007.1 Update / 007.2 Update

[Karl DD]

There were a bunch of bugs in 007 that I hope to have dealt with in this minor update.
Before I put it on the main download page can you guys check it out and let me know if it is working better.
WINDOWS: http://al.chemy.org/files/Alchemy-007.1-Debug.zip
MAC: http://al.chemy.org/files/Alchemy-007.1.dmg

BUG FIXES
+ Corrupt PDF files when using the Gradient module fixed
+ Plugin Comparator error handling added to fix errors on launch
+ Mirror Vista UI fixes

The big one is seeing if the PDFs work ok in the software you all use.
I have checked it on Adobe Reader and Adobe Illustrator, and despite Illustrator insisting "An unknown shading type was encountered." everything seems to work as expected. Please keep in mind that this is a PDF approximation of the canvas in Alchemy - it will not be pixel perfect.

This version is also the first to be compiled on 'the beast' that is Windows Vista x86 Ultimate .
So I have checked everything is working on there for me at least - even Pen Pressure!
I could not emulate some of the bugs reported:
talk/topic209.html#p932
bugs/topic222.html
But lets just keep an eye on them...

If all goes well I will post it as the main download.
Let me know!

Karl

[spikelovesmetal]

Afraid it's still not working for me, Karl!
The console only flashed up briefly, then nothing else happened. Although I did manage to get a screenshot of the console this time:

[Karl DD]

Thanks for that.
I haven't seen that error before
Did you make sure to delete Alchemy entirely before unzipping it?
Also what version of Java do you have installed?
Any problems running other Java based apps?

[spikelovesmetal]

I deleted everything, including things in the Recycle Bin. The problem turned out to be a bugged Java download - although it was the latest one, it made my browser crash and wouldn't let me open the Java folder in Control Panel to sort anything out! It works perfectly now, and although I've only been playing with it for ten minutes I can tell it's going to be used for hours

Sorry if I wasted your time trying to get bug fixes and things; I tried the earlier release of 7 but that didn't work either, so I suppose it was a number of things. Thanks a lot anyway!

[VelenoSangue]

Hey Karl,
Just confirming that the PDFs from this update don't get corrupt when using gradients. Loads just fine in acrobat and photoshop.

[kevinwalker]

but veleno what I saw on alchemy and whgat acrobat shows are different on gradient handling.

check this ,

Karl is this problem easy to solve?

[VelenoSangue]

Hm. Still hadn't used the gradient Affect much yet so hadn't noticed that. Just checked and Kevinwalker is right about the difference.

It looks like in Alchemy it blends between FG and BG+Alpha. In illustrator/acrobat it's reading as blending between FG and Alpha with no BG mixed in. However, I notice in alchemy, that when using the gradient Affect it will look like FG to Alpha when I'm drawing a shape, then it turns to FG to BG+Alpha. I'd actually perfer the option of FG to Alpha, FG to BG, and FG to BG+Alpha.

Edit: Just tried loading the PDF back into alchemy -- the gradients turned flat.

Here's what I'm getting:


Thanks so much Karl for all the effort you've put into making Alchemy. We definitely appreciate it.

[Karl DD]

Thanks for the feedback guys.

The Gradient module fades between the Foreground colour with a given transparency from the main transparency slider and the Background colour with zero transparency.
Ignoring the PDF stuff for a second, VelenoSangue are you saying that the colour changes on screen in Alchemy when you lift up the mouse/pen?
If so, what system are you running? I generally use a mac and haven't noticed any colour jumps like that, but it could well be a bug.

The PDF is a different rendering engine to what you see on screen. Well in fact it is more like a description of the drawing which gets interpreted by different software (PDF readers/Photoshop etc...) and rendered according to their code. So things will not be pixel perfect, but at the same time I am sure there is a way to get it better than it currently is! The problem could be the PDF being converted from RGB to CMYK or something like that - I will have to have a look into it.

VelenoSangue, it looks like the PDF reader library we use doesn't even support Gradients

One possible way to avoid this mess would be to have an option to export at higher resolution. This way Alchemy could do the rendering and colours will be safe in the land of bitmap. What do you think?

[kevinwalker]

""are you saying that the colour changes on screen in Alchemy when you lift up the mouse/pen?""

this is exactly what happens to me,

I am running on a windows xp sp3 machine.

a good export will do the trick I think. I want to print my work like 100cm to 70cm in 300 dpi . so a good 300dpi big PNG export will work for me.

[VelenoSangue]

Thanks for the feedback guys.

The Gradient module fades between the Foreground colour with a given transparency from the main transparency slider and the Background colour with zero transparency.

Now that you've said this.. I realized that if I just want it to fade between FG and alpha all I really need to do is colorpick the BG color to match the FG color. Having a bit of fun messing with that now.

Ignoring the PDF stuff for a second, VelenoSangue are you saying that the colour changes on screen in Alchemy when you lift up the mouse/pen?
If so, what system are you running? I generally use a mac and haven't noticed any colour jumps like that, but it could well be a bug.

That's correct. I'm using 64bit Vista Ultimate on both my workstation and my laptop, and get the same issue in both places. Whether it happens after releasing the mouse or after clicking to start the next shape depends on what Create method I'm using. I just checked it with all the Create methods and it happens with every one. If it would be useful, I can record a screen-capture video of what's happening and PM you the link.

The PDF is a different rendering engine to what you see on screen. Well in fact it is more like a description of the drawing which gets interpreted by different software (PDF readers/Photoshop etc...) and rendered according to their code. So things will not be pixel perfect, but at the same time I am sure there is a way to get it better than it currently is! The problem could be the PDF being converted from RGB to CMYK or something like that - I will have to have a look into it.

Okay

VelenoSangue, it looks like the PDF reader library we use doesn't even support Gradients

One possible way to avoid this mess would be to have an option to export at higher resolution. This way Alchemy could do the rendering and colours will be safe in the land of bitmap. What do you think?

That sounds good to me. Controls for that could go in "page setup" maybe, or a button in the export dialogue that brings up more options?