I don't understand this program at all...

[Apostle92627]

In one of my failed projects (I've had a few too many over the past couple days), I tried using an envelope to warp text. When I clicked Envelope (or perspective), I got this error message:

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "summersnight.py", line 134, in <module>
    e.affect()
  File "inkex.py", line 283, in affect
    self.effect()
  File "summersnight.py", line 76, in effect
    self.q[query] = scale*float(p.stdout.read())
ValueError: could not convert string to float:

[brynn]

Welcome to the forum!

That looks like an error message from an Inkscape extension....or maybe LPE??  But I've never heard of anything in Inkscape called "Summersnight".  But that appears to be part of the problem.  What is it?  Do you know?

Are you trying to use Envelope Deform and/or Perspective extensions?  Or LPE?  If LPE, which one, Envelope Deform or Envelope/Perspective?

It looks like we might not be seeing the entire error message (because of the colon at the end of the last line).  Could you make sure that's all the text from the error message, and if it's not, please show us the whole thing?

It's possible that we can't help with this, depending on where that error message is coming from.  For example, if it's a 3rd party extension, you might have to contact the author.  But let's gather some more info first.

[Apostle92627]

I'm not sure why it was saying summersnight, since I was actually clicking Envelope under Modify in the Extensions menu and I don't have any extensions installed. However, I found a YouTube video by Logos by Nick, and he showed a different way to do it, where you open up the Path Effects dialog and click the plus sign and select "Envelope/Perspective", and to my astonishment, it actually worked!

I'm gonna have to go back tomorrow and just do what he does. 

Also, the colon at they end was the last part of the error message.

[brynn]

Well, you do have extensions, and if you were getting this error by just calling up the extension, I'm concerned that you might not have Inkscape installed properly.

Edit
Actually I found something called summersnight.py in the Inkscape extensions repo.  So I guess it's a real thing.

Even though you may find a different way to do what you want for this, I suspect you're still going to have problems with using extensions in Inkscape, unless we can solve this problem.

Let us know.  If you still want to try and solve it, please make sure that's the entire error message.  I still think it might be cut off.

[Apostle92627]

Well, you do have extensions, and if you were getting this error by just calling up the extension, I'm concerned that you might not have Inkscape installed properly.

Edit
Actually I found something called summersnight.py in the Inkscape extensions repo.  So I guess it's a real thing.

Even though you may find a different way to do what you want for this, I suspect you're still going to have problems with using extensions in Inkscape, unless we can solve this problem.

Let us know.  If you still want to try and solve it, please make sure that's the entire error message.  I still think it might be cut off.

That was the entire part of the error message. There was nothing after the colon.

The problem originated while I was watching this video:

https://youtu.be/ldbdhVWaT20?t=222

The problem was that every time I tried to use envelope (I wasn't using the extension she recommended) to get the text on the square, I got that error message. However, I'm happy that Logos by Nick's Arched Text Emblem video showed a different way to do it that didn't give me any error message.

EDIT: I can't even find summersnight, and I know I haven't download any external extensions either.

[brynn]

Aahh, ok, I get it.  Thanks.

And I just want to confirm that you're using version 0.92.3 ?

If you were using a version 1.0 alpha version, there would be an explanation for this.  (Extensions are known not to be working yet.)  But if it's happening in 0.92.3, we don't have to worry about reporting a potential bug (because that's not the current stable version anymore).

Don't worry about summersnight.  I found it in the source files for Inkscape, so it's not a bad installation or malware or anything like that.  I don't know why you're getting that error because I don't understand the error message well enough.

But if you need to solve it, someone else should be along who knows more about error messages than I do.

[Apostle92627]

Aahh, ok, I get it.  Thanks.

And I just want to confirm that you're using version 0.92.3 ?

If you were using a version 1.0 alpha version, there would be an explanation for this.  (Extensions are known not to be working yet.)  But if it's happening in 0.92.3, we don't have to worry about reporting a potential bug (because that's not the current stable version anymore).

Don't worry about summersnight.  I found it in the source files for Inkscape, so it's not a bad installation or malware or anything like that.  I don't know why you're getting that error because I don't understand the error message well enough.

But if you need to solve it, someone else should be along who knows more about error messages than I do.

Yeah, I'm using 0.92.3. The current version isn't up on the Windows Store yet. I would love to know why I got the error message, though the alternate way I found seems like a better way to do the project I'm working on.

[brynn]

Hhmm, I think we've seen problems with the versions on the Windows Store, but I don't know what they specifically are.  Someone else will probably know though.

[Moini]

The current version is up in the Windows store (since this week).

But why would one use that - are you on the restricted Windows version that cannot install anything except from the store?

[Apostle92627]

The current version is up in the Windows store (since this week).

But why would one use that - are you on the restricted Windows version that cannot install anything except from the store?

Oh, I heard 0.92.4 was out. But, I'm using the Store version because I trust downloading off the Store more than downloading off a website on the Internet, though I do have Gimp, which isn't available on the Windows Store.

[Moini]

Tbh. I would trust the Inkscape website more than the Windows store... At least downloading directly from the creators means that there is one entity less that can mess with the program code, and Microsoft isn't an entity I would trust much in.

[flamingolady]

Ditto what Moini said, I trust the Inkscape site the most as well. 

[brynn]

I understand how you feel, thinking that Windows store would provide the kind of software that is best for Windows.  I've had that same mindset, in the past.  But in this case, it really is probably better to get it from the Inkscape website.

I can't really explain why the version in the Windows store isn't exactly the same as what you can get on the Inkscape website, since the Inkscape project provides Inkscape for the Windows store to use.  But somehow, problems have happened, and the problem you're seeing is somewhat similar to the problems we've seen before (as far as I understand).

So the first step in trying to solve your problem, would be to uninstall your current version, and download it from the Inkscape website, and install that.  If that version has the same problem, then we can look deeper, and figure it out.