We have a customer who owns an Arizona with PosterShop Pro software. He has to print a long job (1.20m x 24m). The source file is an EPS format of 171Kb. The final (processed at 309 dpi, FRDP diffusion pattern)file is about 950 mb. When we sends the job to print, the program generates an error: An error ocurred while trying to seek the tile. Not found", and aborts the job. The strange thing is this job doesn't have tiles, it is processed already and he has sent two jons like this before.

Any ideas why the program doesn't print this job (could not find the "tile")?

-- Anonymous, December 28, 1999

Answers

The dimensions that you have given (1.2m x 24m = 47.24 in x 944.88 in) calculates to an uncompressed output size of 3,196,426,833 bytes of data. This can be calculated as follows: (width in inches x 309 dpi x height in inches x 309 dpi x 6 colors) / 8 bits per byte. The compressed output may have been 950 mb, but internal seek positioning must be done on uncompressed data. PosterShop Volume files use signed 32 bit pointers and file structure and therefore is limited to a 2 gigabyte file size. Since the 950 mb fit within this 2 gigabyte limit, your customer did not receive a processing error. But, when it came time to print, the uncompressed calculation for seeking into the file exceeded 2 gigabytes, and that is why they received the error. For your information, even though the job was not tiled, PosterShop regards every output section of a job as a tile. Your customer had a one tile job. In order to stay within the 2 gigabyte limitation, your customer must limit their output size to less than the following size: (2,147,483,648 / 3,196,426,833 = 0.671838825) x 24 meters = 16.124 meters maximum length for a 1.2 meter width. This calculation did not take into account any other data stored in the PosterShop Volume file and therefore is probably slightly less than 16.124 meters. Also, the Arizona printer must have a sufficiently large hard drive installed to handle at least a 2 gigabyte uncompressed output file. Our advertisement for handling 100 feet x 100 feet must be clarified to include a very low resolution at processing time and also a limit on the number of colors output. We can handle this size as long as the 2 gigabyte limit on the volume file is not exceeded. A customer can produce this size of output at 50 dpi with 4 colors. This size and resolution of output is sufficient for outdoor billboard use since most billboard resolutions are 18 or 36 dpi. We realize the severe limitation that this puts on very large sizes and resolutions and have discussed changing the internal volume format to 64 bit pointers and file structure. This requires a major change in all areas of all PosterShop modules that do any kind of access to the volume file. This includes prnlibs (which are also volume files). We realize the complexity and the challenge to make this change but also realize that it must be done. I can tell you that it is a high priority for a future release, but for now, your customer must limit their output sizes.

-- Anonymous, December 30, 1999

I am very disappointed to hear about this limitation. We use the Ilford version of the Postershop software and this is the first time I have heard this is a limit in your software. The tech guys at Ilford told me last time I asked that it was an Windows NT limit. This is more of a limitation for me when I am using 6 colors on the Colorspan XII.

How soon do you expect we can hear of a new version that corrects this? I know you have the next version being beta tested already.

-- Anonymous, January 02, 2000