Answers to software operation problems

After releasing products some months ago it became immediately obvious that they didn't work in other 'Photoshop Plug-In Compatible' host applications. The recent software revisions fix this for some hosts, notably Corel's Paint Shop Pro, but other host applications support an extremely old version of the plug-in architecture for whatever reason. We're still working on the conversions for early next year. Check the latest compatability list here.

I'm using Mac OS X, and I'm getting a 151203 error. What's up?

This is a problem we've recently discovered that affects Mac users who are using Mac OS X in a locale other than English. In this case, due to a bug in our software, it is sometimes impossible for the software to locate resources it requires. Temporarily, this problem requires you to install the plug-in(s) to a fairly specific location. You must install to a subdirectory called FixerLabs in the Plug-Ins subdirectory of your host application's installation location. For example, if you're using Photoshop 7.0 a common location is /Applications/Adobe/Photoshop 7.0/Plug-Ins/FixerLabs.

If you are using a different locale, you may not have a Plug-Ins folder (it will be named differently according to the currently selected language being used). In this case you should create a Plug-Ins folder inside your Photoshop installation and install our plug-ins to that folder. You must then instruct Photoshop to use this additional plug-ins folder. To do this, go to Photoshop's Preferences menu, and then add it to the list labeled 'Additional Plug-In Folders'.

We apologise for this again, and would like to make it clear that it is a problem with our products, NOT with Photoshop. We are working to resolve this problem as soon as we can.

I'm running Windows and want to install a plug-in under more than one image editor.

We're currently working on making this easier. The Windows Installer cannot install two copies of the same version of a piece of software, and our installer only lets you install to one location. The next release will allow the selection of multiple locations. For now, you can copy the plug-ins to the 'Plug-Ins' directory of another image editor and everything will work fine. For example, to copy from Photoshop 7.0 to Photoshop CS, navigate in My Computer to the folder C:\Program Files\Adobe\Photoshop 7.0\Plug-Ins, select the FixerLabs directory and select Edit -> Copy from the My Computer menu bar. Then navigate to C:\Program Files\Adobe\Photoshop CS\Plug-Ins and select Edit -> Paste from the menu.

I'm running Windows and I've installed the plug-ins but they don't appear in my filter menu. Where are they?

This is most likely because the Windows installer defaults to the plug-in location for Photoshop CS and if you are using a different version you will need to copy the relevant folder across to the correct location. Use My Computer to locate the installed folder. It will most likely be in C:/Program Files/Adobe/Photoshop CS/Plug-Ins/Fixerlabs/. Select the Fixerlabs folder and copy this across to the correct location for your version of Photoshop or other image editing software which will be something like C:/Program Files/Adobe/My Photoshop/Plug-Ins/ where My Photoshop is the folder name for your version of Photoshop (e.g. Photoshop 7.0, Photoshop CS2 or Photoshop Elements 2 etc.), and paste the Fixerlabs folder into the relevant Plug-Ins folder. If you now restart Photoshop and select an image the Filters menu should now include a Fixerlabs tab and your filters.

I've paid for the plug-in but the results are still watermarked. Why?

This is because the software has not been successfully registered. The registration process is slightly different depending on how you bought your plug-in in the first place, the options are:

Option 1- Automatic Registration of Trial Software : You have downloaded a trial copy of the plug-in and then sometime later selected the 'Register' button from the plug-in control panel. This allows you to purchase directly from the 'Integrated Store' which forms part of the software. To operate at all this requires an internet connection to access our webstore and requires you to provide your personal details and method of payment. On completion of the purchase transaction the serial # details are automatically placed on your computer and the software will be fully operational. Very occasionally the purchase process may complete but the registration process may be interrupted so you continue to get watermarked results. To rectify you will need to Manually Activate your software as indicated in Option 2. You will need to retrieve your order confirmation email that was sent on completion of the purchase process as it contains your Serial # details.

Option 2- Manual Registration of Purchased & Downloaded Software : You purchased your software from our website and received an order confirmation email which contains your serial # details and instructions on how to download and install a copy of the FixerBundle software. Even if you only purchase a single plug-in we always issue the complete FixerBundle to keep things simple but only the plug-ins which you have purchased will operate fully once registered. Once installed you need to open an image in your image editing software in order to select the plug-in (aka Filters in Photoshop, Effects in PaintShop Pro etc.). Hit the register button from the plug-in control panel and then select the Manual Activation option which will allow you to enter your Name and Serial# details. The process will check on-line to verify your details and then register your software. Any errors that occur will be reported at the time or you will receive a successful completion message.

Option 3- Manual Registration of FixerBundle on CD : Once installed you will be prompted to provide your Serial # details the first time you attempt to open any of the plug-ins. Enter the serial # details provided with your Order Confirmation email and once succesfully validated the software will be fully activated.

I'm trying to use FocusFixer/TrueBlur on a RAW file but LensFIT stays off and says "Not enough information for modeling". Why?

FocusFixer and TrueBlur does not support reading RAW files directly and if the process you have uses to convert your image to a TIFF or JPEG removes the EXIF data then the LensFIT feature will not work. As RAW file formats vary between camera manufacturer it is often the case that you need to use the software provided by the camera manufacturer in order to convert the RAW file format correctly before opening in Photoshop.

Super-Resolution won't work and my camera doesn't seem to be supported. Can you please add this to the LensFIT list?

For Super-Resolution to work at all the original EXIF data attached to your photograph must be intact. SizeFixer, FocusFixer and TrueBlur all read the EXIF information in order to create a model of your camera and operate correctly. Sometimes the camera manufacturer provides sufficient information for us to read all the data we need automatically and the control panel will tell you the camera it is using. Other times you will be prometed to confirm that the suggested camera is the correct one. So if your camera is not on the list the Super-Resolution feature will either not work or work sub-optimally. We can add more cameras to the list if you send us an email, but first please check the latest list of supported cameras.

I've just updated to Mac OS X 10.4.6 and the Plug-Ins no longer work. What's up?

It appears that the latest delta update to 10.4.6 issued by Apple (which installs automatically) is missing something important that our plug-ins require to function. The solution suggested by the MacFixit guys appears to be to run the "combo 10.4.6 " updater again and this effectively restores the missing components succesfully. Please let us know if this resolves the problem or if you find a simpler alternative.

You can get the 'combo' updater from:

SizeFixer just stopped working and now I can't open any image file. Why?

Occasionally the system files that SizeFixer uses to store image settings become corrupted. For example this can sometimes occur if the processing of an image becomes interrupted for some reason. To rectify you need to delete the corrupted files and these will then be recreated next time you select an image.

Typical Symptoms: File opens in preview but SizeFixer crashes before main image view opens.

Solution: There are three files that you will need to delete (there is no way to tell which of them is faulty):

The files are stored in the Application Data folder that are specific to each Windows XP user. So if more than one User operates SizeFixer then you may need to delete the files for each user. The files can be found in the following Directory where <your username> should be replaced by the name of each relevant user:

C:\Documents and Settings\<your username>\Application Data\FixerLabs\SizeFixer SLR\

You can navigate to this directory from the "Start" menu and then select "My Computer" and then go to drive C: (usually).

If you do not see an \Applicaiton Data\ folder in C:\Documents and Settings\<your username>

this is most probably becasue this is a system folder and may be hidden. To view all hidden files and folders you should go to the "Tools" menu, then "Folder Options..", then "View", and in "Advanced settings" select "Files and Folders" then "Hidden files and folders" and finally select "Show hidden files and folders".

The next note of caution is that if you chose to do a global search for the missing files (not recommended) you should find more than one copy. The 'Master' copy will be in the Programs Files folder and under no circumstances should these files be deleted. The damnaged files will always be in the Applicaiton Data folder for each user. You may find that not all three of the files are present which is another sign of a corruption problem with the user data. Delete whichever files you find (but not the Master files). You will unfortunately lose any output size and parameter settings that you have previously created. Now restart SizerFixer and the problem should be resolved.

Problems with Software Operation

Why doesn't it work in my host, which IS Photoshop plug-in compatible?