InDesign CS5 Crashes with Warning Dialog Box

[arminvit]

Hello,

Facts:

InDesign CS5, v7.0.4

OS X 10.7.4

No third-party font-management application running.

Macbook Pro (June, 2012)

InDesign crashes in these two instances:

1. Trying to delete a page that has content. Right as the warning box comes up, it shows up without content (just the "Warning" title) and crashes.

2. When packaging a file, as it's about to warn you about the perils of archiving fonts it does the same thing as above, and crashes.

Tried the alt-opt-cmd-shift trick to reboot preferences and nothing.

Tried deleting the two preference files directly so that they would rebuild and nothing.

Interestingly, I have another computer running OS 10.7.3 (as opposed to 10.7.4 on the crashy one) and the same InDesign CS5 7.0.4 and that one works perfectly.

Ideas? Leads?

Thanks

Armin

[bswets]

This was the GM which we received as part of the developer program. We've confirmed that it's the same build as the release today. I can't CONFIRM that the problem I experienced was due to the warning dialog problem, but I tried exporting the same ID CS6 file to IDML twice, and it crashed both times. I then hacked up the AppleScript, applied it to CS5 and CS6, and tried exporing from CS6 again. This time it worked.

Unfortunately I don't have any extra machines to confirm my finding with right now. It may have been a fluke. I'm hoping someone else can confirm.

[Scott Worthington]

bswets, thank you for letting us know, we had thought 10.8 included a fix at this point. If that is not the case, it seems there is more to be done. Is anyone else seeing the same thing with a GM or Release copy?

[wonderings1111]

I will most likely be installing 10.8 in the next day or 2 on my RMBP and will be able to tell you then. It did run fine in ML under parrallels, but I suspect that whatever is causing it in the new MBP's is not there in the virtual machine.

[jaketcbm]

Same issue here. New MacBook Air 13", a few weeks old with 10.7.4. Crashing immediately whenever I export to PDF. Very upsetting!

[Todd H&M]

FYI - I have an outstanding case with Adobe regarding InDesign crashing anytime a warning message is presented by the application. I've had it happen numerous way (PDF export, Packing, Page Deletion). In all cases a blank warning message pops up very briefly and then the application crashes. The solution I've found is to find a work around in each instance that would not trigger the warning message. If I can avoid the warning messages I've had no crashes.

My case has been elevated to the 2nd level of engineers and I spoke to one directly about this. They acknolwedge and know about the issue and say that they believe it is specifically realted to OS 10.7.4 and it only occurs when it's being run on new hardware that was recently released (I'm a new 2012 MacBook Air).

[margvt]

Happening to me,too, trying to boot Indesign (CS5.5) for very first time on brand new retina pro. Can't get it to open or run it at all. Not good at all. What now, Adobe?????????????????????????? Should I return the retina MBP and just gp back to the unibody, where at least i was able to do some work??!

[Scott Worthington]

This behavior caused by the update is being investigated by our engineers.

At this time it appears the update is removing an API we use to control our use of system icons. At present the solution appears to be to rollback the update for the software to continue to function as expected.

Other solutions are being explored to see if we can find a simpler answer.

[kevino2]

Thank you for your response. Since my MacBook Air is less than a week old, I was unable to roll back the update, and that doesn't appear to be an available option for me. If you have ANY other suggestions about what i can try, i welcome them.

[emalakoff]

I cant rollback as well. It causes a lot of other problems, and because of this bug in the first place I am supremely behind at work. Having to work on this machine and then drag and drop to PDF on the old.

Adobe and Apple really must get this resolved and soon.

[margvt]

My MBP Retina is also only a week old and I have absolutely ZERO functionality. InDesign 5.5 crashes on start up each and every time and I am losing valuable work time every day. Scott,I appreciate your response (any response shows us that someone is listening, working on it), but like kevino2, I can't rollback the update. I am also a bit nonplussed that I stood in the Apple store and chatted with the business rep about buying the retina for my design business and NO ONE mentioned this issue!

Please keep the midnight oil buring on this, Scott.

[muthafusco]

Will this be a problem once Mountain Lion is released?  Or will there be more issues?

[Scott Worthington]

At this time I cannot tell if it will persist in Mountain Lion. The APIs apparent removal really impacts the behavior in this situation.

We're taking this issue very seriously, I wish we had more to share at this time but I'll be sure to share what comes down the line from the engineers relating to solutions or any workarounds they can find.

[InteractionDesign]

Do you ever test your apps against new OS updates? How can it have such an impact without being noticed?

TBH: I first thought that somethings wrong with my new machine, just to discover that it's a bug in your software. That's really annoying…
Keep the midnight oil burning!

[Peter Spier]

I think the last tow posts are rather misinformed and quite unfair. I'd guess you've never been involved in programming or software development. API stands for Application Programming Interface (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Application_programming_interface) and in this case the code is apparently provided by Apple -- they do that so developers can write software that will tun on their operating system -- and was removed by them without providing an alternative or a warning. It's not at all unreasonable for Adobe, or anyone else writing software to run on OS X to rely on Apple's published specifications at the time development is undertaken. If you want to be angry with someone pont your thoughts toward the gods in Cuptertino.

To imply that Adobe doesn't care is ludicrous. Waht do you think is prompting Scott to post here? A bug fix is not an instant process. First the problem needs to be reliably reproduced and the true cause(s) identified. That can take days or weeks, or may never happen. You're fortunate the cause seems to be known now, which says to me somebody has been working VERY HARD to identify it so fast. Once that casue is known, strategies for solving the problem must be formulated and TESTED before being released in an update. Would you be happy if this crash were fixed and something else got broken by the fix? I doubt it.

[emalakoff]

Peter,

You make a point and maybe it is not fair to point fingers, but I am a design professional not a developer. I dont want to know what API stands for. I pay $700 for the software so I dont have to. I am thrilled to see your comment because finally after 66 comments I see a sense of concern by Adobe. We are all concerned because this probelm is costing us all a ton of time and money.

All I know is that these two companies have a long history of not getting along or communicating. Both would not be where they are today if it were not for the creative community using and influencing others to use their products and hardware. Both companies have plenty of money and resources to fix this problem. For a software package that cost over $700 and a laptop that cost more than $1500 this should not even have happened in the first place. What happens is the creative community who has stood by both companies (for two decades in my instance) do not deserve to have their business suffer due to lack of communication and testing before releasing. I really dont care who is to blame. It is ridiculous that it happened. This is not some small app in the App Store. It is a very expensive piece of software used around the world, and the world is not fair. Your name is on the product, so fix it.

[Peter Spier]

You have to remember that each version of ID takes AT LEAST a year to develop and tesr before it sees public release (and that testing can only occur on systems that are actually in existence at that time) . It certainly looks to me, from what has been posted here, as if the problems did not appear until quite recently. I'm not sure what version of ID you have, but the thread started with a reference to CS5, which was released over two years ago. CS6 was released in May. How reasonable, whether you want to understand the underlying technical issues or not, is it to expect old software to run on a newly altered OS that was released  after? That's like saying your gasoline powered automobile should run on solar power, and that the manufacturer should have had the foresight to have a conversion kit ready to give you, for free, the day the oil companies closed all the filling stations without warning.

[emalakoff]

I can not even address you analogy as it is absurd.

[margvt]

And, I might add, it is not the way to win friends and influence people, Peter.

We are frustrated, we are making clients who pay us unhappy, and we have absolutely no recourse. None. And beyond that, we just look and sound dumb when we have to tell clients it's a computer or software issue. that is very 1995. Adobe is making us look bad, feel stupid, and lose money. They should be falling all over themselves with apologies to this important, core customer group (as well as fixing the issue).

[Max_Zografos]

I have to agree with the concerns above. Adobe needs to escalate this internally at the highest level.

I'm surprised this hasn't showed up in wider forums yet. Imagine this on Techcrunch: "Adobe suite crashes on latest Apple gear"

Adobe (and Apple) please do something.

[Peter Spier]

I would agree with you 100% if it were Adobe's fault here, but it isn't. And I don't know waht you consider faling all over oneself, but Adobe seems to be doing everything they can to find a fix as fast as they can.

And I don't work for Adobe, I'm an independent designer with clients, just like the rest of you, so I have no stake in defending anyone. I know you are all frustrated, but it's the poeple at Apple who deserve your wrath.

If CS4 and earliier work, it would indicate to me that some new feature added in CS5 calls the API that was removed, and that particular piece of code was not used in the earlier versions. That does not make it a bug or design error.

@ izmalakof, I suppose you're right about the analogy. It would be closer to owning a car that runs on diesel, only to have the supply of deisel fuel pulled from the market.

[emalakoff]

Your assumption that I blame Apple less is wrong. I blame them just as much. A community we are hostage to both companies.

[Peter Spier]

Perhaps this is a better analogy for designers to describe what's happened:

Your client asks you to design a full page ad for a large magazine, so you go the magazine website and download the specifications. You make the ad to those specs, and the client approves it. So far no problems, right.

The magzine, in an effort to cut costs, decided to change page size. Unfortunately, they neglected to put that information on the website or update the specs for the current issue, and because you are not a mind reader you continued to rely onthe published specification. Your ad turns out to be useless, your client blames you for not knowing. Is that fair? Now put Apple in the place of the Magazine, Adobe as the designer, and you as the client, and you'll understand where the anger should really be directed.

Would this happen with a real magazine? Probably not, but then real magazines depend on keeping their advertisers happy. Apple, on the other hand, is much more interested in selling iPads, phones, and apps than they are in the graphics market, and they have a reputation for pulling this kind of thing.

I know none of what I'm saying is likely to change anyone's mind, but I think you should try seeing the situation for what it really is.

[MargaretAMartin]

Peter, do you have more information that what Adobe has shared? If not, perhaps you shouldn't be insulting us repeatedly (assuming we cannot "see the situation for what it really is").

Because the only thing I've seen from Adobe is the earlier statement:

"At this time it appears the update is removing an API we use to control our use of system icons."

That's not definitive. It could be something else, something entirely Adobe's fault. Or, it could be that Apple did announce removal of the API, but Adobe's programmers failed to appreciate the damage that would do.

rMacBook Pros just got into people's hands in the last week or so; this is an emerging situation. It seems to me that it's far too early to blame (or defend) Adobe or Apple. But the point remains, it is Adobe's software that is crippled, and it is up to Adobe to fix it. End of story.

I find it amusing (but sad) that the only "rollback" that will fix this problem for me is to go back to the CS4 version. (Will it be able to read CS5 files? Heck, will it even install?)

[margvt]

As I recall, no, CS4 will not be able to read CS5 unless they were saved as exchange files, and it will never be able to read CS 5.5 files. So, not much of a work-around.

[sakuranohime03]

I would not like to get involved with all the arguing.. but just as an FYI

to anyone thinking that CS4 might work...

Unfortunately for me... CS4 doesn't work with the new MacBook Pro 13" with

10.7.4.

I am able to export PDFs "most" of the time, but I cannot change print/page

settings... making it impossible for me to do any print jobs at home (using

InDesign).

Hopeful that Adobe can fix it soon .