Validate SVG?

[GreenerPrinter]

I edited an svg file and closed and saved it. When I tried reopening, "This SVG is Invalid. Validate it before opening" displayed. How do I validate it?

[Monika Gause]

Use the W3C validator.

SVG is not suitable as a work file format in Illustrator

SVG is not suitable for roundtripping in Illustrator.

You have just experienced the reason why.

[GreenerPrinter]

Monika,

Where and what is the W3C validator?

What is roundtripping?

And why does Adobe provide the ability to save a file as an SVG from Illustrator, open an SVG file in Illustrator, and then save it without providing the ability to edit it later on?

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Anyway, I prefer to edit this file without having to go back to the customer. Will W3C allow me to do that?

Thanks,

David

[Monika Gause · Accepted solution]

When dealing with SVGs you should know about the validator: https://validator.w3.org/

Roundtripping: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Round-trip_format_conversion

SVG is not a native file format, but still you can export it as you can with several other non-native file formats. Same goes for importing.

Reading and writing SVG in Illustrator has several known issues.

The W3C validator will notify you of the issues with the file.

Maybe Inkscape can open it. But maybe you have to get back to the customer. Don't you have a backup of what the customer sent you?

[JonathanArias]

I did not know abotu the validator, thank you Monica. hope you are doing well.

jonathan

[PaisleyClass]

I have tried this. But there is no direction on how to use W3C validator. I go through the steps, but then it gives me the coding to the file. What the heck am I supposed to do with that? All of a sudden every file I have ever created on Illustrator says this error message. This is so frusterating. 

[Monika Gause]

When you validate it, it will give you a notification such as this one:

[schroef]

Funny it says svg version 2 is not valid?!?!

[Monika Gause]

SVG version 2 is still a recommendation.

[schroef]

To what?

I wonder how they even are created, because adobe suit can't do it. Hardly any thing online can seem to even read them

[Monika Gause]

A recommendation to the standard: https://www.w3.org/TR/SVG2/

So SVG is still not standardized and as siuch it is not valid.

[schroef]

Kinda weird that version 2 is recommended while not many apps seem to be able to deal with them

[Monika Gause]

Kinda weird that version 2 is recommended while not many apps seem to be able to deal with them

By @schroef

What's called a "reccomendation" is a candidate for standardization. Next step is: the ommittee members discuss the recommendation and then whenever they are ready, do or don't make it the standard. And then the next step is that this new standard is built into all concerned applications.

So the recommendation is not what you think it is.

[Q0093C-PC]

The quickest work around this is to open the SVG in Corel Draw if you have it.
When open in corel draw, just copy the svg and paste it into illustrator.

I had the same issue and this was the quickest way to resolve it.

[c.hango]

It also works to open the SVG in PowerPoint, then copy/paste it in Illustrator!  This is the easiest solution I've found.

[JKou]

The Corel Draw option worked fine ! Thanks a lot, you're a life savier

[Murque]

Simple solution that worked for me:

Open the .svg file in DreamWeaver and change ‘https’ to ‘http’:

xmlns="https://www.w3.org/2000/svg"

xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"

‘http://www.w3.org/2000/svg’ is a namespace and not used to open the link, so no problem to delete the ‘s’

[christinet96142216 · Accepted solution]

Convert file to PDF and/or back into SVG.

https://cloudconvert.com/

[Brian2442762899az]

Yeah this worked. But did noit need to convert to PDF, just converted my Illustrator SVG to SVG. Thanks!

[jasonr4804701]

Huge thanks, this was the only method and the quickest one to work for me