xaralx essential functions fail silently

[Tommy Trussell]

Binary package hint: xaralx

installed XaraLX on a laptop, but basic functionality is not working. To re-create bug:

1) Create new document.
2) Draw a filled circle.
3) Create a new document.
4) Switch back to first document and attempt to select circle.
  Cannot select object, cannot close document, cannot print document ...

HOWEVER...

1) Create new document
2) Draw a filled circle
3) While circle is selected, Edit --> copy
4) Create a second document
5) Edit --> Paste -- it works!
  (However you cannot switch to another document and perform the action again.)

During all of this, the only error messages on the terminal are:

(xaralx:12094): Gdk-CRITICAL **: IA__gdk_window_get_origin: assertion `GDK_IS_WINDOW (window)' failed

(I also saw a WARNING message on the terminal but I haven't been able to immediately re-create it.)

You can open and save XaraLX documents (as long as you don't switch to another XaraLX document), but SVG export is completely useless. It creates a file containing only comments.

1) Open terminal
2) type $ xaralx
   XaraLX opens a new document
3) Draw a filled circle
4) File --> Export... choose SVG
5) Saved SVG file essentially empty except for comments.

When I did this, the resulting SVG file contains lots of comments like this:
<!-- entity tag ="nn" -->
where each nn is a number between zero and 4120.

INTERESTINGLY, if you add a filled RECTANGLE to your drawing of filled circles, the exported SVG file will contain just the rectangle. !!!

I believe Xara LX sometimes behaved differently when it had been launched from a terminal window instead of the normal GNOME menu launch, but I haven't been able to identify the exact differences.

ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 10.10
Package: xaralx 0.7r1785-2ubuntu2
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 2.6.35-24.42-generic 2.6.35.8
Uname: Linux 2.6.35-24-generic i686
Architecture: i386
Date: Mon Jan 10 11:37:43 2011
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 10.10 "Maverick Meerkat" - Release i386 (20101007)
ProcEnviron:
 LANG=en_US.UTF-8
 SHELL=/bin/bash
SourcePackage: xaralx

[Isaac (yourfriendisaac)]

Xaralx also has a problem with the menus not showing up. They worked fine in Ubuntu 10.04 and Kubuntu 10.10 but since upgrading the menus do not work I had this problem with several different systems. This error is easy to recreate.

[Tommy Trussell (tommy-trussell)]

Isaac, your bug sounds like Bug #786439

I suggest you might look for a problem with compiz and/or different desktops -- for example do you get the same symptoms in Ubuntu (unity AND unity-2d), Kubuntu (kde), Lubuntu (lxde) and/or with the desktop effects turned off or on. There are a few apps that don't play well with compiz and you can sometimes work around them. Please add follow-up comments to the other bug, or file a new one if you don't think you are seeing the same one.

[Tommy Trussell (tommy-trussell)]

I just installed XaraLX on an upgraded system running Ubuntu 12.04 Precise, and although it doesn't have exactly the same strangeness, it still behaves strangely. You CAN complete some of the scenarios in my description, but the menus are not functional in DIFFERENT ways. Quite frustrating to try to work with it when the menus don't work.