SketchUp 2019 Mac OS Catalina PDF black background

I am currently importing on my MacBook Pro 15" running Catalina but running SketchUp 19.2.221.

But, here’s a new problem… I AirDrop across the office to the iMac, open the file, scale as needed, etc. - and then want to copy into a working model or new file started from my template, and I cannot Copy and Paste in Place. So I make the PDFs a component, save it to the desktop, then Import into the new file or working file.

I’ll be putting a post in the LO forums as well - I cannot copy / paste SKP model views… but right now I cannot get it to consistently repeat… originally I thought it had to do with PDFs, but that appears not to be the case.

No…

We have something new for you to try. Get into the state where you can easily see the issue, preferably with an external monitor connected. Doesn’t matter which screen SketchUp is on. Repeat the test with your MacBook Pro lid closed.

On a related note, we are wondering if everyone who is seeing this is running w/ their laptop lid open?

It’s not just imports that have the problem…

Could you please elaborate? Or are there other other forum threads where you have referenced other issues?

I don’t have a spare screen… happens on the iMac without the lid closed. :wink:

FWIW, I use PDF2CAD once or twice a week. Catalina broke their software too, and they are still trying to release a fix.

We are starting to think this has to do with having the laptop lid open. I see it if my laptop lid is open, even if SU is displaying on the external monitors. And I do NOT see if I am displaying through external monitors w/ my laptop lid closed.

There are several other errors we are regularly experiencing with Layout as well apart from this issue:

And one I haven’t searched for fixes for yet, but since I have an ear, random Poche’s appearing in open unfilled areas while rendering in vector or hybrid, but that disappear in raster.

DM me for files and I’ll send them your way.

What is your work set up environment? Desktop computer? Laptop? Docking Station w/ External monitors? If laptop, do you keep your laptop open when you work?

The anomalies one is a known issue, that Trent was asking for example files in another topic.

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OK, but it happens on my iMac…

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It is in another topic, yes, but it is symptomatic of the same issue, correct?

We really need to get a solution for the black background issue appearing in viewports when PDFs are printed. The issue is isolated to the Mac PDF handling in our office, specifically when a Mac user attempts to print Layout PDFs from their machine.

Even a temporary solution where an online compression site or something can be used to fix whatever is happening… We have started running all of our Layout PDF’s through a compressor to fix the enormous file sizes generated by Layout’s plotter anyway…

Does it go wrong if you close the lid on your iMac?

Just kidding…

The iMac is the same situation as a MacBook Pro with the lid open, in that having the first monitor running may be what introduces the issue.

It would be worth a test running mirrored. I’ll try that.

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Ok, running mirrored fixes things too. Would be interesting to do the PDF exports with the laptop lid closed or when mirrored, see if the artifacts change.

I tested whether color profile would make a difference, it didn’t.

Something else that fixes things is to move the menu bar to the external monitor. Then the import works on both screens even if then are not mirrored.

The thing is, we do all of our drawing and publishing on PCs. The PDFs are uploaded or emailed by various means and then printed from the Mac and that is where the black background appears in our prints.

Another problem occurs when printing certain sheets where the dimension text strings become pixellated and unreadable, even when all viewports are Hybrid and all settings are set to high.

I don’t use a Mac myself but other threads in this forum have referred to possible color profile issues on Mac PDF output, sometimes appearing as “ghosted” images or, as with you, black.

Posting an example PDF might help diagnose the issues.

Anyway to see what is different from SKP 19.2.221 - because that works fine on my Retina MacBook Pro (specs listed several posts above). It seems SKP 19.3.252 and Catalina broke things.

Also, I can’t copy PDFs from one file to another in 19.3.252 and Catalina. I have to create a component and save it, then import it into my current drawing.

I have the exact same problem with any PDF file imported in Sketchup