Problem with svg graphics from Matlab

Azergoth · Post by **Azergoth** » Thu Apr 16, 2015 10:30 am

Hi!

I'm trying to put .svg files (from Matlab) in my Lyx document but the compiler seems to have a problem with those plots.

In Lyx, everything works fine like you can see this screenshot:

but in the pdf, I got this:

As you can see, there seems to be a problem with the text (labels).

Sorry if this is a dumb question, bu I haven't found anything in the help and tutorials...
I'm using Lyx 2.1.3 on OS X 10.10.3

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Post by **Johannes_B** » Thu Apr 16, 2015 2:26 pm

Hi and welcome,

i am no LyX expert, but i try to help till a LyX helper comes along.
SVG is a vector graphics format, just like pdf. pdf can be treated naturally by LaTeX (assuming pdfLaTeX), so i think converting the image externally will get satisfying results.

I am not sure how LyX deals with svg-graphics internally. Possible, that they get converted by the same program you would use by hand, i am not sure.

Azergoth · Post by **Azergoth** » Thu Apr 16, 2015 3:12 pm

Hi,

Thanks for your reply. I just discovered something even stranger: some graphics are handled properly, others not.
Initially, I wanted to use .eps format (I've been told it would be better...) but this did not work at all. Anyway, I wanted to use a vector format...

I tried replacing a .svg file by a .pdf file and Lyx can't handle it (display) but the final PDF document is compiled correctly.

The major drawback of this, is that the graphics in pdf format are full pages...

Post by **Johannes_B** » Thu Apr 16, 2015 3:32 pm

They shouldn't be full pages. Don't be confused by the name, you can include them just like a jpg or png.

If there really is something else going on, we need help by a LyX suppporter.

Azergoth · Post by **Azergoth** » Thu Apr 16, 2015 3:38 pm

Johannes_B wrote:They shouldn't be full pages. Don't be confused by the name, you can include them just like a jpg or png.

If there really is something else going on, we need help by a LyX suppporter.

When I save my plots from Matlab to pdf, it's a full page. I just checked in LyX, each graphic gets its own page... :/
I think I will need a LyX supporter...

Post by **Johannes_B** » Thu Apr 16, 2015 3:47 pm

You can convert the svg to pdf using a tool on your machine. How do I convert an SVG to a PDF on Linux

On the other hand, you can crop the Matlab-created pdf using pdfcrop.
But all this stuff is going on on the basic level of computers. You need to pull some strings and twitch some pieces to get things going. LyX is doing such stuff in the background.

Post by **scottkosty** » Thu Apr 16, 2015 3:53 pm

You might want to change the converter (or the specific invocation of it) from PDF to SVG. This is what is used for exporting I believe. Look under Tools > Preferences > Converters.

Azergoth · Post by **Azergoth** » Thu Apr 16, 2015 4:39 pm

scottkosty wrote:You might want to change the converter (or the specific invocation of it) from PDF to SVG. This is what is used for exporting I believe. Look under Tools > Preferences > Converters.

I've added this: SVG -> LyX and SVX ->PDF (pdftex)

But it does not help...

Post by **scottkosty** » Thu Apr 16, 2015 5:53 pm

Can you run LyX from the command line with -dbg graphics? That might give you some clues of how the files are being converted in the background.

Azergoth · Post by **Azergoth** » Thu Apr 16, 2015 7:28 pm

scottkosty wrote:Can you run LyX from the command line with -dbg graphics? That might give you some clues of how the files are being converted in the background.

How do I do this? do you mean the LaTeX log?

LaTeX.org

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