SVG to PDF/AI gradient and transparency issues

This is probably quite off topic for these forums, so apologies for that up front, but I can't seem to get answers in more appropriate places.
I am trying to use inkscape or rsvg-convert, which both use cairo, to convert SVG to PDF.
Firstly, when I open the SVG in Illustrator directly, everything works as expected, but the cairo converted PDF has a couple of problems.
Typically I get "An unknown shading type was encountered" and the offending shapes are un-editable "images" with a clipping mask over them.
There are two circumstances that result in problems for me.
1) A gradient with only 2 stops.
In the following example I have duplicated the offset="0" stop which fixes things and means that the resulting shape that is filled with this gradient works fine. Without the duplicate declaration, the gradient is converted to an un-editable image with a clipping mask when the PDF is viewed in Illustrator.
   <linearGradient id="ian_symbols_b8a58aafc1f12e74492e9e865b7f569b" gradientUnits="userSpaceOnUse" x1="113.7275" y1="136.9414" x2="197.0259" y2="136.9414">
    <stop offset="0" style="stop-color:#927A62" id="stop1472" />
    <stop offset="0" style="stop-color:#927A62" id="stop1472_dup" />
    <stop offset="1" style="stop-color:#93866F" id="stop1474" />
   </linearGradient>
2) A shape that has an opacity that is less than "1". I don't know how to fix this one and still maintain the look of the original. I understand that there are some issues with transparency and the PDF format, but obviously the full AI version of the PDF format these days supports transparency.
Does anyone have any experience doing server-side conversions of SVG to PDF and have managed to create a PDF which contains gradients and transparency that are actually editable once opened in Illustrator?
Or does anyone know if there is something more I can do with the original SVG code to make the opacity work ok in the final PDF?
Thanks

Works fine for me as .ai with pdf comptible turned on. You may have input transparency in the wrong location in Illustrator. Change opacity in the gradient palette, and not tint in the color palette.
Opacity is 0 here, anything less tha 100% will create tranaprency. To proof in Illustratopr do a Shift Command D to change your background to a checkerboard pattern.

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Flattening gradients with transparency issues * CS4

Hi guys,
I've invested far too much time trying to figure this out.
I have three squares (two gradients and one white) on different soft light values intersecting each other.
I need to flatten this transparency for production purposes and I'm getting two intersections as clipping
masks of images instead of paths (this is the problem, I need them to remain as paths).
Some screen shots:
What do you think?
Thanks in advance.
Best,
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Flatten transparency will either give you rasters, or no change at all, that is how it works for blend modes like soft light.
How about using pathfinder >> divide to get your shapes, and recoloring them without transparency.
Is it just transparency, or blending modes you have to remove? Not sure why you would have to do this, do you have an old imagesetter that won't take a newer version of postscript. Are you putting this into another program. Reason I ask is there may be a better solution than rebuilding your files without transparency.

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Peter -- I am looking over those articles now. Here is the problem -- we do not print from the application
File > Print, and under Output, choose Composite CMYK, and CHECK the “Simulate Overprint” checkbox. Under Advanced, select your all-raster flattener.
I do not have her entire document -- only a couple of the problem children.
I suppose a workaround would be to (if I had her files) see if I could print as a postscript and distill it to a PDF -- or print to a postscript and send that into Trueflow to see if it will accept it --
However, I did receive a warning that by creating that high res setting with the slider all the way to the left, it would rasterize the whole page --
Now, I can already do that in just one step by opening the PDF in photoshop at a very high resolution and flattening it --
I simply hate having to go that route when we have type on the page too -- I think my issue is a lack of proper equipment -- we don't like to rasterize if we can help it -
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Indesign CS4 to PDF 1.3 transparency issue

We submitted an ad to the local newspaper that we created in Indesign CS4 and Acrobat 9. The ad was exported as a press-quality Acrobat 4 PDF.
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Has something changed in CS4 that I don't know about? Could it be the multiply blend mode rather than normal?
Something did change. In some cases (maybe all), the flattener in CS4 will put the shadow behind the background rather than in front. In both cases, though, using a RIP and/or viewer which is set to honor overprints will avoid the problem, and allow the artwork to render correctly.
You say that all colors are CMYK. Are you absolutely certain that the background (whatever the rectangular shadow-containing "boxes" knock out) is not a spot color? Your problem description would be more easily explicable if it were.
One workaround suggested was to export the file as a JPG or EPS and save as a Photoshop PDF. We did that on one ad that will run Monday, so we'll see. However, that makes the files with photos enormous -- like from 4 mb to 26 mb
This in itself suggests that these folks do not know what they are doing (though I know that's not terribly helpful to you if you need to advertise with them). I must say that given current economic realities in the newspaper business, it's hard to image a paper refusing to cooperate with a paying advertiser - especially one who has been previously bitten - if not by the newspaper's own incompetence, at least by their unwillingness/inability to provide a proof.

PDF Online Transparency Issue

I have a system that opens PDF files in the browser incorrectly. The PDF makes the background transparent in Internet Explorer v. 9.0. I can open the document in reader/acrobat standalone and it displays fine, it only has an issue when used with the browser. I would normally just have the user download the pdf but the documents they are looking at require them to be online to view.

I just found on other thread. I tried this and it helped solve view the contents. I other words this resolved.
Triple-click the line of text below to select it, the copy the selected text to the Clipboard (command-C):
/Library/Internet Plug-ins
In the Finder, select
Go ▹ Go to Folder
from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-G. Paste (command-V) into the text box that opens, then press return.
From the folder that opens, remove any items that have the letters “PDF” in the name. You may be prompted for your login password. Then quit and relaunch Safari, and test.
I've seen an unconfirmed report that the "Silverlight" web plugin distributed by Microsoft can also interfere with PDF display in Safari, so you might need to remove it as well, if applicable.
If you still have the issue, repeat with this line:
~/Library/Internet Plug-ins
If you don’t like the results of this procedure, restore the items from the backup you made before you started. Relaunch Safari again.

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I have a document that has a series of cut-out bottles on a gradiant background.
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In rereading the post, I may have misinterpreted what you were saying originally (a screen capture is a wonderful way to show us what you are talking about). I thought you were saying the transparent background area was showing as a differnt shade from the rest of the background, but I realize now that probably is not what you meant at all.
First off let's try to get some more details about the file, and about the intended final output. Will this print on a press, or digitally? Are the colors Spot or Process?
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CS4, Snow Leopard, and Transparency Gradients

Since upgrading to Snow Leopard I cannot make gradients in Photoshop that have transparency in them. They always come out as a solid color. Anyone else experiencing the same?

Hi
I'm new to the forums and I had asked a question to an expert and now I
get inundated with other messages not pertaining to my question. How, might I
stop this from happening?
Thanks,
Thomas
In a message dated 10/18/2009 7:23:55 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
[email protected] writes:
Yes!
I am definitely having the same problem, and I recently upgraded to
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I have tried resetting my gradients. I find that all the gradients
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'Photoshop transparent gradient problem snow leopard'.

Transparency issues with INDCS3 and Pantone color

Running Windows XP, Serv Pk 2, Creative Suite CS3, All updates.
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KEN PANTHEN, Albany, NY

Ken,
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http://indesignsecrets.com/eliminating-the-white-box-effect.php
http://indesignsecrets.com/eliminating-ydb-yucky-discolored-box-syndrome.php
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Transparency flattening REQUIRES having access to the high-resolution images to get good results. One of the slogans I teach printers is "Fatten before you flatten." Meaning, replace the low-res images with high-res images.

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- During all this System Restore crashed loosing previous restore points; this may be a coincidence.
BACKGROUND
- Adobe Reader v9.5.1 worked fine pre upgrade
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- Running on xp sp 3
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- Microsoft virus scanner up to date; no viruses
- Desktop is classic windows blue
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Hi folks
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Thanks

To echo Peter's response, 154 MB for a 36 page magazine is not necessarily all that large, especially if the content is graphically rich.
There is some information you are not providing us. For example, how are you bringing in the Illustrator artwork? And with what settings are you exporting PDF?
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- Dov

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SVG to PDF/AI gradient and transparency issues

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