Illustrator area type randomly breaking

[llewellyn09]

I have random instances of area type within a same .ai document breaking words to characters in the time between a close/save and the next reopening of the document.

Same font and size in area text box X will reopen correctly, while text box Y will retain the box, but with words broken to individual characters or pairs. See screenshot attached.

No consistency for this problem as to display size or text, font or color.

I've had this issue throughout Illustrator versions, currently using 2020 on a Mac Pro.

[Anubhav Majumder]

Hello @llewellyn09,

Sorry to hear about this experience. I would request you to share a few more details like:

• Exact version of the OS and Illustrator
• Is it acting this way with some specific files? If yes, kindly share the download link to the file here or via DM.

Also, kindly try updating Illustrator to the latest version (26.2.1) and running Illustrator under the root user account and share your observations with us.

Looking forward to your response.

Thanks,

Anubhav

[llewellyn09]

I'm using an older OS and the latest Illustrator version possible thereon:

Mac OS High Sierra 10.13.6

Illustrator 24.3

Single font is an otf format

Apart from the left column, all the type is broken to character sets or individual letters.

And apart from the upper left text box, even the boxes are disassociated from the contained type, in one case even disappeared (at the bottom left). Thanks in advance for any insights.

I was just alerted that this page's upload function accepts neither zip, ai nor otf files.

I've emailed you with those attachments.

[Anubhav Majumder]

Thanks for reaching out. I have not received any email as of now. Kindly upload the file to a Cloud Service of your choice such as Google Drive / Creative Cloud and share a download link here or via DM so we can check it on our end.

Looking forward to your response.

Regards!

[llewellyn09]

https://we.tl/t-7yybGgB4cu 

[Brad @ Roaring Mouse]

The second screen shot is what happens when you open a PDF with no Illustrator Edit Capabilities included; you are not opening an Illustrator file and hence lose all structure and proper editing ability.

A PDF only contains the instructions to create the text in print or on a screen, and particularly with text with kerning applied, it is technically necessary to break words into individual chunks to accurately position items.

[llewellyn09]

This was saved and reopened as an Illustrator 2020 .ai file.

Now I HAVE been in the habit of saving standalone Illustrator files without the "Create PDF compatible file" option chosen (many client-supplied docs with placed high resolution images got me to that habit).

Might that option being unchecked on save have something to do with loss of full editability?

[llewellyn09]

I just did a "Save As" on this file, choosing the Illustrator 2020 format, with the "Create PDF compatible file" option chosen. I got the alert "This file was modified outside Illustrator. Are you sure you want to save it?" So I believe my not choosing that option with my initial save may have defined the file as less than fully Illustrator-native, and lost some re-editing functionality as a result. Just a therory.

[Monika Gause]

Where do you save your files?

Sounds like you are saving to a network or synchronized folder.

Saving to a server has corrupted files for several people already. Same goes for synchronized folders. iCloud is also infamous.

[llewellyn09]

No, this was/is saved to my local drive, not backed up yet, and its folder not synced by any workflow actions. I usually save locally / copy to server manually.

Just curiosity at this point. I don't use Illustrator for copy-intensive tasks - this is a one-off project.

Thank you for your help!