Postscript Error Messages
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a PostScript error Applies to : Illustrator InDesign PageMaker Photoshop PostScript printer drivers You can receive a PostScript error when sending a file to a PostScript interpreter (for example, a printer, Acrobat Distiller). A PostScript error occurs error typecheck offending command image when the PostScript interpreter can't read the file's PostScript code. An error can also
Error Undefined Offending Command Stack
occur if the file's PostScript code exceeds one or more of the limits in the PostScript page description language. If your
Error Syntax Error Offending Command Stack
PostScript interpreter appears to process data but then stops, a PostScript error could have occurred.A PostScript error message includes a PostScript error type, which defines the type of error it is. It also includes an offending
Error Syntax Error Offending Command Nostringval
command, which usually indicates the specific part of the PostScript code that the interpreter couldn't read. The offending command usually indicates the command that caused the problem. Some PostScript errors point you right to the cause of the problem, and some get you looking in the right direction.Example of a PostScript error:%%[Error: ; OffendingCommand: ]%%For example, the PostScript error %%[Error: dictfull; OffendingCommand: def ]%% contains the PostScript error type "dictfull" and error unregistered offending command show the offending command "def." The error type indicates that the dictionary contains the maximum number of entries. The offending command is the last command the PostScript interpreter tried to process, "def," which defines a new word in the dictionary. View or print a PostScript error message If you think a PostScript error has occurred, but it doesn't appear onscreen or in your printout, you can sometimes view or print the error message. Do one or more of the following:Use an error handler utility. For example, Adobe PageMaker has the Include PostScript Error Handler option in the Print Options dialog box.In Windows, configure the printer to print the error message:Note: In Windows NT, you cannot configure a printer to print an error message. Choose one of the following: Start > Settings > Printers (Windows 2000)Start > Printers And Faxes (Windows XP)Start > Control Panel > Printers (Windows Vista, Windows 7) Right-click the printer you are using, and then choose Printer Properties. Select the General tab, select Printing Preferences, and then click Advanced. Expand Document Options, and then expand PostScript Options. Set Send PostScript Error Handler to Yes. If you do not see this option, your printer does not have a PostScript Error Handler. Note: If PostScript Options isn't visible, double-click Document OptionsIn Mac O
to solve such an error? Why do PostScript errors even exist? What is a PostScript error? Every PostScript device contains a RIP (or Raster Image Processor). This is a computer that translates the error undefined offending command stack xerox pages you want to print from PostScript into a format that the PostScript error unregistered offending command xshow device understands. If the RIP encounters an error while performing this translation, it returns a PostScript error message to the device error syntaxerror offending command true cvt that send the file. The error can be caused by bugs in the PostScript code itself, data corruption, limitations of the RIP and PostScript device processing the file, incompatibilities between different devices or applications, https://helpx.adobe.com/x-productkb/global/troubleshoot-postscript-errors.html bad karma,… What do PostScript errors look like? A PostScript error has two parts: the error and the offending command. Take a look at a typical PostScript error: %%[Error: limitcheck; Offending command: image ]%% The error tells you exactly what problem the RIP encountered while processing your file. In the example, it is a limitcheck. Thankfully, there are a limited number of errors that can occur on PostScript devices. https://www.prepressure.com/postscript/troubleshooting/basics I think there are about 30 or so but I could be wrong. The offending command signals what specific PostScript command (or operator as they are called) was being processed by the RIP when the error occurred. In some cases, the offending command doesn't really look like a command but it is a series of random characters. This means the RIP has encountered some information in your printfile that it considers to be a PostScript operator but is not. This can happen with corrupted images, bad network connections and so on. Can PostScript errors be solved? Well, this website wouldn't make much sense if that wasn't possible. Of course, it helps if you know the famous Adobe Red Book by heart. But knowledge of the PostScript language is no prerequisite for troubleshooting PostScript errors. In reality, it is often a matter of luck. Errors caused by bugs in applications or drivers are sometimes well documented and easy to resolve. The same is true for errors caused by limitations or bugs in the software of the RIP itself. Errors caused by corrupted data can be tricky to troubleshoot. The same is true for PostScript errors caused by incompatibilities between different applications and RIPs. Why do PostS
the Basics section to determine exactly what PostScript error and offending command you got hit with. Then do one of the following (not necessarily in that order but this https://www.prepressure.com/postscript/troubleshooting/tips seems to be the most logical approach to me): 1. Try printing one more time Take a deep breath, look through the window during a couple of seconds, check all the parameters in the Print windows and print again. Sometimes a simple mistake like setting the orientation wrong causes errors. Have a colleague print the job. He or she may instantly offending command see what you did wrong. Everybody makes a stupid mistake once in a while (I once spent 2 hours troubleshooting a ‘broken' Mac, only to find out the keyboard wasn't plugged in properly). This is definitely the first thing to try if no other documents or applications cause similar problems. 2. Cut the print job into smaller pieces Don't print large jobs offending command stack with many pages or big images in one go. Print a couple of pages at the time or even one single page at the time. This makes it easier for both your computer and the RIP to process the file. Always try this approach if you have an older printer or RIP. 3. Search for solutions for your specific error Look up both the error and offending command in my database of PS errors and offending commands. This may give you a clue as to what to do next. Check out other sites as well by searching the web for pages about the specific PostScript error or offending command. Another alternative is to post your question on the b4print prepress forum. 4. Switch to another computer, app, driver,… Print the job from another computer, from another version or copy of the application used to create the file and try switching drivers. Always print the file to another PostScript device as well. If the same error occurs, you are at least sure the error is somehow related to your document or the w