FAQs for MultiAd Creator 7
FAQs for MultiAd Creator 2
FAQs for MultiAd Creator 4

FAQs for MultiAd Creator 7

Mac/Windows:
Where do I find new or changed keyboard commands?

The Changed Keyboard Commands & Modifiers PDF file can be found in the Creator 6.0 New Features Documentation downloads on the Creator 6.0.2 program CD. Here you will find a thorough list of common keyboard commands from Creator2 and their equivalent key combinations in Creator 6.0 Mac and Windows. Note that a few keyboard commands have been changed to conform to a cross-platform environment.

Mac/Windows: Why don't I see all of the Color Libraries in the New Color or Edit Color dialog? If I Check Spelling, why does it result in a Missing Dictionaries dialog?

If either of the above are a problem, the MultiAd Creator Add-Ons folder ("Add-Ons") is empty or incomplete. At start-up, an empty Add-Ons folder is created if it does not reside in the same folder as the Creator 6.0 application. Mac users: Do a search for empty Add-Ons folders and delete them. Reinstall your Add-Ons folder from the installer into the same folder as the Creator 6.0 application. Windows users: It is possible that the preferences stored in the Registry are being redirected to an empty Add-Ons folder, even though a complete one exists in the Creator folder. Do a search for empty Add-Ons folders and delete them. If you have a complete Add-Ons folder, then next time you launch Creator 6.0, point it to the correct location. Otherwise uninstall the Creator 6.0 application and reload with the MultiAd Creator Setup.exe installer application.

Mac/Windows:
What is the Creator Migration Tool?

Creator Migration Tool is a drag-and-drop utility that runs on the Macintosh and converts document files from Multi-Ad Creator 3.6 - 4.0.5 to files that are readable by the Windows version of MultiAd Creator 6.0 and later. Creator 3.6 - 4.0.5 CIF files open directly into Creator 6 Windows version.

Mac/Windows:
Why can't I run Creator 6.0 on older operating systems?

Here are details separated for Mac and Windows:

Mac:
OS 9 introduced a new Font Manager API (application programming interface). This is a set of toolbox routines that allow an application to get a list of the fonts that are currently active, and the data and information about those fonts. This represents a complete departure from how these tasks were handled in earlier versions of the system. Mac OS 9 also supports the old method, which was based on the Resource Manager and which assumed all active fonts were made available to all applications as open resource files. Mac OS X only supports the new method of dealing with fonts. The technique of dealing with shared open resource files is essentially impossible to implement in a protected memory operating system. Since we see the future of this program on the Mac OS X platform, we implemented code using the new Font Manager exclusively.

Font handling is a very complicated area of the program, with features like activation on the fly, missing font handling, and enclosing fonts in EPS and PDF output. Supporting the old font management methods would have greatly complicated those tasks. The new Font Manager APIs are far superior to the old ones.

In order for Creator 6.0 to be able to run on both Mac OS 9 and Mac OS X, it has to be based on Carbon. Initial versions of Carbon supported Mac OS versions back to 8.1, but those initial versions did not have adequate printing support for a high-end publishing application. The earliest version of CarbonLib that was suitable for our purposes was 1.2, which required Mac OS 8.6 or later. All the additional effort to support the old font management methods would only have enabled us to push our earliest supported system back by one version.

Windows:
The minimum supported systems for Creator 6.0 on the Windows platform are Windows 98, Millennium Edition and 2000. Specifically, Windows 95 and NT are NOT supported.

The reasons behind this are both pragmatic and technical: Windows 95 and NT are many years old now, and both have had newer versions for two years or more. Limiting the number of supported platforms helps us keep the testing period for the program to a reasonable duration.

Technically, neither of these operating systems supports the ICM color management system, which is required for modern Pantone support. In addition, we build on several system components that, while built in to modern systems, are optional or entirely missing components of Windows 95 and NT.

You may be able to get Creator 6.0 to run acceptably in these operating systems. At a minimum, you'll need to have installed Internet Explorer 4 or better. This will, as a side effect, install a number of system DLL's that Creator 6.0 requires. You will also need to avoid the Pantone color pickers, because they will fail in the absence of ICM color management. There may be other difficulties, especially in Windows NT. Please note that even if you can get this to run, Multi-Ad Services will not be supporting Windows 95 or NT.

Please be aware that Windows 98 and Millennium Edition are significant advances over Windows 95 in terms of stability, device support, and support for publishing-class applications.

On most systems, Windows 2000 will offer greater stability and a better user experience than Windows NT. For almost all Windows users, Windows 2000 will offer the best Creator 6.0 experience.

In any case, upgrading to an appropriate Windows operating system will provide benefits beyond just Creator 6.0 compatibility.

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FAQs for MultiAd Creator 2

Fonts & Font Applications

What font utility applications will work with Creator2?

Creator2 ignores utilities that attempt to modify the font menu. Creator2 will also disable the ability to modify the font menu in order to display fonts in their actual typefaces (WYSIWYG) or organize them according to family. This allows font utility applicationsÑsuch as Adobe Type Reunion, ATM Deluxe, Suitcase and Font ReserveÑto run alongside Creator2.

Do I need to enable my fonts for Creator2 to work correctly?

In Creator2 v.1.1 or later, you do not need to enable Type 1 fonts. Type 1 fonts will not appear in the font menu unless both screen fonts and their associated printer files are available.

How can I improve my font performance?

Creator2's performance on handling normal Type 1 fonts can be improved if you avoid putting multiple font families into a single suitcase file. These fonts need to have both their screen fonts and their associated printer files available for them to appear in Creator2's font menu. Creator2 filters fonts before displaying them in the font menu. For this reason, corrupt fonts may not appear in the menu.

Another area that can have a major effect on font performance is the size of the disk cache in the Memory Control Panel. A cache setting that is about 5 to 8 percent of the amount of installed RAM results in significant improvements.

Why does it take so long to change fonts?

Creator2 requires that each font have an 'sfnt' resource to use it. Type 1 fonts don't normally have this, and so it's built before it is used. Sometimes building this resource takes a couple seconds, especially if there are many fonts in the family. You will notice that the second time a particular font is used, it is quicker...even if it is in a new document. Each time the application is Quit, this information is thrown out, and you start again.

Also, there are ways to organize your fonts that will make it easier for Creator2 to build this resource. The best is to not have all your screen fonts in one suitcase. We have also noticed that the presence of some font management utilities makes this longer as well, even if these utilities are not in use. We are looking into these and will make any optimizations we can.

Changing the Memory Allocation to Creator2

Should I increase the allocation to Creator2 to improve its ability to open large files?

Creator2 uses memory that isn't assigned to any other application. Increasing the memory assigned to Creator2 might actually result in less memory available for documents to open. It is just as important to Creator2 that there is adequate free memory in the system.

Creator2 has two low memory warnings. One mentions that you are running dangerously low on System Memory and suggests that you shut down other applications that are running. Do not increase allocation for this warning, shut down all applications that are not necessary at the moment.

The other warning mentions that you are dangerously low on memory and suggests that you close other windows. If after closing other windows you continue to receive this message, you may want to try increasing Creator2's memory. This is the only case where Creator2's memory needs to be increased. Increase the allocation only about 500k at a time.

GX Questions

What does the GXGraphics Extension do?

The GXGraphics Extension provides advanced graphic and typographical capabilities for use in programs like Creator2. The GX Graphics extension, provided with Apple's OS 8 software, in based on Quickdraw GX. However, the GX Graphics extension only contains the components of QuickDraw GX used for on-screen presentation. The GX Graphics extension does not replace the traditional Macintosh printing architecture, nor does it replace the traditional Macintosh graphics engine - QuickDraw. This ensures compatibility with existing programs.

After restarting your machine with the GX Graphics extension loaded, you may see an error message on startup if you have Adobe Acrobat installed: "The installed substitution fonts are designed for use with Standard QuickDraw. Please remove them and install the QuickDraw GX versions."

This error message, which is generated by ATM, is misleading. The cause of the problem is an incompatibility between Adobe Acrobat 3.0 or earlier and the GX Graphics extension. You need to have the enabled forms of Adobe Sans and Adobe Serif, which are Adobe's substitution fonts. The solution is to reinstall Acrobat or upgrade to Acrobat 3.01, which resolves the problem.

Printing Problems

My Apple Desktop Printing is disabled and has a big X through it. The error message that I get reads: ÒQuickDraw GX will not be active because its printing system is not installed."

This happens with version 1.0.3 of Desktop Printing, which is not compatible with the GXGraphics Extension. To resolve the problem, either restart without the Desktop Printing extension or upgrade to Apple Desktop Printing 2.0.1, which resolves the conflict, or a later version.

Converting From Creator to Creator2

I can't open my Creator 4 files in Creator2. What's wrong?

Ads created in older versions of Creator (before Creator2) need to be exported as CIF files, and then opened through Creator2. When you open and then save the ad in Creator2, it immediately becomes a Creator2 document and cannot be opened in an old Creator again. There are scripts in Creator2's script folder that will convert the old Creator ad for you. We also included a script that will convert an entire folder of Creator files. This script is titled "Creator Batch Conversion," and it is located on your installation CD in the folder, Creator to C2 conversion.

When we convert ads from Multi-Ad 4.0.1 to Creator2, we are getting a baseline shift.

When the CIF file is loaded, its auto leading setting is read in and correctly applied to all of the auto leaded text in the document. However, the converted document's default auto leading setting is always set to 120 percent. Remember, this only affects text flows created after this point, not existing ones.

Actually, it is a baseline shift if you're using auto leading percentage other than 120 percent. You see, because Creator had a global setting for auto leading, that setting was used to determine the location of the baseline of the first line of text in each text block. Because Creator2 didn't have that setting, it had to calculate the baseline of the first line of text in the block in a different way. Using the default leading setting would not have been appropriate because changing that was not supposed to ever change existing text. Creator2 replaced that variable with a hard coded 120 percent to make that calculation.

I don't understand the changes in leading from old Creator to Creator2.

In old Creator, there was only one auto leading setting, and it was global to the document. So if you set that to 100 percent, any place you used auto leading, the leading was 100 percent of the point size. If you wanted 120 percent of the point size in a particular text flow, you had to calculate the fixed leading value yourself.

In Creator2, you can specify leading at the local level, anyplace, as a percentage of the point size. Alternately, you can use a fixed value. Just set the percentage field to 0 percent and apply a fixed value to the points field. In fact, you can put values in both fields to get a leading of "100% of the point size plus 4 points" for example.

In Creator2 document settings, there is a default value for auto leading. This does not do the same thing as the auto leading setting in Creator. In Creator, the auto leading setting was a global definition of what "auto" meant in the document; changing it would change all the auto leaded text in the document. In Creator2, the default value for auto leading only determines what the leading setting will start out at when you create a new text flow. Changing it doesn't change any existing text.

The reason for this design change was to give users the ease of automatic leading, coupled with the flexibility of having looser leading in some places and tighter leading in others.

Pantone Profiler

I cannot access the Pantone Profile control panel. Every time I try I get a low memory warning message.

Go into the Pantone folder in the System folder's Preference file and throw out the Pantone POCE Prefs. This will allow you access to the Pantone Profile
control panel.

PageMaker Problem

I cannot use PageMaker since I installed Creator2. When I try to print from PageMaker, I get an error message stating "PageMaker does not support and is not compatible with the version of QuickDraw GX installed on this computer. Remove QuickDraw GX and restore Type 1 fonts to ensure proper printing with PageMaker."

This dialog box allows you to "Print anyway" or "cancel." In our tests, continuing to print was not a problem, unless the document contained a JPEG or PICT file. In these cases, the JPEG or PICT files may not print. If you disable the GXGraphics Extension using the Extensions Manager control panel, the dialog no longer displays.

Speed Issues

I am having problems with Creator2 and screen scrolling on complex ads. Is there anything I can do to speed up this performance?

Check to see whether your palettes overlap your document window. If they do, this can slow down scrolling. This is why the program defaults to a configuration with no palettes overlapping the document window. Also, hiding rulers while you don't need them significantly speeds up scrolling.

Creator2 and Mac OS 8.5

I just installed OS 8.5 and now Creator2 won't work. What's wrong?

You need version 1.1.2 (or later) of Creator2 to be compatible with OS 8.5. This is a free download from our Web site.

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FAQs for MultiAd Creator 4.0

I have just installed OS 8.5 and now I am having trouble with Creator.

Be sure that you are using version 4.0.3 of Creator to be fully compatible with this operating system. This version is a free download. Just click on the "Creator Downloads" button at the bottom of this page to get this update.

Since installing OS 8.5, by Creator v 4.0.3 is giving me strange kerning in some fonts.

This is a reported problem with this operating system. In our testing, we find that this problem is isolated to 6 fonts; Helvetica, Times, Palatino, Courier, Tekton and Symbol and only if you apply the condensed style from the styles palette. We recommend that you use kerning instead of the condensed style and you should not see the problem.

I just got a brand new printer and it won't work from Creator.

Creator requires a post script printer. You can check with your printer manufacturer to see if a postscript RIP is available for your printer, or there are software applications available that may work for you.

My Xante Accelerwriter 3g is printing my images in reverse. What's wrong?

Xante reports to us that the ppd for this printer is level 3 postscript. The gamma should be set at 6 and the negative print should = true.

I just purchased Creator2. How can I get Creator2 to see my old Creator files?

Export your classic Creator files as a CIF. Open Creator2, go to the file menu, select "Open" and find this CIF. Open it and save. The file is now a Creator2 document. There is a script in Creator2 named "Convert Creator Ad" that will automate this process. There is also a folder on the Creator2 installation CD named "Batch Conversion." This contains several scripts and a Read Me that will do the job automatically.

Is Creator Year 2000 Compatible?

Any of our software which stores a date places it in one of the MacOS formats. Thus, our software has no special concerns over the year 2000 problem.

I am getting an error message that tells me that I don't have a hyphenation file or dictionary.

Be sure that the application itself is in the main Creator folder. The main Creator folder should also contain a Creator Add Ons folder. This is the folder where your hyphenation and dictionaries are located.

I tried to download the Creator 4.0.3 patch from your website and I am getting a registration error.

If you have a site license, the patch on our website will not work correctly for you. Please contact our office at (309) 690-5300 for further assistance and we will send you this patch.

When I try to launch Creator, I am getting an error message that tells me that I am already registered on the network although I know that I am not.

The most common reason for this problem is if you have force quit the application and you are trying to log back on. You may not have given Creator enough time to log itself off the network. You also may have ignored the message telling you that your mac was shut down improperly. Go back and shut down, pause a few seconds and then restart. This will give the application the time it needs to log off the network and you should not get this error message.

What are the minimum requirements for running Creator?

Creator requires a Macintosh computer with a 68020 processor or better, at least 4 MB of available memory and an operating system 7 or better. It also requires a post script printer for output.

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