It didn't help! I'll look upgrading to 6.1, but...

 

[jimoblak]

Yes, your posts were fully read. Updates are issued to correct erratic behavior. Not all computers may have been affected by the bugs but installing an update is a certain way to prevent those bugs from appearing in the future.

Troubleshooting errors like these is difficult because page layout software relies on so many other files: graphics and fonts. Because of the variety of installed fonts, computer configurations are rarely similar and odd behavior like this can occur. The best way to solve a problem is to address easily known issues. It is a known issue that Quark 6.0 has problems. This is why 6.1 was released.

You might also want to update to the most stable OS 10.2.8

The problem may not turn out to be font related - - but you are not going to get any closer to a solution if you ignore important Quark and OSX updates.

- - picklefish - -
Why is everyone in this forum responding to me as picklefish?

 

[BradyLS]

Maybe the 6.1 upgrade (and patch) will solve an isolated issue. Just checking the waters before I jump in.

Brady

 

[BradyLS]

Update 2:

1. Upgraded to OS 10.2.8.

2. Downloaded the Quark 6.1 upgrade, 6.1 Quark.dylib, and Jaguar Help for Quark.

3. Installed new Quark items. (Hassle free compared to installation and activation.)

4. Problem persists! Quark 6.0 (and now 6.1) quit unexpectedly when I try to import any and all PDFs into any and all documents.

Thanks for the suggestions.

Brady

 

[BradyLS]

Update 3

Did a fresh re-install of Quark and needed help from the company to reactivate the program.

Along with the reactivation, the staff person walked me through a quick series of questions and troubleshooting steps to diagnose and correct the problem in 6.0:

The 'jaws' folder contained a bad cached font. Deleted the bad folder and replaced it with one from a working copy of Quark and now I can place PDFs in image boxes again!

FYI!

Brady

 

[jimoblak]

Thanks for the follow-up. It is definitely a concern that reinstalling Q6 did not refresh the JAWS installation. This is something we can watch for in the future.

- - picklefish - -
Why is everyone in this forum responding to me as picklefish?